"Rare wolves in the American Southwest will be allowed more room to roam but some could be marked for death if they prey too heavily on elk and deer prized by hunters, under a rule issued by federal officials on Monday.

The rule revising management of the fewer than 100 wolves in Arizona and New Mexico stems from legal challenges by the non-profit Center for Biological Diversity, which argued U.S. wildlife managers failed to properly protect the so-called Mexican wolf.

The federal government's new management plan for the endangered Mexican wolf, which is one of the most imperiled mammals in North America, enlarges the acreage it can occupy without relocation and expands the area where captive wolves can be released into the wild, according to a statement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."

Laura Zuckerman reports for Reuters January 12, 2015. [2]