US considers ending protections for northwest Montana bears

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — On the heels of lifting protections for Yellowstone-area grizzly bears the U.S. government plans to consider the same action for bruins in northwestern Montana, home to the largest group of grizzlies in the Lower 48.
A proposal to lift protections could come next year, U.S. Fish and Wildlife grizzly recovery coordinator Hilary Cooley told Montana lawmakers Thursday. It would take another year for such a proposal to be finalized.
Hunters and trappers widely exterminated