ORONO – Despite the insistence of state and federal biologists that wolves’ recovery in the Great Lakes region justifies their removal from the endangered species list, the crowd at a public hearing Wednesday night said again and again that wolves must return to the Northeast before losing federal protection.

Calling a decision to downgrade wolves’ status in 21 eastern states from endangered to threatened in 2003 and a proposal to remove them from the list entirely by July 2005 “political,” the crowd urged federal biologists to consider new information about the potential for wolf recovery in Maine.

Since initial decisions were made 30 years ago, four wolf-like animals have been shot or trapped in New England, and other evidence suggests that at least a few wolves have made the arduous journey from known wolf habitat in Quebec across the St. Lawrence River, to well within a single travel day of both the Maine and Vermont borders. The chances that wolves from Canada will naturally recolonize New England are better than they’ve ever been, said several wolf advocates.

Without continued federal protection, these wolves will not have the chance to reproduce and establish themselves, said representatives of the Maine Wolf Coalition and the National Wildlife Federation.

“I’m afraid we will return to the ‘shoot, shovel and shut up,’ attitude that pervaded in the 1950s,” said Gill Golub of Swanville, who lived in Minnesota during the years of wolf recovery and would like to see the same happen here.

Several criticized both the federal administration and the state’s Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, saying that both have lost credibility in recent years. John Glowa, a South China resident and founder of the Maine Wolf Coalition was particularly harsh, calling DIF&W, which testified in support of the delisting Wednesday, “a corrupt agency.”

“To leave it to DIF&W is basically saying there will never be any wolf recovery in Maine,” said Marc Bender of Camden.

“Once the wolf is delisted here, it will have the protection of a gray squirrel shot out of season,” agreed Debi Davidson of Fayette, adding that despite her personal respect for many members of DIF&W, she has little faith in the department’s proclivity for managing wolves.

Just four years ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was considering classifying the Northeast as a distinct population segment, which could have led to more efforts to encourage natural wolf recolonization here. Instead, the service ultimately decided that wolf recovery in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan met federal recovery goals for a larger region stretching from the Dakotas to Maine, prompting the proposal to remove federal protection.

Glowa suggested that the change of administration in Washington might be a truer reason.

“What a difference four years made … aside from the coronation of George W. Bush, what has happened to make you do a complete 180?” Glowa asked.

One man did speak for delisting wolves during the first 90 minutes of Wednesday’s hearing, Wayne Heath of Veazie, who testified that he believes that there are no wolves in Maine now, and haven’t been for many years.

“Our wildlife department is looking out for the animals that do exist in Maine,” he said.

But it was Davidson who drew the evening’s sole spontaneous applause with her talk of the ecotourism opportunities of wolf recovery. Davidson half-jokingly suggested that the federal government owes Maine the potential revenue from wolf-watchers that disappeared with the wolves, in part, because of federal policies encouraging bounties.

“Maine has lost millions of dollars since the wolf was de-vilified and instead, made the apple of every tourist’s eye,” she said.