Wolves Killed in Wyoming May Be First Pups Born in Colorado for 80 Years

Wolves found dead in Wyoming may be the same pups that were born just last year, and the first to be born in the wild in Colorado for 80 years.

The three female wolves were found dead about 10 miles into Wyoming and are believed to be members of Colorado's only known wolf pack, The Coloradoan reported.

There is only one known wolf pack in Colorado, known as the North Park pack. It roams across Jackson County, which lies to the North of the state right next to the Wyoming border.

The wolves regularly pass through the border into Wyoming, where it is legal to hunt the species anytime without a hunting permit. In Colorado, however wolves are a protected species and hunting them is illegal. Hunting the species in Colorado could result in a $100,000 fine.

The three dead wolves match the age and color of pups that were born into the North Park pack in Spring 2021, The Coloradoan reported. They were the first wild wolf pups to be born in Colorado since the 1940s.

"Wolves used to be plentiful throughout the Western U.S., all the way from Mexico to Alaska. They were mostly wiped out at the behest of the livestock industry throughout their range and are only now being restored to places where they used to roam free. The biggest threat to wolves is humans, through both illegal poaching and legal trophy hunting," Chris Smith, Southwest Wildlife Advocate at conservation organization WildEarth Guardians told Newsweek.

"In order to restore wolves to Colorado—which is required by law and the righting of a historical wrong—wolves need to be protected, especially when the population is so small. Three wolves killed represents a major hit to Colorado's nascent wolf population. Wolves are social creatures and a lack of protection disrupts pack dynamics and the viability of a tiny population."

Reintroducing wolves to Colorado has been a long process and was not always popular. The state voted to reintroduce the species in November 2020.

Some farmers were concerned about the wolves taking their livestock, but biologists have said the species reintroduction is vital for the state's ecosystem, as it will restore predator-prey balance in the area.

"Colorado's effort to restore wolves represents the opportunity to get wolf restoration right and avoid the catastrophic war on wolves in the Northern Rockies. But misinformation and fear-based rhetoric will lead to dead wolves, further entrenchment, and possibly more livestock losses," Smith said.

Biologists from Colorado Parks and Wildlife told The Coloradoan that two other members of the North Park pack were sighted on October 28 but it is not clear how many of the pack remain.

Newsweek has contacted the Wyoming Fish and Game department and Colorado Parks and Wildlife for a comment.

Update 11/02/22 11.07 a.m. ET: This story has been updated to say the wolves were the first born in wild in Colorado for 80 years.