The US president's decision could pave the way for pastoral farmers to kill the canines to protect their livestock. His order said ranchers played a "vital role" in the food supply chain and American cultural heritage.

But conservation groups have criticised the move, saying it could derail long-term efforts to recover the endangered wolf populations.

There were 319 Mexican wolves in the wild in the US in 2025, up from just four when they were reintroduced in 1998, US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) figures show.

Meanwhile, there are roughly 18,000 grey wolves across the US, though they are still considered endangered as most of their habitat has been destroyed by humans.

An attempt to de-list them at a federal level in 2022 became tied up in litigation, and some campaigners have indicated they intend to do the same of the US Department of Interior acts on Trump's order.

The executive order does not give ranchers immediate license to shoot wolves preying on livestock, but instead gives Interior Secretary Doug Burgum 90 days to determine whether the grey and Mexican wolf populations had recovered enough to warrant being taken off the endangered species list.

Trump signs order to remove endangered species status for grey wolves.