Pitkin County, CO — Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) officials have lethally removed a gray wolf believed to be responsible for a series of livestock attacks in Pitkin County that resulted in the deaths of two calves and injuries to three additional calves and one cow.
The wolf, identified as gray wolf 2405, a member of the Copper Creek Pack—the only confirmed wolf pack in Colorado since their reintroduction in 2023—was removed after meeting the agency’s recently adopted “chronic depredation” criteria. These criteria, finalized in January, define chronic depredation as three or more attacks caused by the same wolf or wolves within a 30-day period, supported by “clear and convincing evidence” of at least one confirmed attack.
The attacks occurred between May 17 and May 25, with lethal incidents on May 24 and 25, each resulting in the death of a calf. The Copper Creek Pack had been relocated from Grand County last fall following a series of prior wolf attacks.
In a statement released Friday, CPW emphasized that the ranchers involved had employed all reasonable non-lethal deterrent measures, including the use of fladry—striped flags used to deter wolves—and prompt removal of livestock carcasses to reduce attractants. Each rancher also participated in a site assessment with CPW between December 2024 and January 2025.
“The decision to take lethal management action was very difficult,” said CPW Director Jeff Davis. “Our wildlife biologists and officers constructed a timeline of recent events that shows the depredation behavior met the conditions for chronic depredation defined earlier this year. We have great respect for these animals and take the removal of a wolf very seriously.”
The removal marks the latest challenge in Colorado’s wolf restoration efforts. Since the program began in January 2023, four wolves translocated from Canada have died, including one recently removed in Wyoming after being linked to sheep kills near Colorado.
The Copper Creek pack was first captured on video last August and was involved in multiple depredation incidents. The pack underwent capture operations in September, during which one wolf in poor health died.
The Rocky Mountain Wolf Project, a volunteer-driven wolf advocacy organization, expressed sorrow over the loss but acknowledged that such actions align with CPW’s management plan. “Losing any wolf is deeply saddening, and we share in the sorrow felt by those who care for these animals and the wild places they inhabit,” the group said. “We take pride in the fact that Colorado’s wolf restoration program is working as intended—balancing ecological restoration with the needs of rural communities.”
Colorado’s wolf restoration initiative continues to grapple with balancing the return of a keystone predator to the ecosystem with the realities of livestock protection and rural livelihoods.
