Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Wolf reintroduction

CPW Responds to Claims It Violated Federal Guidelines in Wolf Transfer From Canada
CBS Colorado, Approved, State

CPW Responds to Claims It Violated Federal Guidelines in Wolf Transfer From Canada

By: Karen Morfitt | CBS Colorado Updated on: November 13, 2025 / 9:24 PM MST / CBS Colorado Colorado Parks and Wildlife is moving forward with their wolf reintroduction plan even as they face additional challenges around where the wolves will come from. This comes after a former U.S. representative for Colorado who, along with other stakeholders, raised concerns that CPW may have violated state law by importing wolves from Canada. "I would say that no one has the authority to violate the Endangered Species Act. Section 9 clearly states that it is a violation of the Act to import wolves into the United States," said Lopez in a statement to CBS Colorado. "Section 10 requires the Secretary of the Interior to issue an exemption to Section 9 by publishing that exempti...
Federal Investigation into Colorado Wolf Death Underway, Questions Remain Over Legality of Importing Wolves
CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Federal Investigation into Colorado Wolf Death Underway, Questions Remain Over Legality of Importing Wolves

By: Christa Swanson | CBS Colorado Colorado Parks and Wildlife said an investigation is underway after a female gray wolf died in southwest Colorado last month. They received a mortality alert for wolf 2506 on Oct. 30. The wolf was part of a group of wolves from British Columbia that were brought to Colorado in January. Because gray wolves are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, it's illegal to harass, harm, or kill them without federal authorization. Officials said they will determine the wolf's cause of death following a necropsy and investigation. The reintroduction of gray wolves into Colorado has been a controversial one. Colorado Parks and Wildlife has spent about $3 million to relocate 30 wolves to the state since 2023, nearly four times...
Rep. Hurd refuses pay, passes first bill and earns Trump endorsement in decisive week
Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Rep. Hurd refuses pay, passes first bill and earns Trump endorsement in decisive week

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice President Trump’s “Complete and Total Endorsement” of Congressman Jeff Hurd on Saturday capped a remarkable week for the freshman lawmaker from Colorado’s Third District. Trump praised Hurd's “strong Record of SUCCESS,” for “fighting tirelessly to… Advance American Energy DOMINANCE, Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations...” and “HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN.” Hurd has characterized his first term as a test of performance over politics. “If you look at all that we’ve accomplished in the first eight months of this Congress, it’s more than a lot of congresses accomplish in their entire two years,” Hurd told Rocky Mountain Voice before returning to session after the summer recess. “We’ve passed 27 pieces of legislation that have actually gotten...
Feds to Polis administration: Stop importing wolves from Canada
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Feds to Polis administration: Stop importing wolves from Canada

By Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Efforts by Colorado Parks and Wildlife to bring in more wolves from Canada later this year may have hit a snag after the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service told the state it may not do so. In an Oct. 10 letter, Brian Nesvik, director of USFWS, told Gov. Jared Polis and Jeff Davis, director of Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), that Colorado is not allowed to bring in gray wolves from Canada or Alaska. Any wolves brought to Colorado as part of the wolf reintroduction program must come from one of the lower 48 states, the agency said. Nesvik cited what’s called 10(j) rule, noting USFWS authorized the state to release and establish gray wolves in Colorado as an experimental population “subject to Service oversight.” However, the 10(j) rule o...
Colorado Wolf Reintroduction May Have Violated Federal Law
CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Colorado Wolf Reintroduction May Have Violated Federal Law

By: Shaun Boyd | CBS Colorado A plan to import 15 more wolves to Colorado from Canada may violate federal law.  Wolves are listed as an endangered species here, so Colorado Parks and Wildlife needs a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to relocate wolves here from other states. The permit issued by USFWS in 2023 lists six states where Colorado can source wolves. It doesn't list Canada, where CPW got 15 wolves last year and plans to get another 15 wolves this year. Former congressman and current gubernatorial candidate Greg Lopez says USFWS dropped the ball by allowing CPW to import wolves from Canada, which he says is a clear violation of its federal permit.  "The terms and conditions are that they can only get wolves from the Northern Rocky Mountains. They...
Governor’s mansion doubles as free soapbox for First Gentleman’s animal agenda
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Governor’s mansion doubles as free soapbox for First Gentleman’s animal agenda

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The First Gentleman's lecture series -- who's footing the bill? A couple weeks back, I noticed an article about a talk at the governor's mansion about wolf reintroduction involving the First Gentleman and his guests for the evening. The article is linked first below if you'd like to give it a read.If you know anything about the First Gentleman, you know he is a dedicated animal rights activist. Has been for a while. It should therefore not shock anyone that the guests at this talk were also animal rights/wildlife advocates.I won't go into the details of the talk. I'll leave it to you to read up if you'd like.The First Gentleman has the same First Amendment rights as anyone else. He's welcome to have an opinion and expre...
CPW takes lethal action after wolf linked to livestock kills in rural Colorado
The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

CPW takes lethal action after wolf linked to livestock kills in rural Colorado

By Piper Russell | The Denver Gazette Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced on Friday that it shot a wolf that had been chronically depredating livestock in Rio Blanco County. However, the carcass has not been found. CPW also said that after conducting DNA analysis on samples gathered from the uncollared gray wolf in Rio Blanco County it was confirmed that the uncollared wolf was the fifth Copper Creek yearling that was not captured with the rest of the pack in fall 2024. The wolf is suspected to have killed six animals from livestock producers in Rio Blanco County. The depredations started on July 20 when the Division and Wildlife Services was notified of a dead lamb on a livestock producers’ allotment northeast of Meeker Colorado. That attack was followed by others reported o...
Federal Investigation Finds Vehicle Likely Killed Colorado Wolf
State, Approved, The Colorado Sun

Federal Investigation Finds Vehicle Likely Killed Colorado Wolf

By: Olivia Prentzel | The Colorado Sun The male wolf was found dead in northwestern Colorado after Colorado Parks and Wildlife said it received a mortality signal from the wolf’s collar May 31 A Colorado gray wolf that died in May was likely struck by a vehicle, wildlife officials said Tuesday. Following a necropsy, investigators with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined the wolf died from blunt force trauma. The wolf, wearing tracking collar 2507, was one of the 15 animals captured in British Columbia and released in Pitkin and Eagle counties in January. The wolf was found in northwestern Colorado after Colorado Parks and Wildlife said it received a mortality signal from the wolf’s collar May 31.  Because gray wolves are listed as endangered ...
Wolf Reintroduction Sparks Debate at Upcoming Colorado Town Hall
State, Approved, The Gazette

Wolf Reintroduction Sparks Debate at Upcoming Colorado Town Hall

By The Gazette Staff | The Gazette Agriculture and outdoor recreation are considered two of Colorado’s most important industries. The outdoor recreation industry contributes over $65.8 billion and 511,000 jobs to Colorado’s economy, while the agriculture industry generates $47 billion and 195,000 jobs annually, according to the most recent data. Yet as Colorado Politics’ recent Rural Reckoning series indicated, these two powerhouses don’t always get the attention that industries do in the halls of the Capitol. A town hall on Tuesday, Sept. 9, sponsored by The Gazette and The Common Sense Institute, will dive more deeply into the importance of these industries to Colorado’s economic success, and the policies necessary to ensure they thrive. The Common Sense Institute is a non...
Effort to Repeal Wolf Reintroduction Stalls Before 2026 Ballot
State, Approved, The Colorado Sun

Effort to Repeal Wolf Reintroduction Stalls Before 2026 Ballot

By Tracy Ross | The Colorado Sun Coloradans for Smart Wolf Policy needed 125,000 signatures, but called the 25,000-plus it collected a “running start” if it decides to try again next year. A group seeking to end wolf reintroduction in Colorado says it’s going back to the drawing board after failing to collect the voter signatures needed to get a measure on the November 2026 ballot. Patrick Davis, lead organizer for Coloradans for Smart Wolf Policy, the group backing Proposition 13, said Wednesday evening the group had collected 25,000 signatures and was still counting. That was well short of the 125,000 signatures needed to get the initiative before voters next year. The group’s deadline to turn in its signatures was Wednesday. Coloradans for Smart Wolf Policy said it wouldn...