A judge reversed a Trump-era decision to remove gray wolves from the endangered species list

• Federal protection will be restored for gray wolves across most of the lower 48 states, following a judge's ruling on Thursday.
• The removal of the animals from the endangered species list came during the Trump era and was defended in court by the Biden administration.

Gray wolves in a large portion of the US will receive federal protection once again after a judge on Thursday reversed a Trump-era decision to remove the animals from the list of endangered species.

District Judge Jeffrey White of Oakland, California, found the US Fish and Wildlife Service's stance that the wolves no longer needed Endangered Species Act protection was based solely on the animals' population recovery in the Great Lakes and Northern Rocky Mountains and did not "adequately consider threats to wolves outside of these core populations."

The ruling, which will affect 44 out of the 48 lower states, reverses a 2020 decision by the Trump administration to remove gray wolves from the endangered species list, The New York Times reported.

The Biden administration defended the Trump-era decision in court, with government attorneys arguing that wolf numbers would recover even if hunting of the animals increased, the Associated Press reported. Following the delisting, the number of wolves killed by hunters spiked in some states, with over 200 killed in Wisconsin alone last spring, according to both The Times and AP.

"Today's ruling is a significant victory for gray wolves and for all those who value nature and the public's role in protecting these amazing creatures," said Jamie Rappaport Clark, president of the Defenders of Wildlife non-profit conservation group, in a statement.

"Restoring federal protections means that these vitally important animals will receive the necessary support to recover and thrive in the years ahead," she added.