First-ever voter-mandated wolf reintroduction begins in Colorado

Colorado has passed its first voter-mandated reintroduction of endangered wolves in U.S. history. On Monday, Dec. 18, the mandate became a reality as the first gray wolf released on Colorado soil dashed out of a metal crate and into the Grand County mountains. Four other wolves soon followed.

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Wildlife officials worked from dusk until dawn to capture the five wolves Sunday, Dec. 17, in Oregon. Two teams used planes to look for wolf tracks and analyze data from wolf collars.

Once teams in helicopters shot the wolves with tranquilizer, veterinarians and biologists checked their health, took blood and tissue samples, and equipped the wolves with radio collars.

Colorado wildlife officials said the wolves came from five packs in Oregon. The officials did not disclose the exact location for safety purposes, but the location is confirmed to be in the north-central mountains.

Experts expect the wolves to immediately spread out from the release site. They could move up to 70 miles from the site, traveling for weeks until they find a suitable habitat.

Wildlife advocates hailed the move as a win for the environment.

“This is a moment of rewilding,” said Joanna Lambert, a professor of wildlife, ecology and conservation at the University of Colorado-Boulder, “Of doing something to stave off the biodiversity extinction crisis we are living in.”

Gov. Jared Polis also praised the move in a news release.

“Today, history was made in Colorado,” Polis wrote. “For the first time since the 1940s, the howl of wolves will officially return to western Colorado.”

He also got to experience the release firsthand.

“[Wolves] have larger-than-life places in human imagination, in stories we all grew up with and tell each other,” Polis said. “To see them in their natural habitat, and turn around look curiously at us, is really, really a special moment that I will treasure for my entire life.”

The measure also relieves pressure on the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, as it allows the agency to reintroduce wolves by Dec. 31. The deadline was set by voters in the 2020 ballot measure, which narrowly passed 51% to 49%.

Fifty wolves are set to be released over the next three to five years.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife said it plans to reintroduce 10 wolves from Oregon between December and March. Officials will restart the process during the following winter.

Most of the support for the reintroduction came from urban areas.

Ranchers, hunters and rural communities fought efforts, voicing concern over threats to cattle, sheep and hunting game herds.

Two rancher groups sued the state and federal wildlife officials just days before the capture and release. The suit, which aimed to delay the efforts, was denied by a federal judge on Friday, Dec. 15.

Colorado Park and Wildlife Director Jeff Davis did not comment on the litigation. However, he did say the agency will continue to work with and listen to ranchers in the area.

Davis reaffirmed the agency’s commitment do its best to reduce contact with wolves and compensate ranchers for any losses.

Axios reported that the plan allows ranchers up to $15,000 in compensation per animal, and it permits ranchers to kill wolves that threaten livestock.

Currently, wolves in 48 border-sharing states are protected from hunting, but an effort currently in Congress would allow hunters to kill wolves if state officials determine there are too many living in the area.

Colorado may be the first voter-led reintroduction in the U.S., but it’s not the first reintroduction of wolves in the U.S.

Federal officials brought back wolves on to federal lands in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho in the 90s. Since then, successful packs have been formed.

When wolves were reintroduced in Yellowstone National Park, some traveled as far as 140 miles from the release point. However, most remained within 50 miles of the drop-off, according to a 1995 wolf reintroduction study.

Federal officials said the newly introduced wolves killed 256 sheep and 41 cows on nearby ranches in the first eight years. At the same time, the National Audubon Society said wolves enhanced biodiversity in the park, allowing new growth by killing overpopulated species like elk, who destroyed habitat through their feeding and grazing.