Tensions rise after wolf kills cow in California
By Ryan Sabalow and Dale Kasler, Sacramento Bee
A wolf has killed a California rancher’s cow for the first time in more than 100 years, raising tensions in the newly reclaimed wolf country in California’s rugged northeastern corner.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that a member of the so-called Lassen Pack killed a heifer Oct. 13 on private property in western Lassen County. Data from a GPS collar worn by the pack’s breeding female showed it had been on-site for at least six hours the night the 600-pound yearling was killed. Wildlife officials said wolves were seen at the carcass the following morning.
When state wildlife officers were investigating the kill, the wolf hung close, on a forested slope a few hundred yards away.