Another of Colorado’s reintroduced wolves has died in the northwest corner of the state. 

Colorado Parks and Wildlife confirmed on Monday, June 2, that it received a mortality alert for the male wolf, 2507, on Saturday, May 31. The agency did not provide any additional information on the location or cause of death of the wolf, which was relocated from British Columbia in January. 

Colorado’s wolf population was estimated at 30 animals following the release of 15 wolves from British Columbia in January. This marks the sixth death this year and the ninth since the reintroduction effort began in December 2023.

Gray wolves are currently federally listed under the Endangered Species Act in Colorado. As such, when a wolf dies in the state, the necropsy and investigation into the death are performed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. For previous wolf mortalities in Colorado, initial results from necropies have taken anywhere from one to four months to be released by the federal agency. 

Federal investigations are still ongoing into the April 20 death of a wolf in Rocky Mountain National Park and the May 15 death of a wolf in northwest Colorado. 

The May 31 mortality comes two days after Parks and Wildlife killed a Copper Creek Pack yearling after the animals were connected to multiple livestock attacks in Pitkin County over Memorial Day weekend. 

In a statement, Travis Duncan, public information officer for Parks and Wildlife, reported that wolf survival in Colorado was within “normal margins” for a gray wolf population in the Rocky Mountains. 

“It is important to note that wolf survival is often lower for dispersing, non-territorial wolves (of which the Colorado population is mostly made up of) than for territorial wolves,” Duncan stated. “Any reintroduction effort includes eventual mortality levels and these were incorporated into the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan.” 

Per Colorado’s wolf plan, if the survival of reintroduced wolves dips below 70% in a six-month period, a “translocation protocol review” would be initiated. In January, there were an estimated 30 wolves in Colorado, and with six dying in the last six months, the survival rate is around  80% for this period. 

In its statement confirming the most recent wolf mortality, Parks and Wildlife said it expects the state’s wolf population to “continue to grow, leading toward a self-sustaining population,” as it monitors four potential dens and plans for another year of translocation efforts. 

“It is likely there are an unknown number of new pups that were born this year,” the agency stated.