Editor's note: The above video previously aired on KING 5 discussing Washington continuing protections for wolves.
SPOKANE, Wash. -- The state of Washington has ordered the killing of one or two wolves from the Togo pack in Ferry County in response to repeated attacks on cattle.
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) said Thursday that nonlethal deterrents used by three different ranchers had not stopped the attacks.
The agency has documented one dead and three injured calves since June 24. The attacks were attributed to the Togo pack.
The agency says ranchers tried a variety of approved methods to deter the wolves, but those methods failed. It says killing up to two wolves from the Togo pack is not expected to harm the wolf population’s ability to reproduce.
WDFW has documented three known wolf mortalities in the state since Jan. 1, 2021. In previous years, the agency has documented 12 to 21 mortalities per year and the population has continued to grow and expand its range, WDFW said in a news release Thursday.
In its annual report on the wolf population released in April, WDFW said the estimated wolf population grew to 179 wolves in 29 packs in 2020. In 2019, the agency estimated there were 145 wolves in 26 packs.
The state counted 132 wolves in areas managed by Fish and Wildlife and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation reported 46 wolves.
The Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting endangered species, issued a statement Thursday expressing their disappointment with WDFW's decision.
“With no kill orders issued this spring, we had hoped that wildlife managers in Washington had finally committed to actually promoting coexistence with wolves,” said Amaroq Weiss, senior wolf advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “With yet another kill order, livestock owners have little incentive to use or continue to use measures that prevent conflicts because they can count on the agency to send sharpshooters into the air.”
The nonprofit said that since 2012, wildlife officials have killed 34 wolves, who are listed as endangered under state law throughout Washington.
WDFW said Thursday the lethal removal authorization for the wolves in the Togo pack expires when the wolf or wolves have been removed or after Sept. 26, whichever comes first, regardless of whether the wolves have been removed.
The authorization could be extended or amended to include other wolves in the pack area if additional attacks are documented in the 30 days following the initial authorization or other extenuating circumstances are identified, according to WDFW.