Gray wolves are fighting for survival, and they need your help. The actions we take today will shape their future in the wild.
Over a century ago, gray wolves were common in Nevada, but intensive hunting and trapping wiped them out. In recent years, a few sightings have been reported: a lone gray wolf in 2016, and three more observed in 2024. Nevada is surrounded by wolf populations from neighboring states like California, Oregon, and Idaho. This proximity, combined with Nevada's suitable habitat, suggests that wolves could potentially reestablish themselves in the state if given adequate protections and opportunities. Even without a wild wolf population of our own, Nevadans play a crucial role in the survival and recovery of wolves across America.
Today, gray wolves survive in just 10% of their historical range inthe lower 48 states. The Endangered Species Act offers them the strongest legal protection, prohibiting hunting and trapping. However, wolves in the Northern Rockies have already lost these federal safeguards, and new legislation threatens others.
Don’t be deceived by the name. The Trust the Science Act (H.R. 764/S. 1895) aims to strip federal protections from gray wolves across the U.S. and prevent judicial review, meaning courts would have no power to overturn it. Having narrowly passed the House, it’s now under Senate consideration. Additionally, the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2025 (H.R. 8998), currently circulating in Congress, includes a “rider” in Section 130 to remove federal protections from gray wolves in the lower 48 states.
Without federal protections, hundreds of wolves are slaughtered each year in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming under extreme anti-wolf laws passed in these states. In Wisconsin, when federal protections were briefly lifted, trophy hunters killed 218 wolves in less than three days—more than double the allotted quota. If more wolves lose protections, we could see similar tragedies occur across the country.
Like gray wolves, the critically endangered Mexican gray wolves (‘lobos’) in Arizona and New Mexico are facing similar legislative threats, while red wolves in North Carolina are clinging perilously close to extinction in the wild. The urgency to protect America's wolves could not be greater.
Wolves can't vote, but you can. Your vote is incredibly powerful in shaping their future. Your vote can help save their lives.
No matter where you live, your voice and your vote are essential to protecting wolves. Take action now—before it’s too late.
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