Conservation Groups Increase Reward For Poaching Information

Conservation organizations and groups are chipping in $7,300 of reward money for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the poaching of an 18 month old female wolf in Baker County. The wolf was discovered by an elk hunter who reported it to the Oregon State Police. Investigators said the wolf was shot sometime around October 29^th, off Forest Service Road 3990 in the Grouse Flat area of the Wallowa Whitman National Forest, about eight miles northeast of Halfway.

This is the second known wolf poaching in Baker County and the Wallowa Whitman National Forest in the past five weeks.

Around September 24^th the breeding male wolf of the Cornucopia pack was shot to dealth by poachers. Conservation groups and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife have offered a reward of $6,150 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible in that case. Law enforcement has not indicated whether they believe the two killings are connected.

The coalition has contributed $7,300 to the reward. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Turn in Poachers division also offers a potential $300 reward for information regarding wolf poachings. Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact OSP Sgt. Isaac Cyr through the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Turn in Poachers (TIP) hotline at 1-800-452-7888 or *OSP via mobile. Tips can also be submitted via email to TIP@state.or.us (monitored Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.).

“Oregon’s small wolf population faces an increasingly large poaching problem that could affect whether these incredible animals fully recover here,” said Amaroq Weiss, a senior West Coast wolf advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “With federal protections disappearing soon, we fear these two recent wolf poachings could become just the tip of the iceberg. We’ve got to crack down on these illegal killings.”

“It’s clear that we need to take a new approach toward the lawless disregard some have toward Oregon’s wildlife,” said Danielle Moser, wildlife program coordinator for Oregon Wild. “Our current system is not up to the task of bringing criminals to justice. This culture of poaching permissiveness, plus the recent decision by the Trump administration to remove federal protections for wolves, puts wolf recovery in Oregon in real jeopardy.”

“Wildlife poaching in Oregon is widespread, with most of it unreported,” said Wally Sykes with Northeast Oregon Ecosystems. “I urge all Oregonians to report it when they see it, not just for a reward but for the protection of the wild populations treasured by all of us. The killing of this wolf is a crime against every one of us.”

Since 2015, there have been 17 wolves found dead in Oregon, including these two latest incidents. Up to 16 of these have been investigated by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife as poachings. Thirteen of the wolves had been illegally shot, one was poisoned and the breeding male and female of the Sled Springs pack were found dead together under suspicious circumstances. An additional pup was found dead; the pup’s cause of death could not be determined.

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