Apex predators — under federal protection — found illegally killed in WA, officials say
Two apex predators were found killed in two Washington counties, wildlife officials said.
Now, wildlife officials are offering a reward up to $10,000 for information that leads to an arrest or conviction in each case.
An adult male gray wolf was found dead Oct. 6 in Klickitat County in the southern part of the state, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service said in an Oct. 28 news release.
It was discovered east of the Klickitat River near U.S. Highway 142 and Goldendale, officials said.
Then, on Oct. 20 a female adult wolf was found southwest of Twisp in Okanogan County, in northern Washington.
Gray wolves have been listed as endangered under state law since 1980, according to the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.
Under this law, it’s illegal to hunt, kill, possess or cause malicious harassment to these animals, officials said.
This protection was put in place after the gray wolf was nearly eradicated from the state in the 1900s.
The animal has also been under federal protection in the western two-thirds of the state since 2022.
