Montana just released its final wolf management plan after a lengthy process that incorporated public comments, wolf management strategies, and research.

“The former wolf plan served us well, but it was time to make sure our management plan contained the evolutions we’ve made in wolf research, monitoring, conflict management, and the changes to the legal framework we operate under today,” said Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) Director Christy Clark.

The new plan includes “updates in wolf-related research, more than 20 years of management experience, evolution in conflict management, new laws, social perspectives, and public input,” according to a news release. It’s built upon a foundation of solid MFWP wolf management, including population monitoring, tracking harvests, effective conflict management and allows for future flexibility to integrate evolutions in science.

It also incorporates current depredation prevention and MFWP’s response program.

One of the main differences in the new plan versus the older one is the key counting metric, which changed from the number of breeding pairs to the number of wolves representing at least 15 breeding pairs.

FWP determined that 450 wolves ensured 15 breeding pairs.

“Wolf management discussions continue to draw a lot of attention from people in Montana and around the world,” said Clark. “The 2025 Wolf Plan will ensure those conversations can be grounded in current science and the research FWP is doing every day.”