Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials release 1 of 5 gray wolves onto public land in Grand County, Dec. 18, 2023. This wolf is known as 2302-OR. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
Following months of attacks on livestock in and around Grand County, state wildlife officials said Wednesday that they “have begun an operation” to relocate the first wolf pack to be established as part of efforts that began last winter to reintroduce gray wolves to Colorado.
The animals being relocated include two mated adults and the three pups they had this spring. By reproducing in the wild, the wolves, which were captured in Oregon and released by Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials late last year, became the first established wolf pack to result from the state’s reintroduction program, and were named the Copper Creek pack.
“The decision to capture and relocate the Copper Creek pack was made with the careful consideration of multiple factors and feedback from many different stakeholders,” CPW Director Jeff Davis said in a press release. ”Our options in this unique case were very limited, and this action is by no means a precedent for how CPW will resolve wolf-livestock conflict moving forward.”
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The state’s wolf reintroduction program fulfills a voter-approved 2020 ballot initiative to reintroduce the animals in Colorado in the name of restoring ecological balance. The measure, Proposition 114, was passed by a narrow 51% to 49% margin, and though it includes provisions to compensate livestock producers for depredations, it has been bitterly opposed by Colorado’s ranching industry.
At least 15 cattle and nine sheep are confirmed to have been killed by wolves in Grand and Routt counties following last year’s reintroductions, according to CPW data . The agency and local livestock producers say that many of the depredations were caused by the Copper Creek pack. Last month, CPW denied a request submitted in May by the Middle Park Stockgrowers Association for a permit to kill wolves deemed to be chronic depredators.
In an Aug. 14 letter to CPW and Gov. Jared Polis, the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association and local livestock organizations criticized that decision and wrote of their “deep concerns regarding the current direction and implementation of Colorado’s wolf reintroduction and management program.”
“Since the inception of the wolf reintroduction program, we have actively engaged and cooperated in good faith while also expressing our concerns throughout the process,” the letter read. “However, our concerns have been consistently overlooked. If the current trajectory of wolf management persists, it will become increasingly difficult for us to continue our cooperation.”
This decision is being driven by politics, is not rooted in science-based management and stands to significantly delay the progress of the reintroduction program.
– Mike Senatore, Defenders of Wildlife
The advocacy group Defenders of Wildlife sharply criticized the state’s decision to relocate the pack, calling it a “risky, short-term solution” and accusing livestock producers and CPW officials of not pursuing more effective means of nonlethal control and deterrence.
“This decision is being driven by politics, is not rooted in science-based management and stands to significantly delay the progress of the reintroduction program,” Mike Senatore, Defenders of Wildlife’s senior vice president of conservation programs. “All parties involved in the events that led to this deeply flawed decision should be held accountable for failure to effectively utilize proven coexistence tools.”
A total of 10 reintroduced wolves were released in Grand and Summit counties in December 2023, and have ranged widely in the mountains north of the Interstate 70 corridor since then. CPW said it would not disclose additional details of the Copper Creek pack’s relocation “for the safety of these animals and staff.”
“The ultimate goal of the operation is to relocate the pack to another location while we assess our best options for them to continue to contribute to the successful restoration of wolves in Colorado,” Davis said.
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