Washington expands species of roadkill that drivers can take home to eat

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — It is now legal for Washingtonians in three counties to take additional species of roadkill home with them.

As of May 17, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is permitting people to salvage certain deer that were accidentally killed in vehicle crashes in Clark, Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties.

State wildlife officials previously banned this practice to help save the Columbian white-tailed deer. The species is found in the three named Washington counties – along with Oregon’s Clatsop, Columbia and Douglas counties – and is federally protected due to its status as a threatened animal.

Although it remains illegal to salvage white-tailed deer, WDFW is now allowing drivers to salvage other species as long as they have a permit issued by the department.

“We carefully reviewed available data and determined the risk of mistakenly salvaging Columbian white-tailed deer is low,” WDFW Ungulate Section Manager Kyle Garrison explained in a release. “This rule change expands salvage opportunities for black-tailed deer, in addition to elk, while continuing to support protections for Columbian white-tailed deer.”

The department first legalized the salvaging of elk in 2016, when white-tailed deer were still endangered. They were reclassified as “threatened” animals later in 2023, after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that the population grew from 545 deer in 2002 to 1,296 deer about 20 years later.

In Oregon, salvaging certain roadkill became legal in 2019. The state’s fish and wildlife department noted that white-tailed deer could be salvaged from Douglas County and east of the crest of the Cascade Mountains, but they should be left alone in other areas. It is still illegal to retrieve other game mammals, like bears and cougars.

In both Oregon and Washington, drivers must acquire a permit within 24 hours of possessing a deer or elk carcass.