The following was released on January 13, 2023, and updated on 01/20/23 from Wisconsin’s Green Fire   

In November 2022, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) released a Draft Wisconsin Wolf Management Plan. When finalized, the Plan is intended to update Wisconsin’s current Wolf Management Plan, which was approved in 1997. The Plan reflects a wide variety of inputs, including recommendations from a Wolf Management Plan Committee the Department convened in 2021, consisting of Wisconsin organizations, individuals, tribes, and agencies who provided input for each element of the Plan. Wisconsin’s Green Fire was represented on this Committee and has provided input on the Plan throughout the entire development process.

The public comment period on the Plan is open until February 28th, 2023, at 11:59 pm. WGF’s Wildlife Work Group members have collectively developed recommendations for the plan that includes aspects of the plan which Wisconsin’s Green Fire strongly supports, some issues of concern, and specific recommendations requiring policy, executive action, and/or budget changes. The recommendations outlined in this summary reflect the combined opinions and contributions of WGF’s Wildlife Work Group members who hold years of experience in Wisconsin wildlife management and biology. 

Click on the recommendations to learn about WFG’s recommendations for the plan..

We encourage anyone interested in the management and conservation of Wisconsin’s wolves to submit comments on the Plan by February 23rd by visiting WDNR’s website here.

For further context, please also view WGF’s two reports analyzing wolf management in Wisconsin: Opportunities Now 2.0: Creating a Shared Vision for Wolves in Wisconsin and The 2021 Wisconsin Wolf Hunt: A Preliminary Assessment. Experts in wildlife biology and management authored these reports, and we are thankful to the Department for incorporating many policy recommendations outlined in these reports into the 2022 Plan. 

For questions, please get in touch with Fred Clark at fclark@wigreenfire.org.

Wisconsin’s Green Fire’s mission is to advance science-informed analysis and policy solutions that address Wisconsin’s greatest conservation challenges.

Further news:

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will hold a public listening session for the proposed Wolf Management Plan on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 as part of the public review and comment period.

This listening session is an additional opportunity for anyone interested to provide input on the proposed plan while the public review and comment period remains open until Feb. 28.

Registration is required by noon CST on Feb. 6 for anyone wishing to provide comment on the proposed plan during the listening session. Registrants will speak in the order of which they’ve signed up, and each speaker will have two minutes. Speakers are also encouraged to review the plan on the DNR’s Wolf Management Plan webpage before joining the listening session.

Members of the public who do not wish to provide testimony during the hearing and only want to listen can watch a live feed of the hearing on the DNR’s YouTube channel. After the event, the recording will be accessible on YouTube for on-demand viewing.

DNR staff will give a brief overview of the plan, and the public comment period will immediately follow. To make sure we hear from everyone who registers to speak, staff will not be addressing questions.

In addition to the public listening session, the DNR will continue to accept comments through the Online Comment Tool, email (DNRWildlifeSwitchboard@wisconsin.gov) or through the mail until 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 28, 2023.