Colorado Parks and Wildlife provides wolf update to Parks and Wildlife Commission

7/17/2025

Luke Perkins
Statewide Public Information Officer
303-392-5789 / l[email protected]

Remote camera image of a wolf pup taken during the summer of 2025.

GRAND JUNCTION – Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) presented the Parks and Wildlife Commission with an update on conflict minimization efforts as well as the status of the organization's Wolf Program on July 17, 2025. This presentation included discussion about CPW’s range riding program, the mortality, reproduction, and movement of gray wolves reintroduced to Colorado in 2023 and 2025, as well as an announcement on the establishment of new packs, and an update on translocation efforts for the 2025-26 winter season.

“Today’s presentation reinforces how far wolf restoration efforts have come since planning started in 2021,” said Jeff Davis, Director of Colorado Parks and Wildlife. “Beyond providing an update on conflict minimization efforts and future translocation efforts, CPW announced the formation of three additional packs in the state of Colorado. Successful pack formation is vital to CPW’s wolf restoration plan not just in terms of reproduction, but also the development of territories. Localization of pack movement patterns will allow CPW to work more effectively with producers on notifications and conflict minimization strategies.”

Mitigation and minimization efforts
CPW continues to evolve its conflict minimization efforts as wildlife behavior and livestock movements change with the seasons, as well as changes in landscape usage by livestock producers who are moving into larger range operations on both public and private land. 

One of the primary tactics has been the use of range riders as a minimization tool when animals are on open range. CPW currently has nine range riders actively deployed with an emphasis on areas with concentrated wolf activity but flexibility to move to other areas as needed. 
 
"These mitigation efforts have required a high level of communication and coordination which has been facilitated by CPW’s staff as well as producers, who are working with us to help minimize wolf and livestock conflict,” said Brian Dreher, Assistant Director of CPW’s Terrestrial Wildlife Branch. “CPW is incredibly grateful for the Colorado ranchers and agriculturalists who continue to work with us through trying times and unknown outcomes towards reducing conflict. Their personal investment of time, resources, and access are vital and deeply appreciated.”

In addition to active range riding, CPW continues to provide site assessments, investigate depredation reports, and is coordinating with the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) on carcass removal, even in remote areas where this is more complicated due to access issues.

In the near future CPW will be hiring a Wolf Damage and Conflict Minimization Manager who will bring additional expertise and support to the organization's efforts. This role will also help coordinate interagency operations with partnering organizations such as CDA and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

Wolf mortality and movement analysis
Eric Odell, CPW’s Wolf Conservation Program Manager, provided an update on biologically relevant information on the wolf population in Colorado. A key part of Odell’s presentation was a review of five wolf mortalities that have occurred since the restoration efforts in January 2025. Two of these mortalities took place in Wyoming. Three mortalities took place in Colorado. Because wolves are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act, the USFWS has the lead on conducting necropsies and determining the causes of death.

“We knew from the early stages of planning wolf restoration that there would be some level of mortality amongst translocated gray wolves,” Odell said. “We specifically built in benchmarks for when we would initiate protocol reviews based on CPW’s previous experience with reintroduction of lynx in the late 1990s/early 2000s. The mortality that has been experienced by the wolf population this year is not a reason to pause translocation efforts.”

CPW staff continues to closely monitor the health of gray wolves translocated to Colorado – as well as the yearlings and pups who have been born here.

Commissioners were also shown a series of animations detailing and comparing the movements of paired and unpaired wolves as well as newly acquired trail cam footage of wolf pups from the King Mountain Pack in Routt County. These animations highlighted the area covered by wolves and how the formation of breeding packs and establishment of territories aids in the management of Colorado’s wolf population. Copies of these animations and videos can be found here.

Establishment of packs and update on translocation efforts
During Odell’s presentation CPW announced that there are now three recognized packs in the state in addition to the Copper Creek pack that formed last year:

• One Ear Pack in Jackson County
• King Mountain Pack in Routt County
• And Three Creeks Pack in Rio Blanco County.

CPW recognizes packs only after a breeding pair of wolves have reproduced in late spring. While CPW staff have seen pups at some of the dens there is not a confirmed pup count for all of the packs. Detection of pups in late spring or early summer is inherently low, because of their small size, use of habitats in dense cover, and time potentially underground. 

“We are continuing to monitor four dens in Colorado and will include minimum counts of the entire wolf population in our annual biological year reports,” Odell said. “Receiving reports of wolf sightings from the public – especially with high quality photos or video – is extremely helpful to CPW as we monitor and track the movement of gray wolves. This will become increasingly important as the population of uncollared wolves grows through successful restoration and natural immigration into Colorado.”

The final topic covered during Thursday’s presentation was an update on future translocation efforts. CPW is currently working on sourcing agreements for additional wolves to be translocated to Colorado in the winter of 2025-2026. The organization is currently working to schedule consultations with stakeholders in the southern release zone. 

As additional information on these meetings becomes available it will be released to the public to encourage participation.