Wolverine Still Not on Endangered Species List – Fish and Wildlife Gear Up for Lawsuit

A host of environmental groups are gearing up for a lawsuit against the Fish and Wildlife service over the lack of an endangered species listing for the wolverine. Alliance for the Wild Rockies spokesman Michael Garrity explains:

"14 groups sent 60 days notice and intent to sue which is something Congress put in place that if you're going to sue the federal government over an endangered species issue you have to give them 60 days to fix the problem before you sue them," Garrity said. "So that's what we did today."

Garrity said the endangered sp3ecies listing was pulled for political reasons.

"The reason we decided to get involved was the Fish and Wildlife Service scientists said that the wolverine is going extinct," Garrity said. "In spite of the recommendation of their own scientists, they decided not to listen. We believe they are doing this for political rather than scientific or legal reasons."

The process for listing the wolverine has gone hand-in-hand with the debate over the effects of climate change. Wolverines den in deep, late-season snow, which some say will decline as the climate changes, but Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe said predictions about the localized effects of climate change are uncertain.