Gray Wolves-Endangered

A female gray wolf walks with two of the three pups born in 2017 in the wilds of Lassen National Forest in Northern California. Trump administration officials on Thursday, Oct. 29, stripped Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in most of the U.S., ending longstanding federal safeguards and putting states in charge of overseeing the predators.

 U.S. Forest Service via AP Photo

The Trump administration officially delisted the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act on Thursday, ending more than 45 years of federal protections for the species.

“The gray wolf has exceeded all conservation goals for recovery,” said Interior Secretary David Bernhardt in a speech at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. “Today’s announcement simply reflects the determination that this species is neither a threatened nor endangered species based on the specific factors Congress has laid out in the law.”