Use the paragraph to answer the question.

People fear wolves. While some of their fear is sensible, wolves actually have more to fear from people than people do from wolves. Although wolves are strong and fierce, wolf attacks on humans are very rare. In nearly all cases, they occur only when people provoke or corner wolves. People, on the other hand, have regularly baited and trapped wolves from the earliest of times. In North America, ranchers eliminated thousands of wolves to protect their livestock. Trappers trapped wolves for fur. Farmers poisoned them and hunted them with dogs. By 1950, there were almost no wolves left in the United States. Finally, in 1974, Congress granted gray wolves protected status.

What saved the wolf population of North America?

A. Congress granted wolves protected status.

B. People avoided wolves out of fear.

C. People stopped wearing their fur.

D. Wolves became strong and fierce.