Montana officials and conservationists have resolved their differences for now over the state’s wolf-trapping regulations that some feared put grizzly bears at risk.
In an amicable ending to the legal battle begun last year, the Flathead-Lolo-Bitterroot Citizen Task Force secured some tightening of trapping regulations that it said violated the Endangered Species Act.
“The terms of the settlement increase protection for grizzly bears across their habitat area in Montana, which is what we sought all along,” Patty Ames, president of the group, said in a statement.
The lawsuit settlement finalized Thursday in U.S. District Court for the District of Montana follows the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission’s adoption of revised trapping regulations on Nov. 12.
