Species Use Database

Gray wolve
Canis lupus

Used for Recreation and financial income for the state in North America and Wyoming

A. Species

Scientific name: Canis lupus

Common name(s): Gray wolve

Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Least Concern


B. Location of use

Geographic location(s):

  • North America
  • Wyoming

Country/Region:


C. Scale of assessment

Scale of assessment: Individual Site

Name/Details of location: Yellowstone National Park


D. Timescale of use

Start Year: 2011

End Year: 2013


E. Information about the use

How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Type of use: Extractive

Practice of use: Hunting and/or Trapping of live terrestrial and aerial animals

Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal

Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism

Purpose(s) of end use: Recreation and financial income for the state

Motivation of use: Income generation from trade (individual/household/community), Recreational and Population/Area Management

Is this use legal or illegal?: Legal under national law


F. Information about the Users

Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people, Non-local Internal and National / local government


G. Information about the sustainability of use

Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: No, sustainability not determined

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The use of the target species, specifically through hunting, is discussed in terms of ecological sustainability but is not explicitly judged to be fully sustainable or unsustainable. The study highlights that intensive hunting of specific wolf packs can destabilize population dynamics by reducing fitness and increasing refuge-seeking behaviors, which can affect the ecological balance. However, when hunting quotas are managed across multiple packs rather than focused on a few, the wolf population shows resilience, which supports ecosystem stability. Thus, while there are strategies that can mitigate negative impacts, the ecological sustainability of wolf hunting remains partly uncertain due to other factors, such as unaddressed human disturbances and habitat changes.

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: the economic sustainability of wolf hunting is considered due to its impact on tourism and state revenue generation through hunting quotas​

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded


Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species

It suggests that distributing hunting quotas across multiple packs, rather than concentrating on one, can mitigate negative ecological impacts. This approach would potentially reduce excessive refuge-seeking behavior among wolves, stabilize population levels, and maintain ecological balance, thereby making wolf hunting more sustainable both ecologically and economically​


Record source

Information about the record source: scientific_pub, formal_data_stats and expert_knowledge

Date of publication/issue/production: 2017-01-01T00:00:00+0000

Source Reference(s):

Hochard, J., & Finnoff, D. (2017). Cross-jurisdictional management of a trophy-hunted species. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 420, 41–52.
10.1016/j.jtbi.2017.02.001

Date of record entry: 2024-11-08


Records from the same source material: