DURANGO, Colo.—The Rocky Mountain Wolf Project (RMWP) welcomes today’s decision by Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) to temporarily suspend its chronic depredation directive, the policy that guides the lethal removal of gray wolves. CPW will evaluate any future removals case by case, using a very conservative approach through the biological year ending March 31, 2027, and will work with stakeholders to revise the directive by April 1, 2027.
“CPW’s announcement is well-received by those of us who hope that the wolf program can be adaptive and responsive to the realities on the ground in Colorado,” said Courtney Vail, Board Chair of the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project. “With multiple uncertainties surrounding the wolf program currently, including the inability to source wolves for additional translocations; impacts from disease; high mortality rates from anthropogenic causes; and uncertain pup survival, all indications from the agency point to the potential erosion of progress towards the statutory requirement of a self-sustaining population.”
There is real promise to build on. CPW reports it has detected 45 wolves as of September 24, including 20 pups born in Colorado this year, four reproducing packs, a fifth pack of four siblings, and several lone wolves that could pair this winter. The agency’s genetic analysis also shows high diversity in the population. CPW notes that adult survival last year was 61%, below the 75% typical of an unharvested population, that the pup count will likely fall as the year goes on, and that it is investigating hair loss in wolves in two northwest packs. CPW did not translocate any wolves during the winter 2025/2026 window, and since the program began, natural and human-related causes have killed 20 wolves, both translocated and Colorado-born.
“As a wildlife biologist, I’ve worked for the last 50 years to do whatever is possible to restore our wildlife heritage, especially those species that we’ve intentionally eliminated, like the gray wolf,” said Gary Skiba, Rocky Mountain Wolf Project Board member. “CPW is doing the right thing, both ethically and biologically, by taking a step to reduce the loss of individual wolves. CPW has handled the restoration process professionally and effectively; the claims that it hasn’t been successful are not true. Further, the agency has a legal mandate to restore a self-sustaining population of wolves, and this is one immediate step that will help them achieve that goal.”
The Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan itself recognizes that “excessive levels of lethal removal can inhibit the recovery of wolf populations.”
“We hope this process will enable ample opportunity to focus on nonlethal conflict prevention as the primary mechanism for minimizing livestock loss, rather than agency-led removals,” Vail added.
Conservation partners point to coexistence as the path forward. “We know from the Northern Rockies that livestock-carnivore coexistence is a long game, and the best strategies focus on protecting livestock. Agencies, ranchers, and conservationists all need to adapt,” said Matt Barnes, a range scientist, and Rocky Mountain Wolf Project Board member. “CPW has already adapted by investing more in conflict minimization than other states with many more wolves. For example, the Colorado range rider program is only the third state-led range rider program in the U.S., and CPW is now extending the riding season. Conservationists across the state have purchased the ‘Born to be Wild’ license plate, funding the range rider program and other non-lethal methods deployed by CPW to the tune of over $2.7 million. Conservation non-profits have shifted their emphasis from simply advocating for restoration to coexistence. Ranching will survive the ever-changing landscape, including predation risk, not by resisting change but by adapting to it.”
The Rocky Mountain Wolf Project also welcomes CPW’s other commitments, including continued nonlethal tools and technical support for producers, timely compensation for verified losses, and continued exploration of future translocations. We look forward to engaging in the stakeholder process and pledge to work alongside ranchers, CPW, and partners to foster a landscape where both ranches and a healthy wolf population thrive.
