DENVER — Ahead of the next round of gray wolf reintroductions this winter, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) staff met with leaders of the counties where the wolves may be released.
CPW Director Jeff Davis and Northwest Regional Manager Travis Black, as well as Area Wildlife Managers and Wolf Program staff, met with county commissioners and other leaders from Rio Blanco County, Garfield County, Eagle County and Pitkin County in Rifle on Friday.
CPW said it is considering releasing the wolves in one or more of those counties between December and March, and wanted to communicate why and how it would do that, while also listening to questions and feedback from the commissioners’ communities.
“We recognize that this is a challenging situation and all involved are listening to their constituents,” Davis said. “We wanted to create an opportunity for officials to have their questions answered and to understand how we can assist our local partners in informing their communities.”
The first round of wolf reintroductions in December 2023 happened in Grand County and Summit County, where 10 wolves were released on the landscape. In the near-year since then, they have traveled well beyond those counties.