Extermination of Profanity Peak wolf pack halted

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has “suspended pursuit” of the Profanity Peak wolf pack that was marked for elimination after repeated killings of cattle in northeast Washington.

Seven of the 12 pack members have been killed and one died of natural causes, leaving an adult female and three juveniles alive. Livestock are now moving off grazing areas in the Colville National Forest and there hasn’t been a documented wolf kill of cattle since Oct. 3, according to a WDFW news release.

There have been 15 dead or injured cattle reported in the wolf pack’s area since July 8 and 10 of them were confirmed as wolf kills. The other five have been classified as probable wolf kills. The two ranchers who lost cattle took measures to protect their herds, including the use of range riders, the news release said.

The department will continue to monitor what is left of the Profanity Peak wolf pack and the wolf elimination project could resume if they kill more cattle.

The Profanity Peak pack is one of 19 wolf packs known to be living in Washington; 16 of those packs are in Eastern Washington.