On the afternoon of 7/22, a livestock producer found a dead two-month-old calf on a forested USFS cattle allotment. Should a two-month-old calf be wandering around open public land in wolf territory? Wolves cannot continue to pay a price with their lives because they are hungry and will go for something so easy for the taking! Livestock producers are compensated for depredations. We will be checking with ODFW to see if they will be following their mission statement. The mission of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is to protect and enhance Oregon’s fish and wildlife and their habitats for use and enjoyment by present and future generations.
In April, state officials killed three wolves from the Pine Creek Pack in Baker County after confirmed depredations. Three members of the eight-member pack were killed. One of them was a small yearling female. It could have been the pregnant Alpha female and they could have cared less.
One of the ranchers, Chad DelCurto, previously said the entire pack should be eliminated. Reports have shown that Eastern Oregon’s cattle ranching industry has shown significant economic growth concurrent with the arrival of wolves to that area of the state. Yet, most of these ranchers still continue to demand wolves be slaughtered rather than coexist.
Wolves are native to Oregon but the landscape has obviously changed significantly in the last century, leaving wolves with several risk factors with which to contend. Persecution; human-caused habitat loss; habitat fragmentation and degradation; roads. Though wolves are considered habitat generalists, they are dependent on prey populations, most specifically of elk and deer. The biggest problem of all—2,529,000,000 in livestock according to USDA, 2017.
Packs have already been wiped out and wolf recovery is still in its infancy. Let’s not forget about all the poaching that takes place and we know Oregon is notorious for this. We also know that lethal action does not work! We need to stop this from happening.
Contact Goveren Kate Brown and tell her that lethal take is not a solution. (especially OR residents) The rest of us can tell her that we will not visit OR and spend our tourists dollars in a state that kills wolves.
If you aren’t in OR. it’s best to call her office
Phone: 503-378-4582
Email:
xhttps://www.oregon.gov/gov/Pages/contact.aspx
Also, contact Michelle Dennehy with ODFW
Michelle.N.Dennehy@state.or.us
(503) 947 6022
Support Protect the Wolves vision to not only keep these animals safe, but to educate the public on their need! Help us make certain that these amazing animals are available for our children to see, that they retain their important role in the circle of life. Help Protect your children’s Resources before they are all slaughtered at the hands of political influence and greed by the misinformed livestock lobby. http://protectthewolves.com/donate/
July 27th
Capital Press
Oregon wildlife officials have confirmed wolves killed another calf July 22 in the Harl Butte area of Wallowa County, where repeated attacks on cattle in 2016 and 2017 to several “lethal take” permits for the offending pack.
The latest incident happened on a public grazing allotment within the area of known wolf activity for the Harl Butte pack. A rancher reportedly saw two wolves in the vicinity before finding a dead, partially eaten calf.
Ranchers’ struggles with the Harl Butte pack date back several years. Wolves preyed on cattle six times between July 15, 2016 and July 22, 2017, prompting the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife to kill two wolves in August 2017 to prevent future attacks.
Just one week later, the pack notched another depredation, leading to a second kill order by ODFW for another two wolves. The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association had argued for killing the entire pack, while environmental groups decried killing any wolves, favoring stronger requirements for non-lethal deterrents.
By the end of 2017, the Harl Butte pack had four animals left and was not counted as a breeding pair, according to the state’s population estimate. There are a minimum of 124 wolves across the state, and the species remains federally endangered in western Oregon.
Derek Broman, state carnivore biologist for ODFW, said it is not clear whether those wolves disbanded and joined with other neighboring packs, such as the Pine Creek, which also had three wolves culled by ODFW earlier this year after a string of livestock attacks.
Broman said the department has not received any new requests for lethal control.
Shooting wolves remains a contentious point in the state’s wolf conservation and management plan, which is now undergoing an update. ODFW recently hired a professional mediator, Debra Nudelman of Portland, to try to help resolve lingering disagreements.
Broman said those meetings are still being scheduled.
http://www.capitalpress.com/Oregon/20180726/wolves-kill-another-calf-in-ne-oregon