Agency OKs lethal steps on wolf pack

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has authorized killing wolves from the Grouse Flats pack in southeastern Washington after the pack killed several livestock.

The “incremental lethal action” can begin eight hours after authorization, which was given Tuesday morning by Fish and Wildlife Director Kelly Susewind, according to a department news release. The pack has a general range from Asotin County down across the Oregon border and as far west as Butte Creek.

Staci Lehman, WDFW spokeswoman, said the department will begin by killing one or two wolves before it will “take a pause” to see if the removal curbs the pack’s habits. Lehman didn’t know the method that will be used to kill the wolves. She said the wolves will be killed “humanely,” but she couldn’t rule out methods like trapping, since that is how the department often captures wolves to collar the animals. Lehman did not have a current estimate for the number of wolves in the pack.

If the pack kills another cow, then more lethal action will be taken. Lehman said there is no set time period after thinning the pack during which the department will monitor the pack to see if the removal has an effect. Unlike the depredation qualifications that result in removal, the waiting period after removal is more flexible.

Lethal removal can only be enacted if department staff have confirmed three depredations of livestock within 30 days, or four in 10 months.

The Grouse Flats pack has been involved in two depredations of livestock in the past 30 days, and four in approximately two months, according to the news release. Several confirmed depredations occurred in 2018, where the pack injured a calf Aug. 23, killed a calf Sept. 2 and injured a cow Oct. 28, according to previous reports. In 2019, rangers confirmed a calf was killed Aug. 30 and an adult cow was injured Sept. 11, as well as two calves killed in July.

A number of nonlethal deterrents by area livestock producers were used before this lethal authorization, including:

Using range riders to monitor the herd.

Maintaining regular human presence in grazing areas.

Removing sick and injured livestock from the grazing area until they are healed.

Removing or securing livestock carcasses to avoid attracting wolves to the rest of the herd.

Calving away from areas occupied by wolves.

Avoiding areas known for high wolf activity.

Fox lights near areas where the wolves had been.

Delaying the turnout of livestock onto grazing allotments until calving is finished and calves are typically at least 200 pounds.

According to Fish and Wildlife, the Grouse Flats pack was confirmed as a pack in 2017. The pack had at least one breeding pair by December 2018 and a minimum count of eight wolves at that time.

Lehman said this isn’t the first time Washington authorized the removal of wolves. Two wolves in the Old Profanity Territory pack were killed in July near Ferry County in northeastern Washington. She said the first removal didn’t stop the pack from targeting livestock, so more wolves were killed. But a judge temporarily blocked the agency from killing the single surviving member of the OPT pack Aug. 16 in a lawsuit filed by environmentalist groups. The entire pack was killed off after the temporary block lapsed. The OPT pack was responsible for 29 depredation incidents since October 2018.

Lethal removal of the Grouse Flats pack is not expected to hamper overall wolf recovery prospects statewide.

“Despite proactive nonlethal efforts and deterrents by multiple producers affected, this pack has continued to prey on cattle,” Susewind said. “While not an easy decision, this step is part of mitigating wolf-livestock conflict if nonlethal measures cease to prevent incidences of wolves preying on livestock.”

Holm may be contacted at (208) 848-2275 or tholm@lmtribune.com. Follow him on Twitter @TomHolm4.