I write this in response to Adam Bronstein’s “Wolf hate on rise in the West.” Wolf hate is on the rise due to the fact that there are far more wolves present than what the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife called for in the 2005 plan.

The Oregon Wolf Conservation and Management Plan was updated in 2019 by the ODFW with no change in population growth. The 2019 wolf management plan calls for a minimum of seven breeding pairs in the East Side Management Area. The 2022 census counted 15 breeding pairs, more than double the minimum. I find it interesting that Mr. Bronstein, who makes his living by promoting and encouraging folks to give money to the Western Watersheds Project, bends and outright fabricates “facts” to enhance his agenda of gathering donations.

Bronstein goes after the 700% payment for a value of a proven wolf kill. In order to get paid for a wolf kill, it takes a lot of man hours to discourage the depredation. There is also a good chance the rancher will not catch the kill in time and will be declined due to other predators contaminating the scene.

His statement that livestock displace wolves’ natural prey is not true. Most grazing permits are there to reduce the fire load to help reduce wildfire. Most forestland is under too much snow to provide winter range, and winter range is what limits the natural prey numbers. Aren’t we lucky that .00007% of our population are able to produce all of the beef we consume!

I wonder what his “growing body of science” is. I am not against the wolves being part of our natural environment, I just think we have introduced a large cost into the ranchers’ process that needs to be addressed. I am not sure what is “scientifically indefensible” about eliminating a problem wolf that has developed a taste for bovine. There are double the minimum breeding pairs currently. Do we need more?

Preying on the conscience of folks to extort money is a little like the wolf preying on cattle.

Joel Hasse

La Grande