Hunter forced to shoot wolf near Colville

COLVILLE – A hunter in the Colville area was forced to shoot and kill a young male wolf earlier this month in order to escape a wolf pack that was encircling him.

“The man called us as soon as he managed to get back to a place where he had cell service, and the incident was investigated by the county’s wildlife conflict specialist, Jeff Flood, and the state Department of Fish and Game,” said Stevens County Sheriff Brad Manke told the Statesman Examiner Newspaper. “Investigators went to the scene and found the dead wolf. From the evidence, they confirmed the man’s story and determined that he acted completely within the law because he was threatened.”

Manke said the identity of the man is being kept confidential to avoid making him a potential target for retaliation from wolf advocates. The incident occurred about 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 7, he said. According to Manke, the man had gone into the woods to check on his trail cameras. After walking through tall grass, he encountered multiple wolves in front of him. Manke said the man then began to slowly retreat, but looked behind to find other wolves flanking him.

The man had a firearm with him and fatally shot one of the more menacing wolves to get out of the life-threatening situation. The other animals retreated enough for him to get out of that location. Because he had no cell service, the man had to walk back toward his vehicle to report the incident.

““He was essentially surrounded. When he yelled at them, one or more of the wolves bared their teeth and they did not move,” Manke said, noting that the sheriff’s office feels the man’s actions were reasonable.

“We believe that no crime was committed in this case whatsoever,” he said.

Staci Lehman, public information officer for The department, said because the man was afraid for his safety, his actions were “justifiable.”

“I would like to stress that we don’t know for sure these wolves would have harmed the gentleman this happened to but if he was afraid for his safety then his actions were justifiable,” Lehman said. “WDFW doesn’t necessarily recommend that everyone carry firearms in the woods. Bear spray can be just as effective, you don’t have to be a good aim to use it, you won’t kill anyone if you miss your target and many people just aren’t comfortable carrying a gun.”

Lincoln County

sightings

Wolves are considered state endangered species in Washington and although no packs have been confirmed in Lincoln County, sightings are a common occurrence. The fish and wildlife website offers a tracking map showing where people have called in sightings over the last year.

The 2019 wolf report compiled by Fish and Wildlife counted 108 wolves in 21 packs in the state with an additional 37 wolves in five packs on tribal land within Washington.