But a 2018 lawsuit led by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) with co-counsel Atchafalaya Basinkeeper said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service used “false assumptions and shoddy science” to make its decision for removal.
It contends the bears still need the protection of the Endangered Species Act, saying the recovery corridors don’t connect true native populations, a requirement for delisting, and that the estimated population is inflated.
“The Louisiana black bear is a victim of biological malpractice,” PEER officials have said.