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Cougars may die in deer, elk study By Mark Freeman State wildlife managers want to kill as many as 50 cougars in parts of Oregon in a study about the cats� effect on deer and elk herds. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is proposing to study cougars in northeast Oregon and the Roseburg area to test whether removing the predators will increase the numbers of young deer and elk that grow to adulthood. ODFW biologists have applied for a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grant of almost $1 million to conduct the study, which would begin as early as next year. Biologists proposed the study after the 1999 Legislature directed the agency to investigate the role of predators in deer and elk populations. Cougars, or mountain lions, are known to kill a deer or elk every seven to eight days. But it is not known whether their loss actually keeps herd numbers down in Oregon or if the cougars simply are eating animals that otherwise would have died. "You get guys swinging their arms who want them all dead, and other factions who don�t want any dead," said Steve Denney, who heads the ODFW�s regional office in Roseburg. "This approach gives us some data that�s scientifically credible ... and, hopefully, give our agency some information to figure out what the facts are." The plan is drawing criticism from the Predator Defense Institute of Eugene, where institute director Brooks Fahey believes the agency has crafted the study as a reaction to an anti-cougar sentiment among legislators including Elgin Republican Mark Simmons. "I�m not against research," Fahey said. "I just don�t think we should be taking out animals to study what already is known � that weather and habitat are the primary factors. "I think the ODFW is under political pressure from the extreme right to, basically, kill as many cougars as possible," Fahey said. Simmons could not be reached for comment Monday. The ODFW is taking public comment on the plan through Sept. 25. The study would have to be accepted and funded before it would begin, and no cougars likely would be killed until 2004 if the study is done. "There�s potential that it will never go," said Dewaine Jackson, an ODFW cougar researcher in Roseburg. The study is designed to occur around LaGrande and in the Roseburg area. Biologists will look to identify two deer herds and two elk herds, then place radio collars on 20 adults in those herds. One each of the deer and elk herds would be monitored as is, while biologists would also kill half the cougars in the areas around the other herds. Each year, more cougars would be killed to keep the numbers of cougars constant. The study will gauge whether deer and elk herds will have more fawns and calves grow to adulthood without current levels of cougar predation. Jackson said the draft plan calls for killing 10 to 20 cougars in the Roseburg area as early as 2004, then killing as many as five more each year for four years. The exact numbers would be determined after biologists trap and collar all the cougars in the study areas, Jackson said. Before the study occurs, the ODFW must complete an environmental assessment that looks at a variety of options, Jackson said. The agency prefers killing the cougars for the study to trapping the lions and either holding them for release three years later or relocating the animals. Previous studies have shown that cougars trapped and relocated into another cougar�s hunting area are usually killed, Jackson said. If the agency chose to trap and hold the cougars instead of killing them, about 48 cougars would have to be housed somewhere, and "we know of no facility that could do this for us," Jackson said. ODFW has applied for a Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration program grant from the Forest Service to carry out the research proposal. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA