Wolves and Colorado

Restoring Colorado’s Natural Balance

Shared Values

• Healthy landscapes and healthy wildlife are values Coloradans share.

Threat

• The absence of wolves for more than 75 years has upset Colorado’s natural balance, harming wildlife, habitat, and even water quality.

Solution

• Restore wolves to Colorado through a responsible, science-based plan that addresses the interests of all Coloradans.

Canis LupusThe Gray Wolf

Roughly 2 million gray wolves once roamed the US

Today, ~6,000 in the lower 48 states

Photo credits: Bruce Faanes, Sandy Sisti, Rebecca Bose, B Bartel, USFWS, Laura Oda

Wolves of the US

1- c.l. occidentalis- Rocky Mountain2- c.l. nubilus-Buffalo Plains 3- c.l. lycoan- Timber Wolf4- c.l. baileyi- Mexican Gray5- canis rufus- Red Wolf

12

3

4 5

Historic Distribution

of Gray Wolves

Bennet’s 1994 Congressionally Mandated Feasibility study

Wolf history in Colorado• Pre-colonization: Up to 2 million wolves roam North America

• 1869: First wolf bounty issued in Colorado

• 1943: Last wolf in Colorado is killed

• 1973: Endangered Species Act is passed

• 1980: USFWS Completes Northern Rockies Wolf Plan

• 1982: CDoW Commission passes on wolf reintroduction

• 1989: CDoW Commission passes on wolf reintroduction

• 1995-96: Northern Rockies wolf restoration

• 2004: CDoW Commission creates wolf plan.

• passes on wolf reintroduction

• 2016: CPW (formerly CDoW) Commission rejects Mexican gray wolf restoration

• 2020: Initiative 107 is accepted for the 2020 election

• 2020: Compromise bill introduced in state legislature

Colorado Gray Wolf Recovery: A Biological Feasibility StudyLarry E. Bennett 1994 Congressionally Mandated Study

Bennett’s report concluded a maximum potential regional population of 1,128 wolves for Colorado

This report suggests a suitable range for Colorado of 400-800 wolves

Why Colorado?

• Colorado is the missing link in wolf connectivity from Canada to Mexico

• Ideal wolf habitat is abundant in Western Colorado

• With the largest elk herd in the U.S., Colorado has excellent prey base for wolves

• Genetic exchange between N. gray wolf and Mexican gray wolf is historically natural and presents a potential for genetic rescue in the Mexican gray wolf population

Presence in state/territory

Occupied territory

No Wolves

Legend

Colorado Parks and Wildlife

1. 2004- Car collision (I-70 near Idaho Springs)2. 2007- MIA, last seen in Jackson County3. 2009- Poisoned by compound 1080 (Rio Blanco Co)4. 2015- Wolf shot (Kremmling, Grand County)5. 2019- Confirmed lone wolf in Jackson County6. 2020- CPW confirms pack in Moffat County

Recent Wolf Presence in Colorado

1

2

34

56

Wolves are hunted without restriction throughout the Predatory Animal Management Area, representing ~85% of Wyoming

Travel to Colorado requires traversing the Red Desert

WYOMING

Impacts to Elk

1995 Elk Populations 2018 Populations

Wyoming 103,448 110,300

Idaho* 112,333 116,800*

Montana 109,500 138,470

Wolves have a minimal impact on overall Elk populations

Elk are above management in 17/22 zones in IdahoPopulations are 29% over objective in WyomingPopulations are 50% over objective in Montana

*2018 data unavailable for Idaho; figure represents 2017 elk population

• Wolves improve health of prey• Take easiest prey…young, old, sick• Age of elk cows killed in Yellowstone area

– Hunters: 6.5 – Wolves: 13.9 years – Wolves also kill elk calves

Northern Rocky Mountain Gray Wolf Population Area, 2015

Total Cattle in Counties w/ Wolves- 1,980,600Confirmed Wolf Predation in NRM- 148% of Cattle Predated by Wolves- .007%

Total Wolf Population 1,904

*Cattle population and losses sourced from USDA National Agricultural Statistics Services https://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/*Losses to wolves from each state’s game department reports

33%

41%

13%

7%6%

.007%Northern Rocky Mountain Cattle Population 2015

Idaho Montana Wyoming Washington Oregon Confirmed Cattle Loss

Wolf Compensation Trust (1987-2009)

• Goal was to help ease the transition to a landscape with wolves.

• Total of $1,223,565 paid in the Northern Rockies (MT, ID, WY).

• Livestock losses in the first 10 years after reintroduction occurred on fewer than two percent of ranches in the recovery areas. Of these ranches, the majority were a single episode.

Year MT ID WY AZ NM Transition grants

1987 $3,049 1988 $0 1989 $1,730 1990 $4,100 1991 $1,250 1992 $374 1993 $0 1994 $2,322 1995 $1,633 1996 $3,506 $3,977 1997 $14,870 $3,761 $7,434 1998 $5,484 $6,380 $5,500 $466 1999 $12,398 $16,054 $5,620 $2,152 2000 $7,935 $24,773 $14,339 $0 $3,400 2001 $25,074 $7,904 $9,325 $2,594 $7,000 2002 $26,010 $9,807 $23,308 $3,050 $2,000 2003 $19,873 $19,844 $12,104 $5,198 $1,428 2004 $55,757 $42,999 $30,037 $4,060 $2,675 2005 $28,667 $12,577 $58,844 $1,600 $1,250 2006 $35,460 $40,908 $72,258 $20,475 $12,150 2007 $58,057 $60,951 $82,980 $3,230 $27,887 2008 $27,642 $121,394 $33,428 $4,131 $1,747 $50,000

2009 $0 $135,299 $13,520 $3,500 $15,703 $50,000

Total $335,191 $506,628 $368,697 $50,456 $75,240 $100,000

Wolf Proactive Fund (1998-present)

• Ended wolf compensation in 2009 to transition to proactive coexistence.

• In 2008 and 2009, Defenders contributed two payments totaling $100,000 to the state of Montana for use in initiating a new state-managed program to compensate livestock owners for losses of livestock due to wolf predation.

• Focus proactive work on the few ranches experiencing multiple depredations (less than one percent of ranches in recovery areas).

Congressional appropriation for $1.3 million to

reduce conflicts in 10 states

Wildlife Services

Coloradans Want Wolves

Colorado State University Poll 2020• 734 participants in online poll• 84% support for wolf reintroductions

• 79.8% support on the Western Slope• 79.3% support on the Eastern Plains• 84.9% support on the Front Range

NewBridge Poll 2019• 900 participants in online interviews

• based on voter registration rolls• 67% support wolf restoration

• 61% support on the Western Slope• 65% support on the Eastern Plains• 68% support on the Front Range

Peak Campaigns’ Poll 2013• 66% support for wolf restoration

Colorado State University Poll 1994• 1452 participants in poll by mail• 70.8% support for wolf reintroduction

• 65.1% support on the Western Slope• 73.8% support on the Front Range

Victoria Carodine/5280

Ballot Initiative 107

• Would reintroduce wolves to Colorado on ‘designated lands….west of the continental divide’ by December 2023

• Requires the CPW Commission to implement a recovery plan, following ‘statewide hearings and using scientific data’

• Prohibits any resource use restriction on private landowners

• Requires the creation of a compensation fund to ‘fairly compensate owners for losses of livestock caused by gray wolves’

Senate Bill 121

• Replacement for ballot initiative?

Questions?