Waking up from my winter hibernation to pass along this amazing video from ODFW. I have no idea why other media haven’t picked up on it.
Shot on December 30, it gives us a close up look at three members of the Imnaha wolf pack in Northeast Oregon. That includes the alpha female and a pair of one year old pups. By now, the pups are full grown.
ODFW says it counted 16 pack members, bigger than previously believed. The agency thinks the pack produced six pups last year instead of four.
This is the wolf that was found dead on September 30. The photo was taken in early August when it was captured and fitted with a radio collar. ODFW photo.
The reward for information about the illegal killing of a wolf in Northeast Oregon has increased to $10,000.
Conservation groups kicked in $7,500 on Friday. That’s on top of the $2,500 reward offered by the federal government.
After days of speculation and rumors, U.S. Fish and Wildlife confirmed that an adult male member of the Wenaha wolf pack was found dead in the Umatilla National Forest on September 30. The agency says it hasn’t determined how it died. But Oregon Wild claims the wolf was shot to death.
This is the wolf Oregon Wild says was killed by a poacher. Authorities have not confirmed the information. ODFW photo.
Update: The Associated Press has ODFW on the record as confirming the death, and that it is the adult male shown on the left. But still no comment about how the wolf died.
Trying to sort out reports that one of Oregon’s wolves – a member of the Wenaha pack – has been found shot to death.
The LaGrande Observer reports that the wolf was found Thursday by an employee of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in the Umatilla National Forest near Jarboe Meadow.
OPB says the wolf is the same one shown in the photo to the left, an adult male that was outfitted with a radio collar in early August.
But the most disturbing claim comes from Oregon Wild. In an email, the group says the wolf was found shot to death, and blames a poacher for the kill.
Oregon Wild says this is the third kill of a wolf since they returned to Oregon.
So far, neither Federal or State officials have confirmed the news.
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.
Oregon Fish and Wildlife is giving us our first look at the newest members of the state’s growing wolf population.
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.
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 Wenaha wolf pack in Northeast Oregon has produced at least two pups this season. ODFW confirmed the news this afternoon. They appear to the first pups born to the Wenaha pack.
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.
Fish and Wildlife asked for comments on the state’s Wolf Management Plan, and Oregonians responded in a big way.
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.
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.
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.
