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CPW Announces No Additional Gray Wolf Releases for 2025–2026 Season
Description: Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced it will not translocate additional gray wolves this season while continuing stakeholder engagement and livestock conflict mitigation efforts statewide. Read the Full Press Release from CPW...
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Provides Update on 2025-2026 Gray Wolf Release Season Population Source Plans
DENVER - Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) announced today that it currently has no plans for translocating additional gray wolves this release season and continues to explore options for translocations in winter 2026/2027.
“During this intermediate time, CPW will continue to meet with producers and other stakeholders, including U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, to explore how to maximize the restoration effort and achieve our plan of establishing a self-sustaining gray wolf population in Colorado,” said CPW Acting Director Laura Clellan. “Our team has invested in a significant conflict minimization program, and we look forward to exploring how we continue to improve this program with producers to protect both livestock and wolves.”
CPW will continue to work with producers to implement the tactics outlined in the Wolf-Livestock Conflict Minimization Program Guide and build on significant conflict mitigation milestones this year. 2025 milestones include:
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Partnering with Colorado Department of Agriculture to establish the Colorado Range Riding program to meet the needs of producers during their open ranging seasons when additional human presence is needed to help minimize conflict,
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Hiring a Wolf Damage and Conflict Minimization Manager who will oversee compensation for wolf damage as well as the Colorado Range Riding program which is slated to expand in 2026,
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Bringing on additional wildlife damage specialists to supplement the efforts of district wildlife managers and other regional staff by investigating suspected wolf depredations among other types of damage such as that caused by bears, mountain lions, and various ungulates,
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Expansion of the conflict minimization hard tool stockpile at CPW disposal, which includes approximately 45 miles of fladry (the electrified flag-line fencing used to deter wolves) along with more than 160 sound-and-light scare devices ready for deployment,
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Completing more than 240 site assessments,
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Continuing to build upon CPW’s decades-long history of investigating and preventing livestock conflicts through a dedicated interagency training held in October.
The impact of no additional releases is dependent on several factors, including wolf survival and reproduction. CPW has confirmed successful reproduction in four packs and its staff is working to determine how many pups made it through the summer and will be successfully recruited into the population. Female gray wolves give birth to an average litter of four to six pups.
“When populations are small, the contributions of each individual is especially significant. It is not possible to predict the impact of foregoing a third year of translocations without knowing what may occur in the coming year. If mortality remains high, as observed in 2025, the risk of failing to achieve a self-sustaining wolf population in Colorado increases, potentially requiring additional resources to address,” said CPW Wolf Program Manager Eric Odell.
CPW will continue to make all management decisions on a case-by-case basis after evaluating the circumstances, the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan, and relevant law.
“This is a complicated effort and I want to encourage all stakeholders to continue to work together as we move toward the goal of creating a self-sustaining population of wolves in the state, while at the same time minimizing conflict with livestock,” said Clellan.
More information about the Wolf Restoration Plan can be found on CPW’s website.
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