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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Blogs Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Multimedia Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Road Cams Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend March 8, 2007 Three cougars killed outside boundaries Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife suspends trapping after discovering mistake By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Three cougars killed last month as part of a state study on reducing cougar complaints and damage in Jackson County were shot outside of the study boundary, state officials said Wednesday. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists discovered the gaffe Friday and on Monday suspended their trapping and killing of up to two dozen cougars as part of the "Jackson County Target Area" study. Animal-rights groups called the killings an outrage and asked for a suspension of the study as department officials apologized Wednesday and said they would move on. "We messed up, we're going to let people know we messed up and we'll take steps to correct it," ODFW Wildlife Division Administrator Ron Anglin said Wednesday. The cougars — two female and one male — were killed Feb. 20-23 on a private Lake Creek-area ranch that local ODFW biologists believed was inside the 963-square-mile study area, Anglin said. Not until biologists were plotting the locations on a newly created map did they realize the animals were trapped and shot about 2.5 miles outside the study area's east boundary, Anglin said. Advertisement The killings were not illegal because they were done by an agency employee, and the agency has "administrative removal" rights on cougars, Anglin said. The mistake will not derail the study because the cougars' "home ranges" generally are large enough that they could have included the study area, Anglin said. "We'll count these three cougars as if they were taken from inside the target area," Anglin said. "It's impossible to say for sure, but it's quite possible that these cougars' home range included the target area." Also, the target area's boundaries will be amended to include the ranch where the cougars were shot, according to the ODFW. Wednesday's admission drew a quick and fiery response from animal-rights activists who call the study an unnecessary and unjustifiable excuse for killing cougars to appease landowners and politicians unfriendly to predators. Sally Mackler, the Williams-based wildlife chair of the Oregon Group Sierra Club, on Wednesday called for an immediate suspension of the study. "It's an absolute outrage," Mackler said. "The plan itself was an insult. On top of that, we have a state agency that can't even follow its own flawed plan." The target area follows a set of complicated boundary descriptions created in the mid-1990s for a year-round Upper Rogue River Cougar Extended Hunting Season along largely low-elevation private lands in Jackson County. Russ Stauff, the ODFW's Rogue Watershed Manager, said local biologists believed the ranch where the cougars were killed was within that description. It also met the intent of the original hunt boundary, though the ranch's boundary was about four-tenths of a mile from the actual hunt boundary, Stauff said. Though detailed in writing in the Big Game Hunting Regulations, local ODFW biologists never actually had a map of the zone complete with the roads within it, Stauff said. One was created Friday, revealing the mistake, Stauff said. "It was a shock to us," Stauff said. Anglin declined to comment whether any disciplinary action occurred or will occur. The target area is one of three in Oregon to test whether killing cougars in specific areas will reduce human-safety complaints as well as damage to pets and livestock. It is outlined in Oregon's year-old Cougar Management Plan. The trapping, which is being done part-time by an ODFW technician from Roseburg, likely will resume next week, Anglin said. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] . Would you like to respond to this story? If so Click Here to visit our forums. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2007 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Trunks, Footlocker Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Casinos Canada Cord Blood Banking Discount Hotel Reservations Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Men's Clothing Debt Help New Hampshire Primary