Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, January 22, 2025 -- THREE
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So much to process
this week. As I write this,
Inauguration is happening,
and hopes are high…unless
you’re a DEI (diversity,
equity and inclusion) wor-
shiper who might be crying
in a corner somewhere. I
do hope you have plenty of
tissues; it’s gonna be a long
day for you.
I had some serious
doubt that we would get to
this point, oh me of little
faith. Wasn’t the hole-in-
the-ear miracle enough?
And then the next assas-
sination almost happened.
I have faith in a God who
performs miracles and uses
imperfect people, so I be-
lieve there is a good reason
Trump made it this far.
I’d love to see our bor-
ders closed and the threat
to our country eliminated,
both internal and external.
I’d love to see our children
safe from Liberal liars, sex-
ual predators and Planned
Parenthood, and criminals
justly prosecuted, especial-
ly sex and drug traffickers.
It also wouldn’t hurt
my feelings if all the DEI
garbage disappeared, and
we started seeing (and hir-
ing) each other for the qual-
ity of our character. And, of
course, a restored economy
would help us all.
So, I wonder how the
Dems will respond. Has
the fire in LA taught anyone
anything? Has Newsome’s
lousy leadership and ri-
diculous priorities made
them rethink their mantra?
Maybe some…but admit-
ting you were wrong can
be a humbling experience.
Plus, you have to risk losing
a few friends. Who wants
to step across that line and
become the enemy? It’s a
hard task and takes a strong
character, but being on the
side of common sense has
its benefits.
Then there’s the subject
of evil. I’ve lived quite a
while and I’ve never seen a
rapid societal decline like I
have the last few years. The
Biden Admin has acceler-
ated the decline just a tad.
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These days good is bad and
bad is good. Tolerance is a
priority at all costs as long
as it’s aimed at anyone but
Christians and Jews…and
straight white men. So it’s
good to tolerate evil while
evil has no tolerance for
good. That’s the plan.
Can a Trump presi-
dency fix all this? Well,
it’s a nice thought. But I
believe God is still boss
and how it all plays out is
up to Him. Should we pray
for our new President and
his Cabinet? You bet. Pray
for our country. Pray for
our people. And pray for a
reprieve from what Jesus
said was coming in the last
days. “People will be lovers
of self….” (See 2 Timothy
3:1-5).
One last thought. What
about God’s punishment…
or is it discipline? Does
He bring about disasters?
Or does he just step aside
and let Satan wreak havoc?
Sometimes I wonder if God
doesn’t say “Fine…you
guys have ignored me long
enough…now watch this.”
I’ve said it before….it’s
a good thing I’m not God.
I’d be using my zapper fre-
quently. But I know this. He
is all-powerful, all-know-
ing, and loves us beyond
what we can imagine.
If our new President
succeeds, it will be by
God’s grace and mercy.
Our repentance and prayers
count. Prophecy will con-
tinue to be fulfilled, and
America’s fate is in God’s
capable hands. Thank you,
Jesus.
“And we know that in
all things God works for
the good of those who love
him, who have been called
according to his purpose,”
(Roman’s 8:28).
Susie Crosby
Prineville, OR
Sup
er
ch
He’s Back!
Reward increased to $20,000 for wolf
poaching case in Morrow County
$130,000 in rewards offered for wolf poaching cases across Oregon
Gray wolf. - Contributed
Photo
On January 2, 2025,
US Fish and Wildlife Ser-
vice (USFWS) officials
announced a $10,000 cash
reward for information re-
garding the poaching of
a gray wolf identified as
OR-159 on private prop-
erty in Morrow County.
Combined with the Oregon
Wildlife Coalition’s (OWC)
standing $10,000 reward
for wolf poaching in the
area, the total reward now
stands at $20,000 for infor-
mation leading to an arrest
or citation. The wolf was
found dead approximately
20 miles south of Hep-
pner on private property.
Gray wolves are federally
protected under the En-
dangered Species Act in
the western two-thirds of
Oregon. Initially, the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service
offered a $10,000 reward,
which was later matched
by the Oregon Wildlife
Coalition, bringing the total
to $20,000.
The incident in Morrow
County is one of several
wolf poaching cases report-
ed across Oregon. In Grant
County, a yearling male
wolf was shot south of Prai-
rie City in May 2024, with
rewards totaling $12,100 or
five Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife (ODFW)
hunter preference points
offered for information.
In Wallowa County, be-
tween February and March
2024, three gray wolves
and two golden eagles were
poisoned in the Snake River
Wildlife Management Unit
and Wallowa-Whitman
National Forest, prompt-
ing rewards amounting to
$38,700.
Similarly, in Klamath
and Lake Counties, three
endangered gray wolves
were found dead east of Bly
in December 2023, with
rewards totaling $60,000.
Altogether, more than
$130,000 in rewards have
been offered statewide to
address these cases.
Funding for these re-
wards comes from non-
profit organizations and
advocacy groups like the
Oregon Wildlife Coalition
and The Humane Society
of the United States. State
agencies, including ODFW,
contribute funds generated
from hunting and fishing
license fees, federal grants
and excise taxes. Private
donations and conservation
grants from federal and
state programs also sup-
port enforcement efforts.
ODFW’s Turn In Poachers
(TIP) Program provides
additional incentives for re-
porting poaching activities.
Tracking the Wolves
ODFW monitors Or-
egon’s wolf populations
through various methods,
including GPS collars to
track movement and pack
behavior, trail cameras
to record visual data, and
snow tracking and scat sur-
veys that provide insights
during winter months.
Aerial surveys help
monitor wolves in rug-
ged terrain, while verified
public reports from hunt-
ers, ranchers and citizens
contribute to monitoring
efforts.
At the end of 2023, Or-
egon recorded a minimum
of 178 wolves in 22 packs,
including 15 breeding pairs.
However, annual reports
compiled by ODFW sug-
gest the actual population
may be higher.
Wolves have high re-
productive potential, which
allows their populations to
grow quickly under favor-
able conditions. Wolves
typically mate once per year
in late winter, with pups
born in April or May after
a 63-day gestation period.
Average litter sizes
range from four to six pups,
though litters of up to 11
have been documented. In
the wild, 30–60 percent
of pups survive their first
year, depending on food
availability, disease and
predation.
Wolves reach sexual
maturity at one to two years
and can start breeding by
two years of age. Young
adults often disperse to
form new packs, contribut-
ing to rapid expansion into
new areas.
Under ideal conditions,
wolf populations can dou-
ble in three to four years if
mortality rates are low and
food sources are abundant.
Despite official counts,
some people believe the
wolf population in Oregon
is significantly underreport-
ed. Wolves are highly mo-
bile, nocturnal and skilled
at avoiding humans, mak-
ing them difficult to track
and count accurately.
Survey methods rely on
camera traps, radio collars
and visual observations,
which may miss uncol-
lared or transient wolves.
Additionally, unverified
sightings by ranchers and
residents may not be includ-
ed in official data.
Wolves’ high repro-
ductive rates and long-dis-
tance dispersal patterns
also complicate tracking
efforts, potentially leading
to undercounts.
Protected by Geog-
raphy
Although biologically
identical, these wolves face
vastly different treatment
depending on which side
of the state border they in-
habit. While Idaho enforces
aggressive predator man-
agement policies, Oregon
takes a more protective
approach.
Both states’ wolves
belong to the same species,
Canis lupus, and many of
Oregon’s wolves originally
migrated from Idaho.
Reintroduced to Idaho
in the mid-1990s as part of
a federal recovery program,
the wolves expanded their
range, naturally dispersing
into Oregon.
This migration laid the
foundation for Oregon’s
more gradual and conser-
vation-focused wolf man-
agement strategy, contrast-
ing sharply with Idaho’s
emphasis on population
control.
Oregon removed
wolves from state Endan-
gered Species Act protec-
tions in 2015, but they
remain federally protected
west of Highway 395.
Wolves in western Ore-
gon fall under U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service jurisdic-
tion, while eastern Oregon
wolves are managed by the
state.
Proposals to federally
delist wolves continue to
face legal challenges and
delays.
Legal protections fur-
ther highlight the differenc-
es. Wolves in Idaho were
delisted from the Endan-
gered Species Act in 2011,
transferring management
to the state, which allows
hunting and trapping to
control populations.
In Oregon, wolves re-
main federally protected in
the western part of the state,
while state management
applies in the east. Even
under state control, Ore-
gon emphasizes non-lethal
deterrents and compensa-
tion programs for livestock
losses rather than predator
removal.
Wolf Predation
Reports of livestock
predation by wolves have
been documented in Or-
egon. In March 2024, a
calf was killed in the Balm
Creek area, linked to the
WA123 group.
In April 2024, a two-
day-old calf was injured in
Upper Rhea Creek by the
Madison Butte Pack, and
later that month, a two-
month-old calf was found
dead in the same area.
The Madison Butte
Pack was also responsible
for killing a four-day-old
calf in May and a seven-
month-old calf in the Road
Canyon area in October
2024.
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