Colorado releases five wolves transplanted from Oregon

(The Center Square) – Colorado officials released five gray wolves in Grand County on Monday, over three years after voters in the state narrowly passed a ballot measure requiring a plan to restore the species.

The wolves were transplanted from Oregon, which agreed to allow Colorado Parks and Wildlife to capture 10 wolves total.

In 2020, voters approved Proposition 114 with almost 51% support even though wolves were already confirmed in Moffat County in February of that year. Most voter support came from the densely populated areas along the Front Range. In rural Grand County, where the five wolves were released Monday, 64% voted against the measure.

“What followed were three years of comprehensive listening and work by Colorado Parks and Wildlife to draft a plan to restore and manage wolves that included public meetings in every corner of the state and was inclusive of all points of view and weighed the needs of a wide range of communities with a deep interest in the thoughtful outcome of this effort,” Gov. Jared Polis said in a statement.

The state’s plan didn’t come without recent hurdles, last week facing a last-ditch lawsuit by groups representing Colorado ranchers seeking to delay reintroduction. A federal judge declined to grant the groups’ request on Friday.

CPW also had to wait on the federal government to approve a special designation to treat Colorado’s planned wolf population as experimental prior to reintroduction. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last month approved the designation, called the 10(j) rule under the Endangered Species Act, which went into effect on Dec. 8.

The designation allows CPW to have “increased management flexibility,” which includes the “authority to lethally remove wolves for management purposes.”

CPW Director Jeff Davis thanked USFWS for approving the designation in a statement Monday.

“Having the rule in place in early December helped CPW to stay on track to reintroduce wolves in 2023 with the ability to use the appropriate management tools,” he said. “We’ll continue releasing animals based on our plan to have wolves not just survive but thrive in Colorado as they did a century ago.”

The wolves released Monday include a 68-pound juvenile female, a 76-pound juvenile male, a 76-pound juvenile female, a 93-pound juvenile male, and a 108-pound adult male.

CPW’s plan projects transferring 30 to 50 wolves to Colorado within five years for reintroduction. The agency will pay out up to $15,000 per animal killed by wolves.