SALEM, Ore. – The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has confirmed that a wolf or wolves killed a llama on private land in Wallowa County early Monday morning. The depredation is being blamed on the Shamrock Pack and occurred on private land in the Buford Creek drainage.
ODFW reports that pre-mortem and post-mortem bite wounds and severe tissue damage on the left hind leg and throat area of the animal are consistent with common attack points for wolves. There were also fresh wolf tracks found in the same pasture about 200 yards away, and one set of fresh tracks was found about 10 yards from the carcass. The llama was found with muscle tissue from its flank and abdominal area consumed. Most of its internal organs were on the ground adjacent to the carcass.
This is the first act of depredation attributed to the Shamrock Pack, which is a relatively new group of wolves. A female from the Umatilla River Pack paired with a male wolf whose origin is not known. They were first referred to as the Chesnimnus pair. They then left that area, moving onto the Sled Springs Unit and have produced at least three pups that survived to the end of the year.
The Shamrock Pack’s new area covers 129 square miles and 90 percent of that area is private land.