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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Killing Coyotes Last Resort In Plan To Protect Deer

Associated Press

Coyotes that have been preying on endangered deer at a wildlife refuge near here would be trapped and killed if other control methods fail, according to a proposal by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The agency on Monday said it was inviting public comment on the plan, which is outlined in a supplemental environmental assessment.

The assessment was prepared as part of a settlement of a lawsuit filed by Friends of Animals and the Predator Defense Institute.

Those groups challenged last year’s coyote management program on the Julia Butler Hansen Refuge, in which nine coyotes were trapped, tranquilized and put to death.

Federal wildlife officials said those moves contributed to a successful fawning season for the Columbian white-tailed deer, a federally protected endangered species.

Fawn survival was estimated at 71 percent in 1997, compared with average survival rates between 10 percent and 20 percent in recent years without coyote control, officials said.