The commission’s final decision was influenced by a small but belligerent lobby of trophy hunters and trappers, and built on exaggerated claims about livestock conflict. Photo by Nathan Hobbs/iStock.com

Oregon has just made it easier for trophy hunters and trappers to go after the state’s small population of wolves.

In a move strenuously opposed by scientists, environmentalists and animal protection groups, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission on Friday updated its Wolf Conservation and Management Plan, opening the door for the trophy hunting of wolves in areas of the state where they are no longer protected under the federal Endangered Species Act.

There are just 137 known wolves in Oregon. The population is still in a fragile state of recovery after decades of indiscriminate hunting and trapping that had essentially wiped out Oregon’s wolf population. It was only 10 years ago that the first wolf returned…