Help keep One Green Planet free and independent! Together we can ensure our platform remains a hub for empowering ideas committed to fighting for a sustainable, healthy, and compassionate world. Please support us in keeping our mission strong.
Multiple gray wolves in the northeast of Washington have been found dead, and wildlife officials suspect they were poisoned.
Source: KREM 2 News/YouTube
“For the past seven months,” wildlife officials said in a press release, “the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Police have been investigating six wolf mortalities within the Wedge pack territory in Stevens County.”
Police first began investigating in February, and toxicology results revealed that all six wolves died from ingesting poison. Conservation and wildlife organizations are offering rewards totaling $51,400 so far for information that leads to the conviction of those responsible for the poisonings.
Gray wolves are listed as endangered under state law in Washington, and in the western two-thirds of the state, they are also listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act. The illegal killing of wolves or other endangered fish or wildlife species is a gross misdemeanor that is punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $5,000.
“This is a tragic, unnecessary loss to our state’s endangered wolf population,” Zoe Hanley, a wolf biologist with Defenders of Wildlife, said in a statement Monday. “This cowardly act flies in the face of committed efforts from biologists, policymakers and ranchers working to recover and coexist with wolves in Washington.”
According to the department, at the end of 2021, there were at least 206 known wolves in 33 known packs.
The investigation is active, and the Department is encouraging anyone who might have information to come forward and report it confidentially by calling WDFW’s poaching hotline, 877-933-9847, or by texting a tip to 847411.
Just last year, Conservation and animal protection groups in Oregon offered a reward of $40,000 for information that results in a conviction regarding the fatal poisoning of 8 gray wolves in the state. Toxicology reports showed a variety of poisons in the wolves’ bodies, indicating that they had been purposefully killed by a cocktail of poisons. It is not uncommon for poachers to poison wolves, but this came as a shock to many Oregonians.
These cruel and deliberate poisonings not only caused these poor individual wolves to suffer but also may have a serious impact on the gray wolf population in the state.
Sign this petition telling the Fish and Wildlife Service to act now and relist the gray wolf as endangered.
Related Content:
- Conservation Groups Offer Reward for Info on Poisoning of 8 Gray Wolves
- Gray Wolf Pups Spotted in Colorado for First Time Since the 1940s
- Wisconsin Hunters Kill 20% of the State’s Gray Wolf Population in Less than Sixty Hours
- Petition: (Re)Protect Gray Wolves Under the Endangered Species Act
- Trump Administration Strips Protections from Endangered Gray Wolves
Easy Ways to Help the Planet:
- Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
- Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take the initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that are raising awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
- Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
- Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
- Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
- Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your own food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!
Comments