Colorado running out of options for new source of wolves after Washington rejects request

With the third winter “release season” in Colorado’s gray wolf reintroduction plan just weeks away, state wildlife officials are scrambling to find a source for additional relocated wolves.

A deal to source up to 15 animals from British Columbia is in doubt after the federal government, under pressure from livestock groups and conservative activists, ordered Colorado Parks and Wildlife not to import Canadian wolves. Officials in the Republican-controlled states of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, home to large and well-established wolf populations, have made it clear that they won’t help Colorado’s restoration efforts.

And one of CPW’s few remaining options was taken off the table Saturday when its request to capture and relocate wolves from Washington was rejected by wildlife commissioners there.

“I certainly heard loud and clear from Washingtonians this morning, (on) all different sides of the aisle, saying it’s just not the time for us to support this,” said Lorna Smith, a conservation advocate and member of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/18/repub/colorado-running-out-of-options-for-new-source-of-wolves-after-washington-rejects-request/