Colorado Wolves Being Tracked Down After Killing Farm Animals

State wildlife officials are set to track down a pack of wolves believed to be responsible for a series of livestock attacks in Colorado.

The decision comes after several incidents where farm animals were killed, prompting concern among local ranchers and sparking debate over wolf management in the state, following a recent reintroduction program by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission (CPW) in December.

A statute passed in November directed the CPW to develop a plan to introduce and manage gray wolves in Colorado, west of the Continental Divide. Ten wolves were reintroduced to the state as part of the plan, as stated on CPW’s website.

“The primary goal of the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management plan is to identify the steps needed to recover and maintain a viable, self-sustaining wolf population in Colorado, while concurrently working to minimize wolf-related conflicts with domestic animals/livestock, other wildlife and people,” stated CPW.

However, according to CPW depredation information, since April, 24 cattle, including calves, and sheep have been killed, with the deaths attributed to the wolves.

The Copper Creek Pack, which consists of a breeding pair and three pups, have been the main source of depredation issues in Grand County, according to the Yampa Valley Bugle.

All released wolves are monitored using satellite GPS collars.

“The collars are programmed to record a position every four hours. Although, the frequency of both position recording and transmission of the data can be delayed by a number of factors such as dense cloud cover, closed terrain, etc,” the CPW said on its website.

By looking at the data, Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff can learn where wolves have been, but they cannot tell where wolves are at a current point in time, nor can they predict where the wolves will go

The CPW has begun an operation to capture and relocate wolves from the depredating Copper Creek wolf pack.

“The decision to capture and relocate the Copper Creek pack was made with the careful consideration of multiple factors and feedback from many different stakeholders. Our options in this unique case were very limited, and this action is by no means a precedent for how CPW will resolve wolf-livestock conflict moving forward,” CPW director Jeff Davis said in a statement issued Tuesday.

“The ultimate goal of the operation is to relocate the pack to another location while we assess our best options for them to continue to contribute to the successful restoration of wolves in Colorado

“Colorado Parks and Wildlife is committed to fulfilling the will of Colorado voters to successfully restore the gray wolf population while meeting the needs of Colorado communities.

“As we have throughout the implementation of the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan, [the] CPW is working with wildlife biologists, federal partners, and producers to develop solutions that will reduce the risk of additional wolf depredations.

“For the safety of these animals and staff, CPW will not be sharing the location of the pack members or operation. CPW will provide more information and details at the conclusion of the operation.”

Newsweek reached out to CPW and state Governor Jared Polis for further comment on Thursday via email outside of working hours.

As reported by The Denver Post, ranchers in Colorado’s Middle Park area have repeatedly asked the agency to take action to stop the wolf depredations, but until now the agency has declined to intervene beyond providing more nonlethal deterrent resources.

Earlier this year, the region’s stockgrowers were denied a permit that would allow ranchers to kill depredating wolves.

As stated on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service government website, gray wolves in the contiguous 48 states and Mexico—with the exception of the Northern Rocky Mountain population—are now protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Newsweek has reached out to U.K.-based nonprofit wolf conservation center Wolf Watch for comment via email.