Going by a plan announced by the Bush administration on Wednesday, the gray wolves in the regions of northern Rocky Mountains and the western Great Lakes will be taken off the federal endangered species’ list by late February.

Deputy Interior Secretary, Lynn Scarlett, said the wolves in Wyoming, however, will continue to be under federal control, because the state law requires to be changed in order to assure the survival of the wolves, before they are removed from the list. Moreover, a small population of Mexican Gray wolves in the Southwest is also not inclusive in the announcement.

According to officials, the federal decision - which Scarlett said is “a watershed moment” for the species that was first listed as endangered in 1974 - is based on science, and is independent of policy considerations.

The latest attempt by the Bush administration to hand over control of wolves to state wildlife agencies is, to a great extent, a repeat of its earlier moves that the courts had overruled.

It is still not certain whether the move this time will be effective, as Obama’s administration too would review the matter.

Speaking for the Bush administration, Scarlett said: “We would hope the next administration would not turn around and go a different direction, but of course that certainly is their choice and opportunity.”

Once the final decision is published in the Federal Register, the wolves will be taken of the list of endangered species list after a month.