President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to determine whether grey and Mexican wolf populations have recovered enough to strip them of Endangered Species Act protections. The move aims to support livestock producers facing high beef prices and tight margins, drawing swift criticism from conservationists.
The White House directive targets endangered species protection for both the grey wolf and its subspecies, the Mexican wolf. His order said ranchers played a “vital role” in the food supply chain and American cultural heritage. While the order does not give ranchers immediate license to shoot wolves preying on livestock, it initiates a 90-day review period for the Interior Department to weigh delisting options. The administration frames the policy as a vital step to support pastoral farmers navigating record-low US livestock herds and rising consumer demand for beef.
Federal Protections Under Review by the Department of the Interior
Under the executive order, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum must evaluate whether wild wolf populations have rebounded sufficiently to warrant removing Endangered Species Act protections nationwide. Past attempts to lift federal oversight for grey wolves have faced steep legal hurdles; an attempt to de-list them at a federal level in 2022 became tied up in litigation, and some campaigners have indicated they intend to do the same if the US Department of Interior acts on Trump’s order.
Concurrently, the Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced broader Endangered Species Act regulatory reforms. These changes eliminate the burdensome “blanket ruleoption under section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act for
threatened” species created in the final months of the Biden administration, allowing officials to tailor protections individually while incorporating economic impacts into critical habitat designations.
Population Milestones and the Economic Pressures on American Ranchers
Official figures highlight a dramatic rebound for the Mexican wolf since its reintroduction. According to US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) figures, there were 319 Mexican wolves in the wild in the US in 2025, up from just four when they were reintroduced in 1998. Meanwhile, there are roughly 18,000 grey wolves across the US, though they are still considered endangered as most of their habitat has been destroyed by humans.
The administration points to severe agricultural pressures to justify the review. Noting that US livestock herds were at a 75-year low while demand for beef had risen by 10% in the past decade, the order added: More can and should be done to support this critical industry.
At the same time, producers face tightening margins exacerbated by recent administration decisions to loosen restrictions on beef imports to address price rises, driven by drought and an outbreak of parasites in US beef stocks.
Conservationists Warn of Judicial Battles and Retaken Ground
Environmental and wildlife organizations argue that targeting wolves provides no real relief for agricultural producers. The Trump administration today issued an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to decide whether to remove Endangered Species Act protections from both gray and Mexican wolves nationwide, according to a statement from the Center for Biological Diversity — calling it a disaster for America’s wolves, who are still recovering after nearly being wiped out in the 20th century.
Trump’s new push to prematurely remove wolf protections will lead to yet another court decision that reinstates those protections while doing nothing to help ranchers,
said Collette Adkins, senior attorney and director of the carnivore conservation program at the Center for Biological Diversity.
Adkins noted that coexistence tools such as guard dogs and fencing effectively protect livestock, arguing that federal funds should support those measures rather than wasting taxpayer money trying to kill or illegally strip wolves of lifesaving protections.
Other wildlife advocates emphasize that numeric growth does not equate to ecological recovery. The Mexican grey wolf is not recovered simply because the population has grown,
said Claire Musser, executive director of the Grand Canyon Wolf Recovery Project. Weakening federal protections now would put decades of recovery work at risk.
Compensation Programs and Diverging Perspectives on Livestock Threat
The Wolf Conservation Center noted that ranchers were entitled to up to 100% compensation for any livestock losses caused by wolves under the current system, with individual states providing funding for programmes to deter attacks. Because state deterrent programs and compensation systems are already active, environmental advocates contend that predator removal policies serve primarily as a political gesture rather than an economic fix.
This is a huge distraction to placate a handful of ranchers and make them believe that wolves are a greater threat than President Trump's own policies,
said Greta Anderson, deputy director of Western Watersheds Project, which works to conserve wildlife in western US states.
With Secretary Burgum facing a 90-day window to deliver his assessment, the debate centers on whether decades of conservation gains will withstand executive attempts to dismantle federal listings in favor of local management.
