During a two-day meeting last week, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission (CPW) decided not to kill any additional wolves from the Copper Creek wolf pack, for now.
That came after hours of public comment and debate about their wolf reintroduction program.
CPW captured the Copper Creek Pack last year, after the wolves were repeatedly feeding on livestock. The agency then rereleased five wolves from the pack in January.
Wildlife managers at CPW lethally removed a wolf from the pack on May 29, after they determined it was continuously feeding on livestock.
Chris Collins told the commissioners that he owns the McCabe Ranch, which according to the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, was one of the ranches that experienced a recent depredation.
“The one thing you guys can do for us is — we need to remove this pack,” Collins said.
Collins said he met with 40 other area ranchers the night prior, and they came to the conclusion that the Copper Creek pack needs to go.
“We don't want to see the wolves go away,” Collins said. “We want to see the bad wolves go away.”
Following public comments, Commissioner Tai Jacober, who represents agriculture producers, made a motion to remove the pack.
“I want to make a motion to remove the pack that is causing the problems,” Jacober said. “And I hope it doesn't have to be lethal, but that's what I'm suggesting.”
But CPW Director Jeff Davis said it wasn’t clear the entire pack was preying on livestock, and the agency needed time to determine how the wolves will respond to the recent kill.
“We are following the steps that we said we would take,” Davis said. “We're in that waiting period. Your next step is that you take another one, if you need to. You take incremental movements. You don't just jump right to ‘take them all out.’”
Since wolves are a federally endangered species, multiple commissioners noted that they should consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service before making any such decisions.
Jacober ultimately withdrew his motion, and agreed to set a special meeting in Glenwood Springs in the coming weeks to discuss the topic.
