Another Wolf is Dead: Is Colorado’s Reintroduction Plan Failing?

Wolves were reintroduced into the state of Colorado in December 2023 by voters. Since then, numerous wolves have been relocated into the high country of Colorado.

Population Growth and Initial Relocations

When 15 gray wolves relocated from British Columbia in January, the estimated population was around 30. In the past eight weeks, four wolves have died. Many are wondering if reintroduction was the right move for the state of Colorado due to the recent deaths.

Get our free mobile app

On April 20, a wolf in Rocky Mountain National Park died, and then another wolf died in the northwest region of Colorado on May 15. Colorado Parks and Wildlife had to intervene with a wolf that was involved in numerous depredations in Pitkin County, Colorado, and ultimately had to be killed by officials.

READ MORE: Tensions Rise as Gray Wolf Is Killed in Colorado Ranching Area

Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced that another wolf relocated from British Columbia earlier this year has died. The GPS collar of a male gray wolf known as 2507 sent a mortality alert to officials on May 31. Officials confirmed the mortality in northwest Colorado.

Survival Rates Remain Within Expected Range—for Now

According to the Summit Daily, Colorado's wolf reintroduction plan, the survival rate for the reintroduced wolves is still within the normal margins for the gray wolf population in the Rocky Mountains.

READ MORE: Wolf Killed in Grand County, Colorado Was Shot

However, if the survival rate of Colorado's gray wolves dips below 70 percent within six months, a translocation protocol will be enacted. As we inch closer to the summer months, more information will become available about the number of wolf pups that could have been born this year. Currently, that number is unknown.