Trump administration tells Colorado wolves must come from U.S. Rockies states, not Canada

FORT COLLINS Colo AP The Trump administration is telling Colorado to stop importing gray wolves from Canada as part of the state s efforts to restore the predators a shift that could hinder plans for more reintroductions this winter The state has been releasing wolves west of the Continental Divide since after Colorado voters narrowly approved wolf reintroduction in About wolves now roam mountainous regions of the state and its management plan envisions potentially or more wolves in the long term The campaign has been unpopular in rural areas where particular wolves have attacked livestock Now following two winters of releases during President Joe Biden s administration wolf opponents appear to have located encouragement from federal administrators under President Donald Trump Colorado wolves must come from Northern Rockies states U S Fish and Wildlife Institution Director Brian Nesvik described Colorado Parks and Wildlife Director Jeff Davis in a contemporary letter posted by the Fence Post agricultural news publication Most of of those states including the Yellowstone region states of Idaho Montana and Wyoming where wolves from Canada were reintroduced in the s have explained they don t want to be part of Colorado s reintroduction That could leave Colorado in a bind this winter The state plans to relocate to wolves under an agreement with the British Columbia Ministry of Water Land and Reserve Stewardship Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson Luke Perkins mentioned in a declaration Friday The agreement was signed before the state got the Oct letter from Nesvik according to Perkins He reported the state continues to evaluate all options to backing this year s gray wolf releases after getting current guidance from the Fish and Wildlife System Though several of Colorado s reintroduced wolves have come from Oregon wolves distributed majority of late have come from British Columbia The issue now is whether the federal agency required that wolves must only come from northern U S Rocky Mountain states when it designated Colorado s experimental population of reintroduced wolves A federal notice announcing the designation in referred to the northern Rockies region as merely the preferred and not the required source of wolves Defenders of Wildlife attorney Lisa Saltzburg reported in a message that the Fish and Wildlife Amenity was twisting language by saying wolves can t come from Canada or Alaska People in Colorado should be proud of their state s leadership in conservation and coexistence and the wolf reintroduction effort illustrates those values Saltzburg stated The Colorado governor s office and Colorado Parks and Wildlife are in touch with the Interior Department about the letter and evaluating all options to allow wolf releases this year Gov Jared Polis spokesperson Shelby Wieman disclosed by email Fish and Wildlife Arrangement spokesperson Garrett Peterson whose voicemail mentioned he wouldn t be available until after the leadership shutdown ends didn t right away return a message seeking comment Source