A Few Problematic Wolves Emerge in California

Gray wolves have died at the hands of California officials for the first time in more than a century. Wildlife officials in October euthanized members of one of the state's 10 wolf packs after a surge in livestock attacks—a move that highlights the ongoing tension between wolf recovery efforts and ranchers' livelihoods. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said the decision followed an "unprecedented level" of livestock losses—70 at the hand of the Beyem Seyo pack—in a roughly six-month period this year; that accounted for 62% of all wolf-related livestock deaths in the state over that time.

"This decision was not made lightly nor was it easy," CDFW chief Charlton Bonham said, per NPR, explaining that multiple nonlethal deterrents failed to stop the wolves from preying on cattle. The agency said the wolves, who typically prey on wild deer and elk, had become too dependent on livestock for food, creating a cycle that officials couldn't break. Per a press release, a male and female breeding pair and a female were killed. The fourth wolf to be killed, a juvenile male, was "unintentionally lethally removed" after being mistaken for the breeding male. The Sacramento Bee reports three other members of the pack will be relocated to a wildlife sanctuary, characterizing the effort as "dramatic steps [that] will have the effect of moving the entire Beyem Seyo pack away from Sierra Valley."

Gray wolves were wiped out in California by the 1920s, but the species has returned over the last decade by way of Oregon. The wolves' return has been welcomed by conservationists, who see the species as vital to ecosystems; ranchers feel differently. Gray wolf management has been contentious nationwide. The Trump administration removed the animals from the Endangered Species Act in 2020, but federal protections were reinstated after a court challenge in 2022. California state law protects them as well, per the Bee. Bonham said "the situation with this pack is far outside any comparable experience across the state or the West."