Color Scheme

Subscribe now

Saving Columbian whitetails rife with pitfalls

Columbian white-tailed deer that roam in Oregon’s Douglas County were removed from the federal Threaten and Endangered Species List in 2003 after a 20-year recovery effort. A distinct population of Columbian whitetails in southwestern Washington now appears to be recovered after reaching a goal of about 400 animals. (File Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
By Rich Landers richl@spokesman.com(509) 459-5508
Columbian white-tailed deer that roam in Oregon’s Douglas County were removed from the federal Threaten and Endangered Species List in 2003 after a 20-year recovery effort. A distinct population of Columbian whitetails in southwestern Washington now appears to be recovered after reaching a goal of about 400 animals. (File Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Columbian white-tailed deer that roam in Oregon’s Douglas County were removed from the federal Threaten and Endangered Species List in 2003 after a 20-year recovery effort. A distinct population of Columbian whitetails in southwestern Washington now appears to be recovered after reaching a goal of about 400 animals. (File Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

ENDANGERED SPECIES — Wildlife agents plan to use a helicopter to drive deer into nets TODAY (March 19) at a refuge along the Columbia River at Cathlamet, Wash.

They hope to capture about a dozen endangered Columbian white-tailed deer at the Julia Butler-Hansen Refuge to move them to a refuge near Ridgefield.

An effort that began in January to move about 50 deer isn’t going as well as wildlife officials hoped, according to the Daily News :

  • Agents have captured 23 deer, but one died while being transported, apparently from stress.
  • Another was later found dead and three more were killed at Ridgefield by a coyote or other predator.

Officials are moving the deer because they fear a dike will break, flooding the refuge.

* This story was originally published as a post from the blog "Outdoors Blog." Read all stories from this blog