Oregon wildlife officials have long maintained that no hunting season is planned for the state’s wolf population, even as the number of wolves in state continues to grow.
Wolf hunting is legal in nearby Idaho and Montana — and around 400 animals are harvested annually between the two states — but officials have said no similar plan is envisioned for Oregon.
Environmental groups disagree, and say the state is planning to offer wolf hunting in Oregon, and possibly soon, just by a different name.
A proposal that could allow the public to hunt “problem wolves” — animals that attack livestock or cause a major decline in game populations — has become a flashpoint in negotiations over revisions to Oregon’s wolf plan.
Read more at the Statesman Journal.