The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
But wolves have entered Gunnison County in the past month
By Katherine Nettles
There are officially wolves travelling within far northern Gunnison County as of 2025, but Gunnison County canine resident Bonnie, a shepherd/husky mix, is not among them. Bonnie was the apparent subject of several photos and social media reports of a possible uncollared gray wolf spotted near the city of Gunnison last week—reports which have been confirmed this week to be a false alarm.
Last week Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) began investigating reports and a photo circulating within the community of what appeared to be a possible uncollared gray wolf located just north of Gunnison. CPW confirmed this in a statement on March 5.
“After receiving the report of this animal, we investigated the area for additional confirmational evidence, but we have not yet been able to confirm if the photographed animal is a wild wolf, as no suitable DNA samples were able to be collected,” wrote CPW in a statement last week. “Our staff continues to do considerable public outreach in the area. CPW encourages anyone claiming to see wolves in their area to fill out our wolf sighting form, especially if they have photos or videos. Further sightings of this animal in Gunnison County can also be reported to the Gunnison office at 970-641-7060. We ask for timely reporting if the animal is seen again.”
On March 7 CPW Southwest Region public information officer John Livingston updated the Crested Butte News that they had not yet confirmed the existence of an uncollared wolf, “It’s important to note that this isn’t a confirmed wolf sighting at this time.”
Then on Monday, March 11, CPW shared news that they had identified the canine, and it was in fact an unleashed foster pet whose pink collar was covered by her thick scruff.
“Everyone, meet Bonnie – a black shepherd/husky mix. Bonnie is a foster dog that was out for an off-leash walk in the same place and at the same time the photo of the potential uncollared wolf was taken,” according to the statement.
“Bonnie apparently wears a pink collar, but the scruff around her neck is so thick that it’s not always visible. While the foster provider was hiking with Bonnie that day, the dog was off-leash and not always in sight.”
“The foster provider has assured us they will get Bonnie a bright bandana and keep her on a leash during future hikes. We want to thank the foster provider for meeting with our staff and helping us identify the photographed animal.”
While it is unconfirmed where Bonnie is currently staying or if she is up for adoption (there have been plenty of inquiries), CPW noted that this situation underscores the importance of allowing CPR to do its work before jumping to conclusions.
“CPW appreciates the public’s interest and concern after this photo was taken and began circulating. This provides an interesting case study that highlights the importance of timely communication, patience and allowing adequate time for our wildlife managers to fully investigate potential wolf sightings.”
Still, we can reasonably expect actual wolf sightings to materialize as wolves have likely entered parts of Gunnison County this year.
Confirmed wolf activity
CPW has been assigned the task of reintroducing gray wolves to Colorado since voters passed legislation in 2020 directing the state to develop a plan and reintroduce the wolves, which formerly occupied western landscapes before being eradicated in the 20th century, no later than the end of 2023. CPW has now completed two seasons of wolf releases in the state and has fit wolves it released with radio collars to track their movement.
Since March 2024, CPW has published a monthly Gray Wolf Activity Map on its website to inform the public of collared wolf movements by watershed. CPW emphasizes that to protect the wolves, specific GPS data will not be shared and that their activity maps do not mean wolves are in those areas at any given day or predict where they might go. However, wolves have steadily been covering more ground, as expected, since CPW started publishing the maps.
The most recent map included the activity of reintroduced wolves from January 21, 2025. – February 25, 2025 and shows wolf activity has, for the first time since CPW began their releases in 2024, been tracked in northern Gunnison County, between state Highway 133 and 82 around Marble. The previous map showed wolf activity had not yet ventured near Aspen, Pitkin County or below Interstate 70 in that area—although they had been tracked south of I-70 further east near Summit and Eagle County.
Livingston explains, “The map depicts watersheds where collared wolves in Colorado have been from January 21-February 25. In order for a watershed to indicate wolf activity, at least one GPS position was recorded within the boundaries of the watershed. Simply because a watershed indicated wolf activity, it does not mean that a wolf or wolves are present throughout the entire watershed. It’s important to note that just because a highlighted area crosses a county boundary, it doesn’t necessarily mean a wolf or wolves have been in that county if the watershed crosses county boundaries.
“Translocated wolves are currently exploring the Colorado landscape and as wolf population numbers grow, some wolves will migrate to establish new territories. Wolves are habitat generalists, meaning they can thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions and habitats. As long as prey is available, wolves can use a variety of areas. It is anticipated that wolves will expand their distribution throughout the state widely over time.”
CPW managers say they will continue to monitor Colorado’s radio-collared wolves and encourage anyone who believes they have seen a wolf to fill out the wolf sighting form found at cpw.state.co.us/wolf-sightings
Information about living and recreating in areas where wolves live as well as monthly updated activity maps can be found at cpw.state.co.us/bringing-wolves-back-colorado.
