The coastal wolves of southeast Alaska inhabit the area that includes the Alexander Archipelago, its islands, and a narrow strip of rugged coastline that is biologically isolated from the rest of North America by the Coast Mountains.

[10] In March 2014, in response to the petition, the agency made a positive initial finding that listing the species as threatened or endangered "may be warranted" and that it will prepare a formal status review.

[12] Early taxonomists were able to determine that the Alexander Archipelago wolf was its own unique subspecies due to "common cranial characteristics".

[21] The range of C. lupus ligoni covers all of southeastern Alaska (the Alaskan panhandle) except the Admiralty, Baranof, and Chichagof Islands.

That study was conducted on Prince of Wales Island, with the region-wide estimate being based on an extrapolation on the varying habitat capability for prey.

Den sites vary by a number of factors, such as the pack in question's home range and available topography; possibilities include burrows dug between the roots of large trees, caves, cliff-base crevices and rock formations, abandoned and dry beaver dams, or other uninhabited animal burrows—which the wolves will further excavate and enlarge.

[19][9] The first observation of concern for the possible instability of the Alexander Archipelago wolf population was by a USDA Forest Service-sponsored interagency committee.

[9] After the assessment was completed, more studies were undertaken to understand exactly how the Alexander Archipelago wolf fits into the food chain and what effect extensive logging would cause.

The main argument was from Stevens, Murkowski, and Young, who believed that the Forest Service was trying to purposefully limit the lumber market in Alaska.

[31] On the basis of the new plan, shortly afterward, FWS made a final determination that listing the wolf as threatened was unwarranted.

"[11] In making its finding, the agency opened a 60-day public comment period, after which it will proceed to do a formal status review of the species followed by a final decision on listing.

[37] However, the division's primary researcher on the status of the species, Dr. David Person, who was involved in that effort for 22 years, quit the agency in May 2013 and subsequently wrote a declaration, concerning the Forest Service's Big Thorne timber sale, that the predator-prey ecosystem, including wolves, on Prince of Wales Island is threatened with collapse because of the cumulative impacts of logging and logging roads.

[39][40][41] Greenpeace and the Cascadia Wildlands Project pointed out in 2008[4] that data the Forest Service was using were known to be prone to cause overestimation of the carrying capacity for deer,[42] the wolves' primary prey.

Furthermore, the conversion factor, known as the "deer multiplier", used in the calculations was incorrectly applied, causing a 30% overestimation of carrying capacity and corresponding underestimation of impacts.

[4] The two organizations determined, in total, the carrying capacity for the Sitka deer in places throughout the Tongass had been generally been overestimated by the Forest Service in its timber planning, by as much as 120% (varying geographically due to the faulty data).

In May 2010, US District Judge Ralph Beistline denied the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment, saying he "found no wrongdoing on the part of the Forest Service" and it was a "scientific disagreement".

[46] The ruling says, in part: In a statement to the press, a spokesman for the plaintiffs said the principles in this lawsuit apply to every significant timber sale between 1996 and 2008 before the Forest Service corrected errors in the deer model when the agency issued its revised Tongass Forest Plan, but, he said, the agency still fails to address cumulative impacts to deer, especially on Prince of Wales Island, as challenged in the Logjam timber sale lawsuit.

"[48] In January 2010, the Forest Service was sued over its 73 million-board-ft Logjam timber sale on Prince of Wales Island, by Tongass Conservation Society, Cascadia Wildlands, and Greenpeace.

[51] The court scheduled oral arguments before Judges Betty Fletcher, Andrew Kleinfeld, and Consuelo Callahan for July 29, 2011, sitting in Anchorage.

[52] The petition was filled by environmental groups concerned about wolves on Prince of Wales Island where they are subject to legal hunting and trapping.