Are the Yellowstone wolves in trouble?

The number of gray wolves in Yellowstone National Park is declining.

That's the gist of a report in today's USA Today, which says that the population of the animals in the nation's oldest national park is down by a third from its high in 2003.

The species, which was re-introduced to Yellowstone in 1995, is stressed because hunting in areas around the park is now permitted. The U.S. government removed the gray wolf from the list of endangered and threatened species in 2008.

Management plans for the species proposed or adopted by Wyoming, Idaho and Montana would allow the number of individuals to fall from about 1,650 to 450.

In addition, the number of elk in and around Yellowstone National Park has significantly dropped since wolves were re-introduced.