JOHN DAY — One day after a lethal take was authorized, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife staff removed a wolf from Grant County’s Logan Valley Pack on Aug. 24 — although it wasn’t the breeding male they’d hoped to kill.

The Logan Valley Pack included two breeding adult wolves and five juvenile wolves born this year. The hope was to remove the adult male and protect the breeding female.

In a news release, ODFW said removal of the breeding adult male was not possible, but a 63-pound juvenile was killed instead. The agency added it has no immediate plans to kill any more wolves from the pack.

The management action comes after a string of depredations by the Logan Valley Pack, which occupies a range that runs from the upper John Day Valley south from Prairie City and west into the Logan Valley. The Logan Valley wolves have been blamed for four confirmed depredations on livestock since May.

Ryan Torland, a district wildlife biologist with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the department authorizes lethal wolf takes for chronic depredation, defined as two or more incidents within a nine-month period.

For killing a wolf to be authorized, there can be no attractions such as animal carcasses on the site and non-lethal deterrents must have been tried.

Torland said ODFW officials determined dispatching the Logan Valley Pack’s breeding male provided the best course of action for reducing depredations.

“In this particular case, we thought that was the best way to stop or reduce the conflict,” he said.

While lethal takes have ceased for now, Torland said more could be authorized if the Logan Valley Pack is involved in more depredations.

“Future (lethal take) activity depends on what the wolves do regarding future livestock injuries,” he said.