Wolves, Policy, & Legislative Action

General Questions:

The Wolf Fact Sheet 2024 has a contact number for the Service (360 – 753 – 9440). This number is to our front desk, calls will then be routed to the appropriate point of contact in the Service depending on the nature of the inquiry. 

Oregon Management Decision/Wolf Removal 

“In February 2025,  federal officials lethally removed an endangered gray wolf, OR-158, following multiple unsuccessful attempts at non-lethal deterrence and increasing concerns about public safety. This action was based on the best available science and the expertise of professional wildlife managers.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and USDA Wildlife Services worked with livestock producers using agency support and resources in an attempt to prevent and respond to the gray wolf conflict before it escalated. However, the wolf continued to demonstrate an increasing lack of wariness around humans and atypical behavior.

Additional information is available in a February 26, 2025 update from ODFW.”

Penalties for Killing a Federally Listed Species:

Our Office of Law Enforcement confirmed the following language is current:

“Take” of a listed species carries potential civil and criminal penalties. The statute language can be found in the United States Code at 16 U.S.C. (Link Here).

A take, possession, selling, delivering, carrying, transporting, or shipping, by any means what so ever, of a listed grey wolf would be a violation of the Endangered Species Protection Act, Title 16 U.S.C. §§ 1538(a)(1)(B), 1538(a)(1)(D) and 1544(b)(1) (Class A misdemeanor that can include a $100,000 ($200,000 for organizations) fine under this title, or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both for each violation). 

The term “take” means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.