Meg Kenagy (503) 947-6021, cell (503) 341-8512    

CENTRAL POINT, Ore. – State wildlife officials have determined that three cougars recently removed in the Jackson County cougar management target area were taken at a location outside the boundaries of the target area due to a department error.

ODFW discovered the boundary error during a GIS (geographic information system) review of the target area map on Friday, March 2. While plotting GPS (global positioning system) coordinates, ODFW staff determined that private lands which the department intended to be part of the target area are located outside the boundary as described in administrative language. The location where the cougars were taken is approximately 2.5 miles outside the target area boundary.

After discovering the boundary error, ODFW removed the traps from the area outside the boundary on March 5.

Per department direction, an ODFW employee had been conducting trapping operations on the area since mid-January as part of the department’s cougar removals in Jackson County. The employee trapped and killed two cougars at the location on Feb. 20 and one cougar on Feb. 23. 

“The department regrets this error and has taken steps to correct it,” said Ron Anglin, Wildlife Division Administrator. “ODFW will count the three cougars as part of the 24 it plans to remove this year in the Jackson County target area and correct the boundary description so the language accurately reflects the intended zone.” 

Correction of the target area boundary is an administrative process that will be enacted as soon as possible by the department. ODFW has suspended any further department cougar removal in the area outside the boundary until the correction is made.

The Jackson County target area includes only the Jackson County portion of the Upper Rogue River extended cougar season area, which was originally drawn in the mid-1990s. District wildlife biologists created the hunting zone to encompass private and public lands in areas with higher levels of cougar conflict.

Jackson County was one of three target areas identified for cougar removals this year under the state’s new cougar management plan, which was adopted by the Fish and Wildlife Commission in April 2006. Landowners within the target areas  have been experiencing high levels of conflict between cougars and humans, livestock and other wildlife as measured by the number of “non-hunting mortalities,” or cougars killed due to conflict and damage complaints. The purpose of the cougar removals is to reduce the level of conflict. 

During 2007, ODFW plans to remove up to 24 cougars in the Jackson County target area, a 963-square mile area that encompasses the towns of Medford, Ashland, Eagle Point and Rogue River. The Jackson County target area represents approximately 8 percent of the Southwest Cascades cougar management zone. For this entire zone, the threshold to consider administrative cougar removals as identified in the cougar plan is 11 non-hunting mortalities. In 2005, the latest full reporting year, the department documented 38 non-hunting cougar mortalities in the entire zone.

ODFW is also conducting cougar removals near Heppner and in the East Beulah area of Malheur County. As of today, 17 cougars have been removed in the Heppner area and none in the East Beulah area.

After removal of the cougars, the department will re-evaluate the level of cougar and human conflict within the target areas in order to understand the effect of plan implementation.

About the cougar plan:

In April 2006, Oregon’s Fish and Wildlife Commission approved an adaptive cougar management plan based on recommendations from wildlife biologists and an open, public process that included an external peer review and a series of public meetings around the state.

The goal of the cougar plan is to conserve the healthy population strides cougars have made in Oregon—rebounding from near extirpation in the 1960s to over 5,000 in Oregon today—while minimizing conflicts a greater population of cougars creates with humans, pets, livestock and other wildlife.

To read the plan, visit http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/cougar/

About ODFW

The mission of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is to protect and enhance Oregon's fish and wildlife and their habitats for use and enjoyment by present and future generations. The department consists of the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission, a commission-appointed director and a statewide staff of approximately 950 permanent employees. Headquartered in Salem, ODFW has regional offices in Clackamas, Roseburg, Bend and La Grande with ten district offices located throughout the state. For additional information, please visit www.dfw.state.or.us.