A mountain caribou herd in the southern Selkirk Mountains requires continued protection under the Endangered Species Act, officials said today. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reviewed the caribou’s status after receiving a 2012 petition to remove protections for the herd from the Pacific Legal Foundation, which was acting on behalf of Bonner County and the Idaho State Snowmobile Association. The foundation’s attorneys argued that the few remaining caribou in North Idaho and Northeast Washington are part of larger herds in British Columbia. Federal officials said their review concluded that South Selkirk herd, which includes caribou that move across the U.S.-Canadian border, is a distinct population due to geography and behavioral differences from other herds/Becky Kramer, SR. (AP file photo: A caribou herd is seen moving north through the Selkirk Mountains in 2005)

Question: Do you agree/disagree with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service that Selkirk caribou need protection?