"The federal wildlife service on Thursday stood by its decision to authorize recent killings of two highly endangered North Carolina red wolves on private property, despite plans by conservationists to sue.

Three conservationist groups said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) made only cursory attempts to remove the wolves from private property between 2014 and 2015 before allowing the landowners to kill them in violation of the Endangered Species Act.

The five-county region of eastern North Carolina known as the Red Wolf Recovery Area is home to the only population of red wolves in the wild, estimated at only between 50 and 75 animals, according to the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC)."

Barbara Liston reports for Reuters September 3, 2015. [2]