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Colorado knows where 10 gray wolves will come from ahead of reintroduction

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Colorado Department of Natural Resources and CPW officials declined to discuss the matter but said in a statement, "there is no question" that they are "fully committed to restoring wolves to Colorado as required by state law."
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Through a one-year agreement between Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon will provide up to 10 wolves for Colorado’s reintroduction effort.

CPW announced the agreement Friday as the agency plans to capture and relocate the wolves from Oregon to Colorado between December and March.

CPW approved the final Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan in May, clearing the way for state biologists to reintroduce gray wolves on the Western Slope after a voter-approved ballot initiative mandated that paws hit the ground by Dec. 31.



“In 2020, Colorado voted to reintroduce wolves to our great state by the end of 2023,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said in a statement. “Colorado Parks and Wildlife and our administration have worked tirelessly to safely reintroduce wolves consistent with that voter-mandated deadline. … We are deeply grateful for Oregon’s partnership in this endeavor, and we are now one step closer to fulfilling the will of the voters in time.”

According to CPW, the agency will begin capture operations in December with wildlife officials in Oregon sharing information about wolf locations and the best practices for wolf capture. CPW will be responsible for all costs associated with capturing and relocating the wolves.

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The agency added that CPW staff will work with contracted helicopter crews and spotter planes to capture the wolves, which will be tested and treated for disease.

Also, collars will be placed on the wolves, and the wolves will be crated before they are transported to Colorado either by truck or airplane.

Animals with major injuries — such as having several broken canines, missing eyes, fractured or missing limbs, or a mange or lice infection — will not be chosen for reintroduction. Additionally, CPW will try to transplant wolves that have not been involved in repeated depredations.

“Oregon has a long history of helping other states meet their conservation goals by providing animals for translocation efforts,” Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Director Curt Melcher said. “Some of our wildlife populations were also restored thanks to other states doing the same for us, including Rocky Mountain elk, bighorn sheep and Rocky Mountain goat.”

He added that the wolves will come from northeast Oregon, where they are most abundant in the state and the removal of 10 wolves is not expected to affect any conservation goals.

Montana, Wyoming and Idaho were Colorado’s first choices for wolves.

“We’ve never really wavered in our lack of interest in providing wolves to Colorado,” Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks spokesperson Greg Lemon told 9NEWS. Wyoming gave a similar response.

“Wyoming is opposed to sending wolves to Colorado,” Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon told 9NEWS in May. The governor wasn’t just against giving Colorado wolves, but stood “against the idea of Colorado’s gray wolf reintroduction as well,” according to the news source.

“Our current wolf management plan is working, and it works because it is designed to manage wolves in biologically and socially suitable habitats and to keep wolves out of areas of the state where conflicts would be highest,” Gordon continued. “Our border with Colorado is an unsuitable area for wolves, and that would mean more human conflicts. Resolution of conflicts are almost always deadly to wolves.”

Wyoming’s Game and Fish director Brian Nesvik told 9NEWS in March that he predicted wandering wolves from Colorado will make their way to Wyoming.

Colorado’s request for wolves from Idaho was rejected in a letter dated June 6 from Jim Fredericks, director of Idaho’s Department of Fish and Game.

“Idaho has paid an enormous price to have wolves on the landscape,” Fredericks wrote. “There are actual costs associated with monitoring, managing, and controlling wolves…Though these costs are significant, they are at least measurable. Less measurable are costs associated with unaccounted for livestock loss and increased production costs, and loss to rural economies due to decreased elk populations and hunting activity.”

According to CPW, the wolves will be released at select sites in Colorado as soon as possible once they have arrived here to minimize stress on the animals, and CPW will aim to reintroduce an equal number of male and female wolves.

Colorado wildlife officials anticipate the majority of animals will be in the range of 1 to 5 years old, which is the age that the agency says the animals would typically disperse from the pack they were born in.

Vail Daily’s Ryan Sederquist contributed to this reporting.

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