Monthly Archives: January 2018

Wolves confirmed in Wasco County

Courtesy ODFW.

Two wolves have been recorded in the same county as Rowena Wildlife Clinic!

Images of the two wolves in the northern portion of Oregon’s Cascade Mountains were captured on remote cameras of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in the Mt. Hood National Forest on January 4.

Read the ODFW press release about this sighting.

ODFW will be taking public comments April 19 and 20 in Astoria, Ore., on its draft Wolf Management Plan. Comments may also be sent via email to odfw.commission@state.or.us.

Some environmental organizations such as Defenders of Wildlife oppose the draft plan. Defenders says it will:

Make it easier to hunt wolves by allowing hunters and trappers to kill so-called “problem wolves,” including for declines in deer and elk populations;
Include a “vision statement” that gets a foot in the door for the future creation of a general hunting season;
Lower the threshold for livestock depredations that would trigger lethal removal of wolves; and
Fail to meaningfully address the impacts of poaching.

Also see this Oregon Public Broadcasting report on the effectiveness — or lack thereof — of wolf kills.

Learn more about Oregon’s endangered gray wolves at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service website.

Trump administration changes Migratory Bird Treaty Act

Golden eagle. Photo by Tom Koerner. Courtesy USFWS.

The Trump administration says it will no longer criminally prosecute companies that accidentally kill migratory birds. The decision reverses a rule made in the last weeks of the Obama administration.

For more information, see this NPR story.

See this long list of birds protected by the MBTA.

Lucky bobcat survives freeway hit: Comments sought for draft Oregon wolf plan

The bobcat just after release.
Photo by Carol Rodrick.

This beautiful bobcat is one lucky kitty.

It was found near Mosier, Oregon, by Oregon Department of Transportation personnel, after having been hit by a vehicle on I-84. Fortunately, it was not severely injured, said Dr. Jean Cypher of Rowena Wildlife Clinic, and basically just needed rest and food. After a few days at the clinic, the cat was released.

Here is some info on bobcats in Oregon from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Scroll down the page to see the bobcat entry.

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The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has released its draft Wolf Management Plan for managing wolves in Oregon.

After invited stakeholder testimony at the agency’s December 2017 commission meeting, the commissioners chose to move the previously scheduled rule-making and adoption of an updated Wolf Plan from the January 19 meeting to a future meeting. ODFW has now scheduled that agenda item for the April 19-20 commission meeting in Astoria.

Public testimony about the Wolf Plan will be taken at the Astoria meeting and can also be provided via email at odfw.commission@state.or.us.