Berman ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was wrong to trust nonbinding promises from the state of Wyoming to maintain at least 100 wolves, including 10 breeding pairs, outside of Yellowstone and the Wind River Indian Reservation. Wyoming took over wolf management in late 2012 after the federal government ruled that wolves no longer needed protection under the federal Endangered Species Act. For at least the past decade, the federal agency has been through a tortured series of lawsuits involving both the state and conservation groups as Wyoming has tried repeatedly to take control of its wolf population. Many ranchers and sportsmen in Wyoming say that wolves pose a threat to livestock and game animals, particularly western moose herds, if their numbers aren't kept in check. Preso said Wyoming must develop a legitimate conservation plan that ensures a vibrant wolf population. Since it took over wolf management two years ago, Wyoming has held trophy hunting for wolves in a zone outside Yellowstone where wolves weren't classified as unprotected predators.