This male wolf from Wenaha pack was fitted with a radio collar on Aug. 4, 2010. ODFW photo.

On Thursday, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission takes a look at a new Wolf Management Plan.

For those who care about the future of wolves in our state, this is the moment we’ve been waiting for. The agenda includes time for comments from the public. Wolf supporters – and detractors – are hoping for a good turnout so the Commission can finally hear what Oregonians think about this very controversial issue.

For the most part, this new plan was put together behind the scenes. It’s true that ODFW staff talked with interest groups, such as environmentalists and ranchers. It’s also true that they asked for the public to send in comments. At last word, more than 22,000 Oregonians took the time to put their thoughts down on paper or email. But there were never any public hearings. And the release of the new plan was not well publicized or explained.

From what I know, there are no major changes in the new plan. As far as environmentalists are concerned, that’s mostly good news. They’re generally supportive of it, though they think ODFW makes it too easy to kill wolves that are suspected of attacking livestock.

Oregon Wild sent out this list of bullet points to supporters earlier this week.

• Most Oregonians value native wildlife and welcome wolves back. The wolf plan is already a major compromise and should be strengthened. We must not make it any easier to kill wolves.
• The wolf plan must be fully funded and prioritize non-lethal methods over killing wolves in all phases of the plan.
• Wolves on public land should not be killed.
• Wildlife Services has demonstrated their incompetence and uncomfortably close ties to those who wish to kill wolves. Their role in confirming depredations must be limited or eliminated.

-Oregon Wild email

Ranchers have never been happy with Oregon’s wolf plan and see it as something that’s been forced upon them. They want to make it easier to kill wolves that are caught attacking livestock, and to be able to hunt them in nearby areas. They also want to make it easier to delist wolves under state law. As they see it, wolves are “terrorizing” Eastern Oregon.

The updated wolf plan gives ranchers a little of what they want.

Details:

Fish and Wildlife Commission Meeting
Washington County Fair Complex
Cloverleaf Building
873 N.E. 34th Avenue
Hillsboro, Oregon 97124

The day long meeting starts at 8:00am, but the Commission isn’t expected to look at the Wolf Plan until after lunch.

Reading Material:

What Oregonians Really Think About Their Wolves

Oregon Wild: Bringing Wolves Back Home to Oregon

Oregon Cattlemen’s Association: Wolves In Oregon

(FYI: The Cattlemen’s page has a what appears to be a major factual error. It says nothing was done after wolves killed 25 head of livestock in Oregon. Those attacks took place last year in the Keating Valley near Baker City and the two wolves that were responsible were hunted down and killed. See Oregon Wolves Killed By Wildlife Officials. It also says that wolves in Wallowa County are killing livestock “every few days.” While that’s true for the month of May, the last reported attack was on June 4. Despite the factual errors, I respect the group’s point of view on the issue and included the link for that reason.)

The three photos, released late Wednesday afternoon, show the two pups born this year to the Wenaha wolf pack in Northeast Oregon.

ODFW captured, weighed and measured, then released the pups last Friday.

As far as anyone knows, these are the first two pups born in the Wenaha pack. ODFW says they appeared healthy. They were too young to be collared, but an adult in the pack was outfitted with a radio collar earlier this month.

There are three photos to show you.

In this image, wildlife officials are weighing one of the Wenaha pups. ODFW photo.

One of the two Wenaha pack wolf pups. ODFW photo.

A Wenaha wolf pup being released. ODFW photo.

Combined with the four new pups in the Imnaha pack, Oregon’s small population of wolves has at least 20 members, up from 14 last year.

Related Stories:

New Photo of Oregon’s “Lost” Wolf

Two New Wolf Pups In Eastern Oregon

What Oregonians Really Think About Their Wolves

The alpha male of the Imnaha wolf pack is in the foreground, still wearing his radio collar. The alpha female is in the background. The image was recorded by a trail camera on August 11, 2010. ODFW photo.

ODFW just released this photo showing the alpha male of the Imnaha pack in Wallowa County. The photo was taken a couple of weeks ago as he and the alpha female stepped  in front of a trail camera.

If you’ve been following the wolf news this summer, you’ll remember that his radio collar stopped transmitting in late May. He went missing just as the controversy over wolf attacks on livestock was reaching the boiling point. So there was some concern he’d been killed by a poacher. ODFW was saying all along that a broken collar was a far more likely explanation. Turns out they appear to be correct. You can see him wearing the collar in the photo.

Still waiting for photos of the two new wolf pups in the Wenaha pack.

The alpha female of the Imnaha pack, also known as OR 200. ODFW photo.

On the same night, the camera snapped a new photo of OR 200, the alpha female of the Imnaha pack.

So far this year, we’ve seen photos of the alpha pair, plus four adults and four pups of the Imnaha pack. Hopefully that’s a sign they’re doing well.

And there’s some good news to report on Oregon’s other wolf pack. After being missing for almost three months, the alpha male of the Imnaha pack has been located.

This adult male from Wenaha pack was fitted with a radio collar on Aug. 4, 2010. ODFW photo.

The Wenaha Pups

ODFW says Wolf Coordinator Russ Morgan captured the pups on Friday. They were weighed and measured, appeared to be in good health, and then released. Although Morgan trapped two pups, it’s possible there are more. ODFW believes the Wenaha pack has three or four adults.

The uncertainty over the numbers shows how little we know about the Wenaha pack. That’s why ODFW was so excited a few weeks ago when one of the adults was captured and wildlife officials were able to outfit him with a tracking collar. The collar makes it much easier to monitor the pack. It may have been a big reason why ODFW was able to locate the pups.

ODFW says it will release the photos of the two Wenaha pups later today. I’ll post them as soon as I get them.

The alpha male of the Imnaha pack before receiving a collar. Photo from ODFW.

The Imnaha Alpha Male

As for the alpha male of the Imnaha pack, he’s finally been recorded on a trail camera. The image is the first we’ve seen or heard of him since May 31st. ODFW says the photo shows him wearing his tracking collar. So it’s a safe bet that the collar is broken and wasn’t able to transmit information about his location. ODFW also plans to release that photo later today.

Oregon’s Growing Wolf Population

Today’s news means that Oregon’s wolf packs have produced at least six pups this season. That brings the total number of wolves in the state from about 14 to about 20, almost a 50% increase.

There are probably a few lone wolves roaming the state, too. There were some very credible wolf sightings in the Cascades this winter near the Santiam Pass.

It’s been an incredible year for Oregon wolves.

Back in March, ODFW kicked off a six month review of the state’s Wolf Management Plan. It’s been taking comments from the public and interest groups since then. Agency staff will present proposed changes to the Fish and Wildlife Commission when it meets on September 2.

Later in the spring, wolves killed at least six calves near ranches in Wallowa County. That sparked a huge controversy over what to do when wolves kill livestock. To prevent further losses, ODFW eventually hired USDA Wildlife Services to hunt and kill two wolves in the Imnaha pack. ODFW kept extending the hunt, long after the attacks stopped. So four of the state’s environmental groups went to court and Wildlife Services agreed to stop the hunt.

Early this month, Oregon wolves were put back on the federal endangered species list. A federal judge in Montana ruled that the Obama Administration was wrong to delist wolves in Eastern Oregon, Eastern Washington, Montana and Idaho – but to keep them listed in Wyoming.

Related Stories:

What Oregonians Really Think About Their Wolves

Catch And Release. ODFW Captures Another Wolf In Northeast Oregon.

Oregon Wolves Back On The Federal Endangered Species List

PHOTOS: Four New Wolf Pups Born In Oregon

ODFW says it received more than 22,000 letters and emails from the public and stakeholder groups such as the Oregon Cattleman’s Association, Oregon Wild, and the Hells Canyon Preservation Council.

After sorting through the pile, what’s left is a description of what we think is working – and not working – as the State searches for ways for manage its small, but growing population of wolves.

Here are some of the issues outlined in a new report summarizing what Oregonians had to say.

What’s “Chronic Depredation”?

One of the goals of the Wolf plan is to protect ranches from “chronic depredation”. In other words, we’re not going to kill wolves just because of some isolated attacks on livestock. Currently, the attacks have to take place in nearby areas, or on the same property. This summer, ODFW loosened the rules so that attacks happening further apart could be considered part of the same “chronic depredation”.

Why the change? Wolf packs can travel far between kills. The Imnaha pack in Wallowa County roamed an area of 327 square miles while it carried out six fatal livestock attacks this spring. Had the loosened rules been in place beforehand, ODFW says it would have been able to act sooner. Instead, the agency wasn’t able to issue “shoot-to-kill” permits to ranchers and federal agents until after the fifth kill.

By reading the report, it seems to me ODFW wants to keep the loosened rules in place. Environmental groups agree more flexibility is needed, but believe that ODFW’s new language is too vague, and that the agency should have waited until the review process was completed.

Moving Wolves Away From Trouble

When a wolf gets too close to ranches and homes, ODFW has the option of capturing it and moving it out of the area. The idea is to prevent attacks on livestock before they happen. Currently, the agency can only move the wolf to the nearest wildlife area. But chances are that’s where the wolf came from in the first place. It’s almost like not relocating the animal at all.

ODFW appears interested in changing the rule from “nearest wildlife area” to “suitable habitat” – a difference that makes it a lot easier to find new homes for wolves. Environmental groups generally support the change. But agricultural groups do not. They’re worried it will speed up the spread of wolves through Oregon. In fact, some have argued for dropping this option entirely.

When Are Wolves Delisted?

Oregon wolves may be delisted under state law after four breeding pairs are established in Eastern Oregon. Even then, there’s no guarantee that delisting will happen. Instead, the Fish and Wildlife Commission can decide for itself if removing wolves from the state’s endangered species list is a good idea.

Ranchers and farmers say delisting should be automatic and that ODFW should lose the authority to make that decision. Some have argued for a maximum limit on how many wolves should be allowed in the state.

Environmentalists says that four breeding pairs are too few and want to see higher numbers before delisting is considered. If wolf numbers drop below a certain point, some argue that relisting should be done automatically.

It looks like ODFW hopes to avoid addressing this issue in the updated Wolf Plan. These numbers were the result of some difficult and tense negotiations that took place when the original plan was written five years ago. Considering that it’s highly unlikely we’ll have four established breeding pairs in the next five years, the staff appears to be saying, why open up that can of worms now?

Who Decides What’s A Wolf Kill?

As if wolves weren’t controversial enough, the federal government only made things worse when it disagreed with ODFW on how many calves were killed this spring in Wallowa County. USDA Wildlife Services counted nine kills, confirming every attack claimed by ranchers. But ODFW only counted six kills.

The dispute aggravated both sides of the wolf debate. The Cattleman’s Association claimed that wolves were “terrorizing” ranchers and that ODFW wasn’t taking the issue seriously. Environmental groups labeled Wildlife Services a “rogue” agency and questioned if the agent for Wallowa County even had the necessary training to decide if a wolf kill took place.

It’s unlikely that ODFW will want to give up its authority in this area. But the report does suggest the agencies need to do a better job of working with each other.

“Shoot To Kill” Permits

ODFW issues “shoot-to-kill” permits to ranchers after chronic depredation takes place. The permits allow them to shoot wolves caught in the act of attacking livestock.

Ranchers say the the rules are too restrictive. They want to be able to shoot wolves that are simply nearby, and to be able to chase and hunt wolves into other areas.

That’s probably not going to happen. The ODFW report says changing the rules on permits is too big of a change to be included in this five year review. It also raises concerns about making it too easy to shoot wolves, and that it might undo plans to protect the species in Oregon.

What’s Next?

ODFW staff officially releases its proposed changes for the Wolf Plan in a couple of weeks. My hunch is that it won’t call for big changes. The draft update goes before the Commission in September, which votes on a final plan in October.

Related Stories:

Catch And Release. ODFW Captures Another Wolf In Northeast Oregon.

Oregon Wolves Back On The Federal Endangered Species List

Feds Call Off Oregon Wolf Hunt

http://www.naturaloregon.org/2010/07/14/photos-four-new-wolf-pups-born-in-oregon/

Male wolf from Wenaha pack was fitted with a radio collar on Aug. 4, 2010. ODFW photo.

For the first time, wildlife officials have captured one of the wolves in the Wenaha pack in Northeast Oregon.

The two year old male was caught on Wednesday, outfitted with a tracking collar, and released.

It’s a big deal for Oregon Fish and Wildlife. That’s because it will now be a whole lot easier for the agency to monitor the pack and learn more about how well the wolves are doing.

There’s a lot wildlife officials don’t know about this pack. While they’ve counted at least four members, there could be more. The pack could also have produced some pups this spring, but we don’t have any evidence of that. Now that this male is wearing a tracking collar, ODFW hopes to start answering some of those questions.

Russ Morgan, ODFW, and Allison Field, OSU student, evaluating captured wolf. ODFW photo.

“This is an important milestone in monitoring the Wenaha pack,” says Russ Morgan, ODFW Wolf Coordinator. “Now, we will be able to determine specific use areas of this pack, pack numbers and pup production.”

The capture of the wolf was a collaborative effort between ODFW, Umatilla National Forest and the Pacific Northwest Region of the US Forest Service. The 97-pound wolf was in good condition.

Oregon’s other pack, the Imnaha pack in Wallowa County, could have as many as 14 members. The alpha female, an adult, and four pups were caught on camera this summer rollicking through a field. The fate of the alpha male is unknown. His tracking collar went silent May 31.

Related Story:

PHOTOS: Four New Wolf Pups Born In Oregon

Russ Morgan, ODFW wolf coordinator, with the female pup radio collared on Feb. 13, 2010. Photo from ODFW.

Thanks to a federal judge in Montana, Oregon’s wolves are back on the Endangered Species List.

District Judge David Molloy ruled today that the federal government made a mistake last year when it delisted wolves in four states, including Eastern Oregon, Eastern Washington, Idaho and Montana – but kept them on the list in Wyoming.

Molloy says the law doesn’t allow for a state-by-state solution. According to the judge, the law only allows one choice. List all of the wolves in Rocky Mountain region, or list none of them.

Environmental groups are happy with the ruling, but admit it’s still to early to know what will be the long term impact of Molloy’s ruling in Oregon.

“This is good news,” says Rob Klavins of Oregon Wild, “but not the last chapter.”

A lot depends on how the feds decide to respond. Will they appeal the ruling? Will they try to delist all the Rocky Mountain wolves or will they try to re-list all of them.

It’s been a crazy year for wolves in Oregon.

March: Oregon Fish and Wildlife begins taking public comments on the state’s Wolf Management Plan. The plan is five years old and is undergoing a review process.

May – early June: At least six calves are killed by wolves at ranches in Wallowa County. To help ranchers prevent further losses, Oregon Fish and Wildlife begins issuing a small number of “shoot-to-kill” permits.

May 31: ODFW authorizes federal agents to hunt and kill two members of the Imnaha pack. This is the pack believed responsible for the killing of calves. USDA’s Wildlife Services gets about two weeks to carry out the hunt.

June 10: Even though no wolves have been killed, and the attacks on livestock have stopped, ODFW extends the hunt for another week.

June 18: The hunt is extended for another week. ODFW confirms that the tracking collar for the alpha male of the Imnaha pack has stopped transmitting and he can’t be located.

June 25: ODFW extends the hunt through the end of August. No new attacks on livestock have been reported.

July 1: Environmental groups sue to stop the hunt, saying Wildlife Services was required to conduct an Environmental Analysis beforehand.

July 2: Wildlife Services calls off the hunt for the rest of July, giving wolves a break while the case plays out in court.

July 14: ODFW release photos of four new wolf pups born to the Imnaha pack.

July 30: Wildlife Services agrees to voluntarily call off the hunt until it carries out an Environmental Analysis. ODFW lets the “shoot-to-kill” permits expire. For all practical purposes, the hunt is over.

Northern Spotted Owl. Photo by Dennis Newman.

As if old growth logging, and competition from barred owls wasn’t enough.

There’s another threat to Oregon’s fragile population of northern spotted owls.

Research from Oregon State University says climate change may also hurt the spotted owl’s chances for survival.

The Impact of Climate Change

Climate change models predict Oregon and the Pacific Northwest will experience warmer and drier summers, as well as warmer and wetter winters, because of global warming. Lead researcher Betsy Glenn says both of those trends make it harder spotted owls to survive, but in different ways.

• Unusually dry summers reduce the food supply for spotted owls. That’s when you’re mostly likely to see big declines in the numbers of northern flying squirrels and other small mammals that spotted owls like to eat. Glenn says less food means lower survival rates for adults and owls won’t expand into areas when there’s not enough to eat.

• If the spring time nesting season is colder and wetter than normal, Glenn says it hurts the survival chances of owl fledglings.

“Adult spotted owls have fairly high annual survival rates, while reproduction is much more variable,” says Glenn. “We found that survival was more closely related to regional climate measures such as drought, while recruitment of new owls into the population was more often associated with local weather conditions.”

Other Factors Still Important

The researchers also found that the impact of climate and weather was very different at the six locations they studied in Oregon and Washington. They conclude that other factors, such as the quality of habitat, also play a major role in the future of the spotted owl. That includes the increasing number of barred owls, a larger and more aggressive species. Barred owls are driving spotted owls from their traditional territories.

A quote from the research, which appears in the journal Biological Conservation.

“Given that natural resource managers cannot control climate variation and barred owls are likely to persist and increase in the range of the northern spotted owl, maintaining sufficient high quality habitat on the landscape remains the most important management strategy for the conservation of this subspecies.”

Related Story:

VIDEO: Owl Vs Owl: The Feds May Be Ready To Take Sides

B-300, the alpha female of the Imnaha wolf pack. Taken in July of 2009 when ODFW replaced her radio collar. Photo from ODFW.

6PM: UPDATED WITH NEW INFO FROM ODFW

The hunt for wolves in Northeast Oregon is – for all practical purposes – on permanent hold as federal officials begin the job of studying how the hunt will impact the state’s small population of gray wolves.

Dan Kruse of Cascadia Wildlands says his group received a letter from USDA Wildlife Services, the agency that was assigned the job of killing two members of the Imnaha pack in Wallowa County.

He says Wildlife Services has agreed to voluntarily hold off hunting until it completes an Environmental Assessment, one of the steps called for under the National Environmental Policy Act.

This is exactly what environmental groups wanted.

About a month ago, Hells Canyon Preservation Council, Oregon Wild, Cascadia Wildlands and the Center for Biological Diversity sued to stop the hunt. They said Wildlife Services was required by law to complete an Environmental Assessment before the hunt could begin.

The feds responded by calling off the hunt for the month of July, then extended that until August 12th when oral arguments are scheduled before a federal judge.

Kruse is pleased with the indefinite delay. He says an Environmental Assessment will take several months and could continue into early next year. That buys more time for the wolves.

Meanwhile the feds and the environmental groups are negotiating a formal agreement. If that happens, the August 12th hearing will be cancelled.

The orders to kill two wolves came from ODFW, and don’t expire until the end of August. Today, ODFW’s Michelle Dennehy says it’s unlikely the agency will ask anyone else to carry out the order. She also says the shoot to kill permits that were issued to ranchers in the area expire tomorrow, and probably won’t be extended.

It’s been almost two months since the last wolf attack. But that doesn’t mean it won’t happen again. Dennehy says both cattle, and wolves, have moved into higher pasture on public lands. ODFW received a $15,000 grant to hire a range rider to patrol the area and haze wolves away from cattle. The patrols began July 7. ODFW also has a staff person watching over cattle most evenings.

And finally, still no word on the fate of the alpha male of the Imnaha pack. His tracking collar stopped transmitting May 31 and he’s not been seen or heard from since.

Related Stories:

PHOTOS: Four New Wolf Pups Born In Oregon

UPDATE: Oregon Wolves Get Four Week Break From Hunting

Lawsuit Filed To Stop Oregon Wolf Hunt

Oregon Fish and Wildlife says the Imnaha pack has – at least – four new wolf pups this year.

The photos of the pups romping through a field in Wallowa County are sure to delight environmentalists, and to dismay many Northeast Oregon ranchers.

This photo of the four new wolf pups was taken July 3, 2010. From ODFW.

The rumors of new pups had been circulating in the area for several weeks, but ODFW didn’t have visual confirmation until a remote camera snapped these images early in July.

ODFW says six of the adult members were also spotted in the photos, including the alpha female. But the alpha male was not seen, adding to the worries about his safety. The male hasn’t been spotted since his tracking collar went silent in late May.

Two of the Imnaha wolf pups. ODFW photo taken July 3, 2010.

Oregon Wolves By The Numbers

2: The number of wolf packs in Oregon. One of them is in the Imnaha Wildlife Management Area and the other is in the Wenaha Wildlife Management Area. Both packs in are Northeast Oregon in Wallowa and Union counties.

14: That’s how many wolves are believed to be part of the Imnaha pack. The number could be higher if ODFW camera’s haven’t spotted all of the new pups. There could be less depending on the fate of the alpha male.

4: The number of wolves in the Wenaha pack. There’s no evidence that this pack has successfully bred.

18-24: An estimate of how many wolves there are in the state. In addition to the 18 wolves in the Imnaha and Wenaha packs, ODFW and U.S. Fish and Wildlife are tracking a small number of lone wolves in Oregon. There’s credible evidence that some of these wolves have roamed as far west as the Santiam Pass.