March 15, 2019 — the Fish and Wildlife Service published a rule proposing to prematurely remove gray wolves across the country from the Endangered Species Act. This is now the third attempt by the federal government to remove these critical protections; the previous two rejected for violating basic scientific and recovery standards. This is a crucial moment for wolves and the Endangered Species Act!
January 28, 2019 — A state court judge today upheld protection for gray wolves under the California Endangered Species Act. The ruling rejected a challenge from the Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of the California Cattlemen’s Association and California Farm Bureau Federation.
January 7, 2019 — Four conservation groups have notified Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and the state wildlife commission that they are withdrawing from stakeholder meetings about the management of the state’s wolf population.
by Nick Cady, Legal Director On November 7, 2018, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) authorized the killing of wolves in the Smackout pack in Stevens County and … Continue reading Washington Targeting Three Wolf Packs for Killing
August 20, 2018 — Two conservation groups filed an emergency lawsuit today seeking a temporary restraining order to stop Washington wildlife officials from carrying out a kill order for the Togo wolf pack in Ferry County. The decision, issued today, orders the death of the collared, black-male adult from the pack and holds open the possibility for killing additional pack members. The Togo pack consists of only two confirmed adults plus an unknown number of pups. The kill order was halted by the court late this afternoon.
April 11, 2017 — Today the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife released its 2016 annual report for wolf recovery as well as its draft update to the Oregon Wolf Plan. Of particular interest, the annual report shows that wolf packs and breeding pairs documented in the state 2016 declined from 2015 numbers. Pack numbers dropped from 12 to 11, and breeding pairs from 11 to 8. (The state of Oregon defines “breeding pair” as a breeding adult male and female wolf that produce at least two pups which survive through the end of the year.) Overall population numbers in 2016 were largely stagnant from 2015, seeing a 2% uptick to a minimum of 112 wolves.
March 14, 2017 — Four conservation groups filed a motion today to intervene in a lawsuit seeking to remove California Endangered Species Act protections from wolves. The lawsuit, against the state Fish and Wildlife Commission, was brought by the Pacific Legal Foundation and wrongly alleges that wolves are ineligible for state protection.
Extermination. Seen as incompatible with the settlement of the West, the gray wolf was trapped, poisoned and shot by state and federal governments and private bounty hunters to the point … Continue reading Gray Wolf Background and Resources
*Area of Known Wolf Activity (AKWA) is designated by ODFW showing where wolves and/or packs have been documented repeatedly over a period of time. 2022 September 6, 2022: Due to … Continue reading Oregon Wolf Recovery Chronology
August 3, 2016 — Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officials announced late today they will kill members of the Profanity Peak pack in Ferry County. The kill order was issued following investigations concluding the wolves recently killed three calves and a cow and that three other calf deaths are probable wolf kills. All of the losses occurred on public lands grazing allotments, in territory occupied by the Profanity Peak pack. The decision was made under the guidelines of a new lethal removal protocol that was agreed to this spring by the state Wolf Advisory Group, a stakeholder group convened by the Department of Fish and Wildlife that includes agency staff and representatives from the ranching, hunting and conservation community.
