The U.S. government has announced plans to remove the Yellowstone populations of grizzly bears from protection under the Endangered Species Act. When the bears were first listed as "threatened" in 1975, there were as few as 136 of them in the wild, but that number is now back up to about 500. Announcing the decision on Friday, Deputy Interior Secretary Lynn Scarlett cited this recovery as the reason for de-listing the bears, saying "I believe all Americans should be proud that . . . we had the will and the ability to protect and restore this symbol of the wild." But some conservation groups say the bears should not be considered recovered while they are still isolated from other populations.  They fear the de-listing will open the door to logging and drilling near the park.

Source: Richard A. Lovett. Yellowstone grizzlies lose "endangered" status; Critics growling. National Geographic News, March 23, 2007. Photo by Chris Servheen/USFWS.