Washington is Hiding Dead Wolves

Back in February, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife was told by Stevens County sheriffs that four wolves were found dead during a snowmobile patrol. Rumors had been circulating about poaching in the northeast corner of the state.

Yet in their March, April, and May wolf reports, WDFW made no mention of these deaths, reporting only one wolf death from natural causes in April. The department flat out denied rumors of poaching to their own Wolf Advisory Group (WAG) in April, and refused to publicly answer questions about poaching incidents at their May meeting.

Finally on May 25th, the agency admitted that they were investigating the killing of 4 wolves, but have yet to provide any further details. Why are they being so secretive? Do they not want people to know that Washington has a poaching problem as bad as Oregon’s?

Speak for Wolves has donated to the $30,000 reward offered for information leading to an arrest in this case.

Washington residents:
Send letters asking for agency accountability & transparency to Governor Inslee and key WDFW commissioners & staff via this NARN Action Alert.

A member of Washington’s Teanaway pack *(photo credit: WDFW)*

Donate to Our Anti-Poaching Fund

Action Alert: Corruption at Wildlife Services Killed Mexican Gray Wolves

In the response to the recent exposé in The Intercept, USDA Whistleblower Reveals Fraudulent Wolf Kills, our friends at Project Coyote are demanding a full investigation into Wildlife Services’ New Mexico and Arizona offices.

“I know some of those depredation [report]s that caused [wolf] removals were illegal,” [the whistleblower] told The Intercept, explaining that inspectors had been instructed by superiors to confirm livestock loss incidents as “wolf kills” for ranchers.

We cannot let Wildlife Services get away with this corruption and fraud that cost endangered wolves’ precious lives. Join us in calling the USDA Inspector General today! Click here for the phone number and details.

A male Mexican gray wolf at Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico
(*photo credit: USFWS*)

Meanwhile, in Oregon…

Oregon still hasn’t caught any of the poachers responsible for the spate of wolf poisonings and killings that took place in the northeast corner of the state over the last year, but as we reported last month, the Chesnimnus pack still has a kill order looming over them.