Oregon Is Trying to Catch a Wolf Killer

A federal agency wants information on the deaths of three endangered gray wolves in southern Oregon, and they have a hefty reward for good information. The US Fish and Wildlife Service is offering $50,000 for details that lead to an arrest, criminal conviction, or a fine of people involved in the deaths, reports CNN. The statement did not include details of how the wolves died, but it notes that two were "subadult" (older offspring) and one was a breeding female from the same Gearhart Mountain Pack. Seven wolves are believed to remain in that pack, one of which is a breeding male.

Officials were alerted of the deaths in late December because two of the wolves were wearing tracking collars that sent a mortality signal near the California-Oregon border. This fell in an area where the animals are protected under the Endangered Species Act—the western two-thirds of Oregon. KGW8 reports that these collars are trackable by GPS, and also have push notifications to help protect livestock when wolves are nearby. Recent counts estimate at least 178 wolves in Oregon in two dozen packs (though the number is likely higher). In 2022, 17 wolves were killed by humans, and seven of those deaths were illegal. Six killings were by the state or licensed ranchers for recurring attacks on livestock.

Gray wolves were once common in Oregon, until bounty programs nearly eradicated them by the mid-1900s. They were reintroduced in 1999 with strict protections, per BiologicalDiversity.org, and by 2011, the wolves were no longer under federal protection in the whole state. In Arizona, CBS News notes that a similar situation is playing out with the illegal killing of a bighorn sheep that was shot and left for dead in a field. Groups raised $6,500 to reward information leading to an arrest. "There is no justifiable reason to poach an animal during a closed season and leave it to waste," said wildlife manager Travis Clarkson. "Poachers are not hunters or sportsmen; they are criminals who are stealing from the residents of Arizona." (Oregon gray wolves were released in Colorado.)