Wolf reintroduction update Part 2:

Releases in Gunnison County this winter appear unlikely

By Katherine Nettles

The biggest issue right now for the Colorado Parks and Wildlife commission (CPW) gray wolf reintroduction program, assigned to the commission by a voter-passed ballot measure in 2020, appears to be finding an approved source for wolves to bring to Colorado this year.

CPW had previously indicated its intent to release wolves this winter in the southern release zone, which largely includes Gunnison County. Agricultural stakeholders and Gunnison County officials have asked CPW to slow down and more thoroughly address issues of the prior two years of releases first, mostly related to depredation of livestock. And in the meantime, the commission now faces new hurdles in sourcing wolves due to unrelated federal developments this fall.

Aside from the issues of how CPW will manage its wolf reintroduction program on the ground this year and who will lead the commission in the future, CPW also addressed its newly emerged challenge in how to continue sourcing gray wolves.

This fall, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a letter that seems to have at least delayed CPW’s typical December wolf release, directing CPW to source wolves from Northern Rocky Mountain states instead of from Canada. Colorado has been unable to secure agreements from such locations.

“CPW is currently evaluating the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) guidance regarding available sources for gray wolves from the delisted Northern Rocky Mountain population areas and will continue to coordinate with USFWS and comply with all applicable federal and state laws,” said CPW southwest region public information officer John Livingston.

The state of Washington discussed giving wolves to Colorado this winter, but its wildlife commission voted against it.

Livingston commented on the commission’s behalf, “CPW appreciated the chance to present our request to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Commission on November 15. CPW continues to evaluate all options to support this year’s gray wolf releases in alignment with the approved Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan and the 10(j) Rule.”

Managing the wolves already here…

Livingston said CPW will continue working with livestock producers to manage the impacts of wolves already on the Western Slope.

“Regardless of if translocation proceeds in the southern release zone this year, CPW will continue to provide viable, reasonable and effective responses for depredations and wolf-livestock conflict in the southwest region based on a case-by-case basis to best meet the needs of producers and potentially change the behavior of wolves who have localized near operations,” he stated.

In fact, wolves have been confirmed throughout Gunnison County for several months, though CPW has not shared information about packs settling in any locations or staking claim to a territory in the county as of yet.

The latest CPW wolf activity map, released last week, shows more wolf activity in Gunnison County than any month prior and indicates wolves are venturing further south with every passing month. CPW reported it received a mortality alert for a female wolf in an undisclosed location of Southwestern Colorado, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting an investigation. CPW also reported that wolves have recently explored watersheds near tribal lands in Colorado, stating “CPW has a memorandum of understanding with the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and is working to finalize a similar one with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, which addresses the potential effects of wolf restoration on the Tribe’s reservation and the Brunot Treaty Area in Southwestern Colorado.”

Livingston says that the commission is also working on several fronts to support livestock producers and deter wolves from depredation on livestock in Gunnison County and elsewhere.

“To assist with this, CPW’s regional staff are working in conjunction with our wolf conflict coordinator and wildlife damage specialists on strategically supplying a number of conflict minimization resources caches along the Western Slope that can be deployed at producer operations that have localized wolf movement. The goal is that these can be deployed to minimize wolf-livestock conflict on an as needed basis and can be shifted around the Western Slope,” says Livingston. “Gunnison currently is building up their cache, including a supply of fladry and a number of different scare devices such as foxlights, critter getters and motion activated alarms.”

The News reached out to the Gunnison Stockgrowers Association for comment as well, but did not hear back from its representatives.

Gunnison County commissioner Jonathan Houck, who was a member of the state’s wolf technical working group, weighed in on the issue as well. “The stockgrowers have requested that the rangeriders program be moved up to start March 1 because the proposed start date on May 1 is after the start of calving season. “We will continue to monitor CPW’s process; we think the petition is a reasonable request to be heard,” he said of the Stockgrowers’ request.

Houck also acknowledged the difficult position for CPW moving forward with the ever-evolving challenges of funding, sourcing and the ongoing social and political headwinds.

“There is no hard date set for this year’s release, and it seems that Oregon is the only source from which to get wolves that might work within the new federal guidelines prohibiting CPW from sourcing wolves from Canada,” he said.

So, while it appears as of now that a new wolf release this winter in Gunnison County is unlikely, local ranchers, CPW and county commissioners continue to emphasize the need for better on-the-ground practices to manage the reality that wolves are already here, and likely here to stay.