- Djokovic beats Alcaraz in Melbourne blockbuster as Sabalenka survives
- Ageless Djokovic tames Alcaraz to power into Melbourne semi-finals
- Robinson takes Kronplatz giant slalom as Brignone crashes out
- Europe rights court rejects appeal of Romania vote annulment
- Returning Dupont brings 'aura' to Galthie's France for Six Nations
- Prince Harry trial against Murdoch UK tabloids delayed
- Blast kills one person at Barcelona port
- Mbappe says mental shift helped change his Real Madrid 'situation'
- Easterby pinpoints challenge if Irish are to make Six Nations history
- France's arch film provocateur Blier dies at 85
- EU, China warn against trade friction at Davos after Trump return
- Man City sign teenage Brazilian defender Vitor Reis
- Bangladesh probe reveals children held in secret jails
- 'No expectation' for Gatland's struggling Wales in Six Nations
- France talisman Dupont bringing Olympic gold to Six Nations
- Syrians return to homes devastated by war
- Brignone tops times in first run of Kronplatz giant slalom
- WHO 'regrets' Trump decision to pull US from organization
- At Davos, EU vows pragmatism with Trump
- Gutsy Sabalenka beats Pavlyuchenkova, wind to reach Melbourne semis
- Sabalenka survives to set up Melbourne semi with 'emotional' Badosa
- China says committed to WHO, Paris climate deal after US pulls out
- Taut Munich Olympics thriller explores media and terror
- 'Sucks always' as error-strewn Paul laments missed Melbourne chances
- Rain-triggered landslide kills 16 in Indonesia
- Pharrell pursues Paris landmark takeovers with Louvre show
- EV sales slip in Europe in 2024 in overall stable car market
- Afghan Taliban government announces prisoner swap with US
- Stuttering PSG face moment of truth in Champions League
- Fire at Turkey ski resort hotel kills 10, injures 32
- Israel-Hamas truce holding though Trump doubts it will last
- Trump takes US reins with flurry of executive orders
- Zverev beats Paul and a feather to reach Melbourne semis
- Celtics crush Warriors, Cavs cruise past Suns
- Trump 'not confident' Gaza deal will hold
- Ohio State holds off Notre Dame to clinch US college football crown
- Gauff 'not completely crushed' by Melbourne quarter-final loss
- 'Too hard': Vietnam's factory workers return to country life
- China, EU, Ukraine leaders take Davos stage under Trump shadow
- Love and rights: Thailand's same-sex marriage milestone
- Gauff stunned as Djokovic, Alcaraz square up in Melbourne blockbuster
- Trump 2.0 boosts interest in Davos: World Economic Forum chief
- EU's legal weapon facing the heat from US big tech
- 6.0-magnitude earthquake shakes Taiwan
- Trump vows to take Panama Canal, urges Putin to make Ukraine deal
- Emotional Badosa stuns Gauff to reach Australian Open semi-finals
- S.Korea's suspended president to attend impeachment hearing
- Trump signs order to pull US from WHO, citing funding disparities
- Asian markets swing as Trump revives tariff fears on taking office
- Facing Trump and Musk, EU lawmakers seek sure footing
US court reinstates gray wolf endangered species protections
A US court has struck down a Trump-era decision to remove federal protections for gray wolves across much of the country, in a move hailed by conservationists who said the listing was vital for the species' recovery.
A 26-page ruling issued Thursday by Judge Jeffrey White in a case brought by wildlife groups found the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) had erred in its October 2020 decision to remove the apex predators from the Endangered Species Act (ESA), where they were first listed in the 1970s.
Though the decision to delist gray wolves across most of the lower-48 states was taken by the administration of former president Donald Trump, Joe Biden's government had continued to defend the move in court.
"It really is a win for wolves across the country," Collette Adkins of the Center for Biological Diversity, told AFP.
"And I hope it finally convinces the Fish and Wildlife Service to really focus on recovering wolves instead of prematurely removing their protections."
A quarter million gray wolves -- long a symbol of the free spirit of the American wilderness -- once roamed from coast to coast before the arrival of European settlers and eradication campaigns that endured into the 20th Century.
At the time of the decision to de-list them, the wolves had recovered from a low of 1,000 to around 6,000 -- but hundreds were subsequently legally killed, either through hunting or conflicts with livestock operators.
In one egregious example, hunters in Wisconsin killed over 218 wolves in less than three days in February 2021, using packs of dogs, snares and leg-hold traps -- well beyond the state's own limit of killing 119 wolves.
The 2020 decision to remove the species' protections had been opposed by 1.8 million Americans in public comments, as well as hundreds of scientists, veterinary professionals, and the iconic conservationist Jane Goodall.
Even the researchers commissioned by the FWS to carry out a review of the science found it did not support de-listing.
"Both under Democratic and Republican administrations, there has been this year-to-year desire to just be done recovering wolves," said Adkins.
"It's been frustrating because the Endangered Species Act envisions a recovery of these animals so that they can fulfill their ecosystem role," she added.
Research has confirmed the wolf's importance in thinning over-browsing herds of elk, which in turn prevents destruction of habitat, for example. And a recent study from Wisconsin found that wolves kept deer away from roads, reducing collisions between deer and cars.
Adkins said she was hopeful of a change in policy after interior secretary Deb Haaland this week penned an op-ed in USA Today criticizing some western States in the northern Rocky mountain range, which have stepped up hunting campaigns in recent months.
The gray wolves of the northern Rockies haven't been covered by the Endangered Species Act since a 2011 Congressional act, but Halaand wrote she could reinstate federal protections specifically for them if necessary.
A.S.Diogo--PC