CODY (WNE) — U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service must make a decision by January 20 to either delist or retain the Greater Yellowstone grizzly bear as a threatened species.

The requirement comes after a decision made by U.S. District Court Judge Alan Johnson on December 6 that USFWS has 45 days to make a decision on grizzlies.

The state of Wyoming petitioned USFWS to delist the grizzlies from the Endangered Species Act in 2022 and return the responsibility for management of the species’ population to the state.

After being listed as a threatened species by the USFWS in July of 1975, grizzly populations recovered significantly, and in 2007 the USFWS determined the Yellowstone grizzly population to no longer be endangered or threatened.

A petition filed by the state in 2022 to identify the Yellowstone grizzly as a Distinct Population Segment to be managed by the state contained “substantial scientific or commercial information” to warrant the requested changes, according to the USFWS. 

As a result, the USFWS was required to return a decision on the matter by July 31, 2024. However, the USFWS filed a declaration saying it would not be able to meet the deadline due to ongoing litigation in the Federal District of Idaho and the state of Montana.