State kills female wolf in Grouse Flats pack

Just days after Gov. Jay Inslee asked that fewer wolves be killed, wildlife officials announced they’d removed a member of the Grouse Flats pack.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife killed a female member of the pack on Sept. 25, according to a news release published Friday. The wolf is believed to be the breeding female.

The pack, in Garfield County, has injured and killed numerous cattle. WDFW Director Kelley Susewind authorized lethal removal on Sept. 24.

Earlier this year WDFW killed all four members of the Old Profanity Territory wolf pack after repeated cattle attacks. The killings drew condemnation, and a lawsuit, from wolf proponents. WDFW has also authorized lethal removal of members of the Togo Wolf pack, although no wolves have been killed yet.

WDFW’s lethal removal policy allows killing wolves if they prey on livestock three times in a 30-day period or four times in a 10-month period and if two nonlethal deterrents have already been deployed.