Wolves in the Great Lakes are officially back under the jurisdiction of state and tribal governments, but lawsuits could change that yet again.
The handoff from federal to state management became official on May 4, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources said Thursday.
Wolves in the Great Lakes region first were delisted from federal protections in March 2007, but a federal court ruling last September reinstated the canine's status as threatened.
In March, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service re-issued its proposal to remove Great Lakes wolves from federal Endangered Species Act protections.
Wolves will remain protected in most cases under state management, as they were for most of 2007 and 2008. In general, it remains illegal to kill or harass wolves in the Northland unless they are endangering people, pets or livestock.
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There are about 3,000 wolves in Minnesota and 500 each in Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Several wolf-support and animal-welfare groups have pledged to file suit against the revised federal wolf delisting plan, saying it doesn't assure wolves will be allowed to thrive and expand their range.
