Humane Society of the United States v. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Three lawsuits were filed in the federal district court for the District of Montana challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) decision to designate a Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear distinct population segment (DPS) and FWS’s related determination that the DPS was recovered and did not qualify as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The Humane Society of the United States and the Fund for Animals alleged in their complaint that the FWS had ignored best available science showing that climate change was and would continue to threaten the survival of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone area, including by posing threats to grizzly bears’ food sources and forcing grizzly bears to migrate outside their primary conservation area and to face “cascading threats.”