A $50,000 reward is being offered for information on the deaths of three endangered gray wolves in Oregon

(CNN) —A trio of endangered gray wolves were found dead in southern Oregon, and federal officials are offering a $50,000 reward for information about their deaths.

The bodies were found on Dec. 29 after two wolf collars “indicated death,” prompting a response from state wildlife conservation workers, the Fish and Wildlife Service announced Friday. United States Wild.

The signs led authorities to the bodies of two collared and one uncollared wolves east of Bly, Oregon, the agency said. No details were given on how the wolf died.

A reward is offered for information leading to an arrest, criminal conviction or assessment of civil penalties related to animal deaths.

“The collared wolves were breeding adult female OR115 and subadult OR142 of the Gearhart Mountain Pack,” the release said. The third wolf was also a subadult or juvenile wolf, he added.

The deaths occurred in an area of ​​”known wolf activity,” which spans Klamath and Lake counties, according to the release.

Living in the western two-thirds of Oregon, gray wolves are a protected species because they are listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said there are only seven wolves left in the Gearhart Mountain pack, including a breeding male.

CNN has reached out to the US Fish and Wildlife Service for more information on the circumstances of the death.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the federal agency or Oregon State Police, the service said.