By Stephanie Butzer | Denver7
Another gray wolf that was brought to Colorado as part of the state’s reintroduction program has died, Colorado and federal officials said on Monday afternoon.
In a press release on Monday, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) said they received a mortality alert for a male wolf in northwest Colorado on May 31. The wolf had been brought to Colorado from Canada as part of the January 2025 reintroduction, CPW confirmed to Denver7. It is the fifth wolf from the original 15 released that month that has died.
As with any wolf death in Colorado, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating because gray wolves are a federally listed species under the Endangered Species Act. The USFWS will determine its cause of death. That investigation is ongoing.
No other details were available from either agency, however CPW added that it is continuing to monitor four potential den sites.
“It is likely there are an unknown number of new pups that were born this year,” CPW said. “CPW is developing plans for the coming year’s translocation efforts, so Colorado’s wolf population will continue to grow, leading toward a self-sustaining population.”
Monday’s announcement came just a few days after CPW said they had killed a year-old wolf from the Copper Creek Pack that had apparently been involved in a series of attacks on livestock in Pitkin County. That wolf, considered an adult, was one of the pups born in Grand County in the spring of 2024. The Copper Creek Pack is the only confirmed pack in the state and was captured last year following multiple depredations. They were re-released in January.
Colorado’s gray wolf reintroduction program began in December 2023, when CPW released 10 of the animals. Fifteen wolves were brought to Colorado from Canada in January 2025 during the second round of reintroductions.