Gray wolf from Colorado dies in Wyoming, CPW confirms

A gray wolf from Colorado brought to the Rocky Mountain State this year from British Columbia was shot and killed by USDA Wildlife Services in north-central Wyoming after the male wolf was reported to have been found on private property with five sheep depredations.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) biologists received a mortality alert from the wolf’s GPS tracking collar on Sunday, March 16. The Colorado wolf and its collar have been reported to have been returned to CPW by Wyoming Game and Fish.

The wolf was among 15 brought to Colorado from Canada this year. Wildlife officials reported the relocated candids were selected specifically from areas where there was no interaction between wolves and livestock. The second round of wolf reintroductions for the state, officials noted a central focus of this year’s efforts was mitigating interactions between wolves and livestock but when wolves share a landscape with landowners, conflict is expected to some extent.

Wolves are known to travel long distances to find food or mates, including into other states, the agency stated. Able to travel as far as 30 miles a day, wolves that disperse from their pack have been known to travel as far as 600 miles from their home ranges.

Wolves in Colorado are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act and it is illegal to harm or kill them without federal authorization. In Wyoming, most of the state is a “predatory animal area” and wolves can be shot legally without a license. Following reintroductions in Colorado, ranchers in the neighboring state have said they will shoot wolves on sight to protect their livestock.

Gray wolves in Colorado have been introduced into Grand, Summit, Eagle and Pitkin counties. One has made its way south through Park County while two have been reported to have wandered west near the Utah border.