UPDATE: October 6, 2010
It’s true!! A disgusting poacher killed a federally protected Oregon male wolf. They need to find this person or persons and throw them in the slammer. Aren’t you sick and tired of reading about dead wolves? Enough!!
Wolf Wars is in full swing. While Mt. Rep. Rehberg, Mt. Senators Baucus and Tester, Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, Utah’s Reps. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, and Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah and Utah Senator Orin Hatch-R are backing legislation to strip gray wolves of their ESA protections, this little wolf is proving why wolves are not even safe while protected by the ESA, let alone without it!!
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Protected wolf in tracked pack killed in Ore.
GRANTS PASS, Ore. State authorities confirmed Tuesday that a federally protected wolf has been killed in northeastern Oregon.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife wolf coordinator Russ Morgan said the killed wolf was a 2-year-old Wenaha pack male recently fitted with a radio tracking collar. The silver male was captured and fitted in August, Morgan said.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which has jurisdiction since wolves were restored to the endangered species list in August, is investigating, he said.
The wolf was a subdominant male and the only member of the pack carrying a radio collar, allowing biologists to track the pack’s whereabouts. The pack has four adults and at least two pups.
Wiped out in Oregon by bounty hunters more than 60 years ago, wolves first returned to the state in 1998 from Idaho, where they were introduced in a federal effort to get them off the endangered species list.
Two other wolves have been illegally shot since then. Two from the Imnaha pack were killed by government hunters for attacking livestock.
Ranchers angry over the state management plan’s limitations on killing wolves to protect livestock spoke out last week at an Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting.
“The more and more these depredations occur, ranchers are going to – I think these guys are going to defend themselves,” Oregon Cattlemen’s Association President Bill Hoyt said in an interview.
Steve Pedery, conservation director for Oregon Wild, a conservation group, said the Wenaha pack has not been tied to any livestock attacks.
“This wasn’t something easily brushed aside, like somebody mistaking it for a coyote,” said Pedery. “This was a silver wolf wearing a big honking radio collar that is hard to miss. Somebody was out to shoot a wolf. It is very important that the agencies get on top of this so it is a deterrent to other yahoos who want to follow suit. That’s what makes us nervous about them being completely silent now.”
UPDATE: October 5, 2010
There’s an unconfirmed but reliable report, posted in Oregon’s La Grande Observer, that this sweet guy has been shot and killed. Apparently he was found by wildlife officials during a routine telemetry check. Just another sad chapter in Wolf Wars that’s raging across the West, fueled by the blind hatred that caused the first Western extermination. It’s 1910 all over again.
Ironically there are meetings being held today in Hamilton and Dillon, by Montana Rep. Rehberg, to discuss his anti-wolf bill, that would strip gray wolves of their ESA protections. The meeting panels are stacked with the anti-wolf crowd but did we really expect the “listening sessions” to be fair and balanced? Absolutely not!!
The killing of this beautiful wolf is the reason wolves cannot survive in this country without the protection of the ESA. It’s very disturbing this Wenaha pack male had recently been collared. Coincidence that he is now dead? Did someone gain access to his telemetry? I’ll report more on this sad case when the information becomes available.
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August 9, 2010
Isn’t he a beauty? He’s a two-year old male from Oregon’s Wenaha pack. The pack consists of four adults although he looks so much like a puppy. There are unconfirmed reports the pack has puppies. This picture was taken during the collaring process.
I don’t like collaring, someday this collar could get this guy in trouble. Traditionally collaring was used for research but now if wolves are suspected of livestock depredation it’s a way Wildlife (Dis)Services can track down the pack and kill the wolves. They’ve killed entire packs this way in the Northern Rockies.
Oregon has two confirmed wolf packs, the Imnaha and Wenaha packs. The Imnaha pack has been in the news because Wildlife Services was hunting two uncollared gray wolves from the pack. They say the wolves were involved in livestock depredations back in late Spring 2010. Several conservation groups filed a lawsuit to stop the hunts.
Wildlife (Dis)Services called off the hunt until they conduct an environmental review, so basically the hunts are over. I can do the review for them. Oregon has approx. twenty wolves, tops, two confirmed wolf packs and a few lone wolves. If they kill two of them for a few calves, that could seriously impact the wolves survival.
What you won’t hear about are the thousands upon thousands of cows ranchers lose every year to weather, disease, reproductive issues and theft. All predator losses are a tiny percentage of the totals. Wolves killed fewer cows than vultures nationally (NASS 2006).
Happily the Imnaha’s are safe for now.
UPDATE: Remote cameras captured images of four Imnaha pups and six adult wolves, including B-300, the alpha female, nick-named Sophie. The alpha male was finally spotted on camera as well after he seemed to disappear for several months. His collar was not functioning and he hadn’t been sighted since May 31. Thankfully he’s alive.
Here are pics of the Imnaha pack with pups taken by the trail cameras.
Imnaha pups frolicking
Imnaha adult
Four Imnaha adult wolves
I’ll continue to follow the progress of Oregon’s Wenaha and Imnaha wolf packs. These wolves are now protected by the ESA, since Judge Molloy relisted wolves on August 5th, 2010.
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Male wolf from Wenaha pack radio-collared and released in northeast Oregon
August 6, 2010
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/news/2010/august/080610.asp
Photos: Courtesy ODFW
Posted in: Oregon wolves
Tags: Wenaha pack, Imnaha pack, Oregon wolves, collared wolf, Wildlife Services
Omg it is so beautiful and so sweet Nabeki.
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He’s such a beauty Vasileios…..
N.
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My God Nabeki it is!!
It is so beautiful and so sweet long live to all Wolfs..
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He is beautiful!
What a wolf!
Too bad those red necks see him as a beautiful trophy.
Well let’s hope he lives a long, peaceful life in the loving arms of his pack 🙂
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Leia… he’s better off in Oregon than Idaho or Montana but even Oregon was gearing up to kill two of their wolves when they have approx. twenty in the entire state, including the Imnaha’s new pups.
N.
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They are beautiful.May they stay away from harm and the things of man.May they be like ghosts and not be seen by those who might harm them.
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Amen Rita.
N.
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You said it, Rita. Thank You.
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Agreed…We are against collaring the wolves. As you said, it makes it too easy to track down the wolves and kill them whenever someone thinks it is convenient and “necessary.”
We understand that in New Mexico they are not collaring the wolves but we have heard that they are micro chipping them. We wonder if this amounts to the same thing.
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Hmmm hadn’t head about the micro chiping Carl and Janice. Seems like that can be abused too, as you pointed out.
N.
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Just FYI: Mexican gray wolves in Arizona and New Mexico are collared prior to release, if they are large enough–usually at least 25 pounds in weight. Uncollared, wild-born wolves caught in the wild are vaccinated, blood is drawn for genetic testing, and the animals are collared–again assuming they are large enough when caught.
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Hi Maska,
I realize they collar the Mexican grays, it’s actually a necessary evil because their recovery area is so large it would be hard to locate them. But unfortunately the feds gave out radio transmitters, that pick up the wolves’ collar signals, to ranchers when the program began. They have no idea anymore who has these transmitters…hence it puts all the wolves in danger. So many wolves have been poached, it’s not a great leap to realize it’s probably someone who can pick up their collar signals and track them. Collars are becoming more and more a threat to wolves. The little Wenaha wolf, that was shot and killed in Oregon, was the only member of the pack wearing a collar.
N.
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Just look at those eyes! What a beauty!
I hope they find the alpha male, let’s pray for that to happen.
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Loua…this wolf is so striking. Just a wonderful picture.
N.
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Sad isn’t the right word to express right now.I’m enraged and sorrowful,all at the same time.
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Rita….I’m angry and disgusted by this. The little guy was collared just recently. Isn’t it interesting he was the one that died in the pack? Did it have anything to do with somone other then wildlife officials having his collar coordinates? Very fishy.
N.
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Blessings,May The Great Spirit Cont. To Protect and Bless Them. I am Happy you have seen the missing one and that he is O.K..But,I am very sad about Big Boy,such a waste.What can be done to stop these crazy people?They will not be happy until they feel they have killed all the wolves. I posted this on my FP Blessings!
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Sharon Gentlespirit Wolf Paige…..We have to keep speaking the truth. The grass roots wolf movement is picking up steam. We can’t let the pressure off now. These people are so arrogant they will push ahead with their agenda no matter what. We have to make sure they don’t succeed.
N.
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I LOVE SO MUCH *WOLFS* AND ALL *ANIMALS* IN THIS WORLD* PLEASE PROTECT THIS SO BEAUTYFUL *ANGELS* STOP THE KILLING!!! WOLFS ARE CREATURES OF *GOD* I HATE ALL HUNTER! LIKE EVILS MEMBERS!! PSYCOPATH MIND!!! AND PAUL WATSON SAID “YOU CAN’T LOVE NATURE* WITH A GUN”…
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Carine Dream-Theater…we must organize and speak with one voice. The opposition is very well organzied with lots of money behind them. Wolf advocates have to match that. They are outspending us and outshouting us.
N.
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BEAUTIFUL BOY….WHO KILLED YOU???? YOUR EYES WAS MAGIC….FANTASTIC…. LOVELY BEAUTIFUL BOY…
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http://savethe-wolves.deviantart.com/
If you go here, please join our fight against wolf-haters. We’re now fighting against Anti-Wolf people on Facebook. If you fight back with the facts, they have no choice but to listen. So please, come:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=2361831622#!/profile.php?id=100001066708699
here, and help us. Thank you, we think this blog is a GREAT idea.
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Thanks for alerting us Wolf-Protector….we all have to work together for the wolves.
HOWLS
Nabeki
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