Colorado Reports First Litter of Gray Wolf in 80 Years

Photo by Steve from Pexels

According to a statement released by state wildlife officials last Wednesday, Colorado has had its first litter of gray wolf pups since the 1940s.

The litter of at least three wolf pups was spotted over the weekend with their parents (two adult wolves) by a state biologist and a district wildlife manager, in Jackson County, just 150 miles northwest of Denver.

Often, most wolf litters contain four to six pups, so there could be more out there.

This discovery is right off the heels of a decision made by Colorado last year. You see, Colorado voters narrowly approved a ballot measure that would allow the state to reintroduce the animal onto the public lands of the western side of the state by at least the end of the year 2023.

Even Libbie Miller, a Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologist reported this:

"Our hope is that we will eventually have photos to document this momentous occasion in Colorado's incredible and diverse wildlife history, but not bothering them remains a paramount concern."

Earlier this year, gray wolves lost their federally protected status as an endangered species, but remain protected at the state level. Thus, hunting these animals in Colorado is illegal. If caught, the penalties include jail time, fines of $100,000, and/or possibly, a loss of hunting license privileges.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis even remarked on this situation, emphasizing the importance of keeping the gray wolf population:

"With voter passage last year of the initiative to require re-introduction of the wolf by the end of 2023, these pups will have plenty of potential mates when they grow up to start their own families."

Back in the 1940s, gray wolves are often harmed, trapped, and hunted into extermination. Back in 2020, officials did confirm that there some presence of a small pack of wolves on the north-western side of the state (also known as the Western Slope of Colorado).

There have been a number of sightings surrounding gray wolves since 2019. If you spotted a wolf personally, Colorado Parks and Wildlife have a form that you can fill out.

It is believed that many of these animals may have come from Wyoming's Yellowstone national park. For a map of the area, see below:

There are, of course, many people who are opposing the initiative to reintroduce wolves into Colorado. Some people think that they will eventually repopulate on their own.

Plus, the pups don't stay small and cute for very long: they grow up to become one of the largest living wild canine species.

Meanwhile, elk hunters, farmers, and cattle ranchers might not like this news since wolves could threaten their livestock and impact the hunting industries. It's believed that farmers might be provided compensation for the loss of livestock due to wolves, as this is also part of the initiative as well.

As for wildlife advocates, they may see this program as a way to restore the wolves to a habitat that was once their home. This could pave the way for wolves to live in a habitat stretching from Canada all the way to the Mexican border.

You can see a video summarizing the debate below:

Wolves had been reintroduced in the northern Rockies back in the 1990s and today, we do see many wolves roaming areas like Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington, and northern California.

There was also a small population in the western Great Lakes that has since expanded to a big group of 4400 that live across Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan.

Meanwhile, a small population of Mexican gray wolves and are protected in the south-west side, where federal wildlife managers have reported that they had placed 22 captive-born wolf pups into dens in the wild to be raised by surrogate packs.

The people of Colorado may wonder what this means for them. It may not mean much to you, but it might mean a lot for the hunters, farmers, and wildlife advocates. Only time will tell how effective this program will be.

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