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Last updated Feb. 13, 2012
Wolf numbers fluctuate throughout the year as wolves disperse, pups are born and new packs are formed. The Oregon wolf population is officially documented at the end of each year. On Dec. 31, 2012, the minimum Oregon population was 53 wolves. This means that at least 53 wolves were documented, though it is likely that there are more, as lone wolves can be challenging to document.
For more information, see the Oregon Wolf Population webpage or visit the Wolf Program Updates page for current monitoring information on packs and areas of new wolf activity.
Wolves are considered endangered statewide by Oregon’s Endangered Species Act. Wolves west of Hwys 395-78-95 are also on the federal Endangered Species List. West of this boundary, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the lead management agency. East of this boundary, ODFW is responsible for wolf management. Most current wolf activity occurs east of Hwys 395-78-95.
No. The wolves currently in Oregon migrated naturally into the state from Idaho or were born here. Wolves were captured in Canada and released in central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park in the mid-1990s but they were not released in Oregon. State wildlife managers have not captured wolves elsewhere and released them in Oregon, and there are no plans to do so.
Wolves are native to Oregon. They were listed as endangered by the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1974. When the Oregon Legislature enacted the state’s own ESA in 1987, it grandfathered in all species native to Oregon that were then listed under the federal ESA, including wolves. This law requires the Fish and Wildlife Commission (and ODFW) to conserve wolves in Oregon.
Also, Oregon’s Wildlife Policy directs the Commission to manage wildlife “… to prevent serious depletion of any indigenous species and to provide the optimum recreational and aesthetic benefits for present and future generations of the citizens of the state.” This includes a species as controversial as the wolf.
No. The wolves in Oregon today are part of the Northern Rocky Mountain wolf population. They are descendants of wolves originally captured in Canada and released in Yellowstone National Park and Idaho in the mid-1990s. Historical evidence and wolf specimens show wolves from the Canadian and northern U.S. Rockies, interior British Columbia, Northwest Territories, and nearly all of Alaska are closely related. According to taxonomists, they belong to a single subspecies known as Canis lupus occidentalis and form a single population across the Rocky Mountains of the northern U.S. and southern Canada.
Wolves originating from the region described above have proven to be genetically and morphologically similar. For example, of the wolves harvested during the 2009 hunting seasons, adults from Montana weighed an average of 97 lbs with a maximum of 117 lbs, and adults from Idaho weighed an average of 101 lbs with a maximum of about 130 lbs. These weights are similar to the sizes of wolves that occurred in these states in the 1800s and early 1900s. While the sample size is very small, the weights of wolves that have returned to Oregon or been born here in the last few years are similar, with the highest weight recorded 115 lbs.
Wolves are also well-known for their ability to disperse long distances from their birth sites. Radio-tracking data shows that wolves from southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta mix both with wolves from Idaho and Montana, and with wolves from farther north near the source locations of the animals used in the Idaho and Yellowstone reintroductions.
The plan was adopted by the Fish and Wildlife Commission in 2005 after one of the largest public processes ever for an Oregon fish and wildlife issue. An advisory group of 14 members representing various stakeholders crafted the original plan. Thousands of people provided their input during the initial planning process.
The plan is reviewed every five years. It was last reviewed and updated in October 2010 with several changes to make managing wolf-livestock conflicts more practical.
ODFW can begin the process to delist wolves from the state ESA after four breeding pairs of wolves are present in eastern Oregon for three consecutive years. The east-west boundary in Oregon is Hwys 97-20-395, which is a different boundary than the federal delisting boundary of Hwys 395-78-95.
A breeding pair is an adult male and an adult female wolf that have produced at least two pups that survive to December 31 of the year of their birth.
Oregon’s endangered species law does not allow for delisting in just portions of the state, so wolves could be delisted throughout the state after reaching this initial goal. But ODFW would continue to maintain protections for wolves in western Oregon as if they were endangered until that population also reaches four breeding pairs for three consecutive years.
The current Wolf Plan does not set a population cap for wolves. The population objective for wolves in Oregon is seven breeding pairs on each side of the east-west boundary (Hwys97/20/395). Once wolves reach that threshold, they would be managed so they do not decline below five breeding pairs or climb to unmanageable levels that cause conflicts with other land uses.
The fiscal biennium 2011-13 wolf program budget is $608,269 which covers ODFW’s wolf monitoring programs, responses to livestock depredation, equipment needs and the salaries of two employees that almost exclusively handle wolf management.
The majority of that money is federal dollars tied to federal grants. Most of the state dollars come from the tax check-off fund (where people can voluntarily contribute to conservation of non-hunted wildlife species in Oregon). A portion of the budget comes from hunting license dollars. No state general fund dollars (e.g. income tax) are used to support ODFW’s wolf program budget.
For more details, see Attachment A, page 16 of the 2011 Oregon Wolf Management Report.
ODFW currently has two full time wolf biologists. They work in the La Grande office in northeast Oregon. Field staff at ODFW’s field offices may also conduct wolf management activities when there are wolves in their area.
The Oregon State Legislature passed HB 3560 during the 2011 session. The bill directed the Oregon Department of Agriculture to establish a wolf depredation compensation and financial assistance program and appropriated $100,000 from the state General Fund to implement the program. For more information about the program, contact the Oregon Department of Agriculture.
The organization Defenders of Wildlife previously funded a compensation program in Oregon and other Rocky Mountain states for many years.
Domestic animals can die for a variety of reasons—due to predators (wolf, cougar, coyote or bear), weather, disease or injury. ODFW carefully investigates all reported livestock losses to wolves to determine the cause of death and the appropriate response.
First, ODFW closely examines evidence (the domestic animal’s carcass, signs of struggle, tracks or scat) to determine if the domestic animal was actually killed or injured by a predator—and not just scavenged by one after dying from another cause.
If the death or injury is determined to be predator-caused, further examination of the carcass and other evidence is needed to determine if wolves (rather than cougars, bears, coyotes) were responsible. Radio-collar data, any eyewitness accounts and wolf sign such as tracks or scat can also help indicate if wolves were in the area at the time.
More on livestock loss investigations
As of Dec. 31, 2012, 63 livestock or domestic animals are confirmed to have been killed or injured by wolves in Oregon since wolves began returning to the state in the late 1990s. Two wolves in Baker County killed 30 domestic animals (28 sheep, 1 calf and 1 goat) during the spring and summer of 2009. The Imnaha wolf pack and Umatilla River pack have also killed numerous livestock animals. See the livestock loss investigations page for summaries of investigations and more information.
Four Oregon wolves have been killed by ODFW or authorized agents in response to chronic depredations of livestock, including two in Baker County in September 2009 and two in Wallowa County in May 2011. In both situations, landowners and wildlife managers first tried a variety of non-lethal measures to avoid wolf-livestock conflict. ODFW’s fall 2011 plans to kill the alpha male and another member of the Imnaha pack due to chronic livestock losses are currently on hold due to litigation.
Typical methods include:
- Removing bone piles and carcasses that can attract wolves
- Fladry (flagged fencing, sometimes electrified) around livestock operations which can deter wolves in some situations.
- RAG (radio-activated guard) boxes that emit a noise when a collared wolf approaches
- Guard dogs
- Monitoring of wolf locations and providing that information to area landowners
- Range rider (to monitor and haze wolves away from livestock where necessary). ODFW and/or Defenders of Wildlife have funded a range rider in Wallowa County for some time.
- Hazing wolves away from livestock
- Changes in husbandry practices such as grazing cattle at different times and in different pastures.
These preventive methods don’t work in all places at all times. For example, fladry is not a realistic tool when livestock are grazing over a wide area. Wolves can also grow accustomed to fladry and RAG boxes, so these tools do not stay effective forever. ODFW works with landowners to determine which preventive tool(s) are appropriate.
No. However, before ODFW can authorize the killing of wolves due to livestock losses, non-lethal methods to solve wolf-livestock conflict must be tried, documented, and deemed ineffective.
Ranchers may try to scare the wolf off (by making loud noises for example) but may not harm or injure the wolf in any way.
When livestock losses or other wolf-livestock conflict occur, ODFW may permit livestock producers in the area to injuriously haze wolves (e.g. haze wolves in ways that could cause injury but not death). In this situation, there cannot be a circumstance on the permittee’s property attracting wolf-livestock conflict.
In cases where livestock losses occur and non-lethal efforts to resolve the problem are deemed ineffective, ODFW can also provide “caught in the act” permits. These allow ranchers to shoot a wolf they catch “in the act of biting, wounding, or killing livestock” on their property or lands they lawfully occupy. Because wolves usually target livestock at night and tend to avoid people, the opportunity to use these permits is rare.
Like other large carnivores (bears, cougars) wolves will tend to avoid people and wolf-human conflicts are extremely rare. They are more likely to occur when wolves are habituated to people, when dogs are involved, or if wolves are sick (e.g. rabies). Immediately report any incident with a wolf to police or ODFW at a local office or to ODFW’s La Grande office at 541-963-2138.
Wolves are by nature territorial and guard their territory from other canids, including coyotes and domestic dogs. Hunters who use dogs or anyone walking a dog in wolf country should take steps to limit potential conflicts between their dog(s) and a wild wolf. (Print handout of information)
- Keep dogs within view.
- Place a bell or a beeping collar on wider ranging dogs.
- Talk loudly to the dog or other people with you, or use whistles.
- Control the dog so that it stays close to you and wolves associate it with a human.
- Place the dog on a leash if wolves or fresh sign are seen.
- Remember, it is NOT legal to shoot at or attempt to injure or kill a wolf even if it is attacking your dog.
No, nor has there been an attack in other states (Wyoming, Montana, Idaho) since wolves were reintroduced into the northern Rocky Mountains. Wolves have attacked and killed people in Canada and Alaska but this is very rare.
Except in defense of human life, it is unlawful to shoot a wolf. Doing so is a violation of Oregon state game law, with fines and penalties assessed by a court. The violation would be a Class A misdemeanor, with a maximum penalty of a $6,250 fine and confinement to the county jail for one year. West of Hwys 395-78-95, wolves are also protected by the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Killing an animal protected under the federal ESA is punishable by a fine of up to $100,000, one year in jail, or both.
Coyote hunters need to be aware that wolves can easily be mistaken for coyotes, (especially wolf pups in the fall) and should always carefully identify their target before shooting. (Print handout of information)
The advice is similar to what to do if you encounter a cougar or bear.
- Don’t run.
- Stare directly at the wolf and don’t turn your back on it. If you are with a companion, and more than one wolf is present, place yourselves back to back and retreat slowly while acting aggressively.
- Use air horns or other noisemakers.
- Use bear spray or firearms if necessary (fire a shot into the air).
- Stand your ground if a wolf attacks you and fight with any means possible. Use sticks, rocks, ski poles, fishing rods or whatever you can find.
(Information from Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game)
Echinococcus granulosis is a type of tapeworm common to many species of dogs, coyotes, foxes, and wolves. It is endemic and is a natural part of the wolf’s ecology. Ungulates (deer, domestic cattle, domestic sheep, elk, and moose) are intermediate hosts for larval tapeworms, which form hydatid cysts in their body cavity. Canids (i.e., dog species) are definitive hosts where larval tapeworms mature and live in the small intestine.
The tapeworm has a worldwide distribution with two recognized "biotypes.” The 'northern' biotype that circulates between canids (wolf, dog) and wild ungulates (moose, caribou, reindeer, deer and elk) is primarily found in northern latitudes above the 45th parallel. The 'southern' biotype circulates between dogs and domestic ungulates, especially sheep. It is endemic and common in most sheep-raising areas of the world. Recently, Echinococcus was recently identified in Idaho and in one Oregon wolf. This is not unexpected since the parasite is a part of the ecology of the wolf.
Humans are not a natural host of the parasite. Where the parasite is found in wolves and wild ungulates, most wildlife management and public health agencies consider the public health significance and risk to be low. However, care should be taken (gloves warn) when handling dog or wolf feces.For more information about Echinococcus.
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Rocky Mountain Cow Elk and Calf
- Photo by Nick Myatt- |
The experience of states with more established wolf populations like Montana suggests the impact will vary according to many factors (habitat, weather patterns, hunting, livestock grazing patterns, other predators). In Montana, some elk populations have declined, while in other places with wolves, elk populations are stable or increasing.
ODFW biologists predict that elk will be the preferred prey in the Wallowa, Blue and Ochoco Mountains of northeast and central Oregon.
No. Wolf numbers are low right now and big game hunting tags have not been reduced due to wolves.
Healthy big game populations are important for Oregon’s citizens and local economics and will also play an important role in achieving wolf conservation in Oregon. ODFW will manage wolf numbers in balance with big game and other wildlife populations.
ODFW closely monitors both wolf and game (deer, elk, bighorn sheep, goat) populations. As wolf numbers increase and wolf population objectives are met, ODFW will evaluate wolves’ impact on game populations. If game populations are below their management goals and wolf predation is determined to be a primary cause of their decline, ODFW could take steps including translocation, relocation and controlled take of wolves.
More information: See the Wolf-Ungulate Interactions section of the Wolf Plan. |
