In pursuit of coexistence: Wolves and livestock on national forests

Abstract

The return of wolves to the American West has renewed historic conflicts on national forests. Wolves now share space with livestock across millions of acres of federal land. Forest Service research social scientists studied six national forests with wolves and livestock in six Western states. They interviewed Forest Service range management specialists, wildlife managers, and other stakeholders to understand how wolf-livestock conflicts are managed.

They found that these conflicts are embedded in larger issues: rural-urban divides, federal versus state management authority, economic pressures on producers, ecological concerns about the role of predators in ecosystem health, and the symbolic role wolves play in battles over public land use. The rugged geography of national forests creates unique challenges that render many conflict mitigation tools impractical, while varying state policies create dramatically different management contexts.

Their interviews revealed that Forest Service managers often find themselves acting as intermediaries among livestock producers with grazing permits, state agencies, and other stakeholders. The researchers found that stakeholder perceptions of agency responsiveness to their concerns often matters as much as the technical effectiveness of interventions in building tolerance for wolves. As wolf populations expand, lessons from states with longer experience become increasingly relevant.

Citation

Kantor, Sylvia; Charnley, Susan; Martin, Jeff Vance. 2026. In pursuit of coexistence: Wolves and livestock on national forests. Science Findings 277. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 6 p.