Oregon’s wolf population continues to grow and expand into western Oregon, but poaching of the predators remains concerning to authorities.

The minimum number of Oregon wolves at the end of 2024 was 204, up 15% over the previous year.

Oregon had 25 packs, up from 22 in 2023, and those included 17 breeding pairs, an increase from 15.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife released its annual wolf report April 11.

Minimum count

Oregon’s minimum wolf count is based on evidence such as visual observations, tracks and remote camera photographs.

“There are way more wolves than that,” said John Williams, the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association wolf committee co-chairman. “We’ve got more wolves impacting more ranchers all across the state,” said Williams, who urged for more aggressive and proactive management.

In 2023, Oregon’s minimum wolf count was unchanged at 178, though that didn’t include 10 wolves shipped to Colorado for reintroduction efforts.

Wolves were eradicated from Oregon in the early 1900s, but were reintroduced to Idaho in the mid 1990s and began recolonizing northeast Oregon in 2008.

Depredations, compensation

Oregon had 69 confirmed livestock depredations from wolves in 2024, a slight drop from 73 the previous year.

Actual livestock deaths increased in 2024 and included five cows, 24 calves and 62 sheep. Six cows, 16 calves, two sheep and three working dogs were confirmed as injured.

Wolf-related sheep deaths were more than double the highest mark recorded since wolves’ return to Oregon, but cattle deaths were at their lowest since 2020.

Williams said figures don’t include missing carcasses, as well as livestock production losses such as lower weights and conception rates.

Cattle attacks also are underreported because of paperwork and the state’s emphasis on expensive nonlethal deterrents, Williams said.

He added an updated wolf compensation package being considered by state legislators could encourage ranchers to ask for investigations.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture’s compensation program awarded $790,000 to 13 counties in 2024, up from $478,000 in 2023.

Grants were mostly used for non-lethal measures but all requests for payments regarding confirmed and probable depredations were fully honored.

“Proactively managing wolf-livestock conflict to reduce impacts to livestock continues to be a high priority for ODFW,” a report summary stated.

Wolf deaths

Authorities killed 11 Oregon wolves because of livestock depredations and another three were killed by ranchers when caught in the act of chasing or attacking livestock.

The 14 authorized wolf killings were down slightly from 2023, when 16 were killed over agricultural conflicts.

Overall, Oregon saw 26 wolves die, down from 36 in 2023. Of those, 22 were human-caused.

One wolf was killed in an Interstate 84 motor vehicle crash and the cause of four deaths was natural or unknown.

Seven wolf deaths are under investigation by law enforcement, down from 12 poachings in 2023.

One wolf was killed in the federally protected portion of Oregon.

Western pairs

Wolves west of highways 395, 78 and 95 remain listed as federally endangered and federal regulations, not state rules, are in effect. East of the highways, wolves are delisted.

Western Oregon had seven breeding pairs, up from three, and if that holds, the area may jump from Phase 1 of the state’s wolf plan to Phase 3 in 2027.

The switch would offer more flexibility to producers responding to livestock depredations once wolves are federally delisted.

Environmentalist response

Wildlife groups expressed relief to see a noteworthy increase in the state’s wolf population.

“As wolves face serious threats at the national level and Washington state’s population declined for the first time, it’s heartening to have positive news in Oregon,” said Bethany Cotton, conservation director for Cascadia Wildlands, in a news release.

Amaroq Weiss, senior wolf advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement that while the state is concerned about wolf poaching, they continue to authorize high levels of legal wolf killing over livestock conflicts.