CPW staff has been trying to kill a wolf for several days, due to the pack repeatedly killing livestock, according to a letter obtained by 9NEWS Investigates.

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Author: Aaron Adelson

Published: 3:12 PM MDT July 28, 2025

Updated: 9:45 PM MDT July 28, 2025

PITKIN COUNTY, Colo. — Colorado Parks and Wildlife has been trying to kill a wolf, or wolves, from the Copper Creek pack in the Pitkin County area for about a week, according to a letter obtained by 9NEWS Investigates.

“After the additional depredation confirmed on July 18, the Division is undertaking additional lethal control efforts. Staff have been in the area since Sunday, July 20th attempting to locate the wolves. As you are aware, the terrain is challenging at best, and staff have not been able to get close to the wolves after multiple attempts. Staff will continue to monitor locations and attempt to intervene if possible,” a letter from CPW to the Holy Cross Cattlemen’s Association (HCCA) reads.

The letter was signed on July 25. HCCA requested a permit to lethally remove a wolf, or wolves, due to the wolves repeatedly killing livestock. The letter was in response to the association.

“CPW’s actions in this very difficult case are designed to ensure that wolves and packs that are targeting natural prey such as wild ungulates serve as the foundation for a sustainable population in Colorado,” a CPW spokesperson told 9NEWS.  

CPW denied the association’s request because the letter essentially states CPW employees are working to kill a wolf. CPW’s leaders decided to move forward with lethal removal after CPW determined wolves killed a calf in Pitkin County. The calf was found dead on July 18, but a CPW spokesperson said they don’t know exactly when the calf was killed.

“I acknowledge that this remains an extremely difficult situation and appreciate the continued partnership,” CPW Northwest Region Manager Travis Black wrote in the letter. 

CPW has already euthanized a member of the Copper Creek pack. Here’s a brief timeline of events this year in Pitkin County:

• CPW determined the pack injured a calf on May 17.
• CPW determined the pack killed a calf on May 23.
• CPW determined the pack injured a calf and killed a calf on May 24.
• CPW determined the pack injured a cow and calf on May 25.
• CPW killed one of the pack members on May 29. 
• CPW confirmed wolf depredation on July 18, believing this pack was responsible.
• CPW began lethal removal efforts on July 20.

Because of the wolves repeatedly killing livestock in Grand County last year, CPW took the pack out of the wild. The wolves were in captivity for several months. The state rereleased the pack in Pitkin County in January. 

CPW Director Jeff Davis recently said the decision to recapture and rerelease the pack was solely his.

“Do I question the decision that I made every single day? Yes,” Davis told lawmakers on June 30.

HCCA also requested for CPW remove the entire pack from the wild. That request was also denied.

“The Division continues to monitor the pack and may conduct additional lethal removals if they are legally authorized and necessary to change the pack’s behavior. The Division therefore declines to place the pack in captivity,” the letter concludes.

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Shreveport Times

• Louisiana is increasing black bear hunting permits from 11 to 26 for the 2026 season.
• The decision is based on population data and vital rates, with cubs and mothers with cubs off-limits.
• Hunting licenses and a $50 application fee are required, and a training course is mandatory for successful applicants.
• The Louisiana black bear population has rebounded to about 1,500 after near extinction in the mid-20th century.

Louisiana is more than doubling the number of permits to hunt the state’s iconic Teddy Bear after the first black bear season in two generations yielded a record specimen in 2024.

The Louisiana Black Bear Hunting Lottery is open now through Aug. 28, with 26 permits to be issued, up from the 11 permits issued during the inaugural hunt in 2024.

Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries officials said the bear population estimates and vital rate data were used to determine the number of bear harvest permits to be issued in each area. It will be illegal to kill cubs and females with cubs.

Deron Santiny of Lafayette landed the 696-pound trophy bear in Tensas Parish that was believed to be a record during last year’s inaugural hunt.

Though there are still some objections to creating a bear hunting season, LDWF’s John Hanks said the population supports the limited permits.

“We can certainly have a conservative harvest in limited areas,” said Hanks, manager of the large carnivore program, said in a previous interview with USA Today Network. “There are bears all over the state.”

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Louisiana’s black bear population all but disappeared in the 1950s and 1960s, but has recovered to include about 1,500 today. The bear was removed from the Endangered Species List in 2016.

Louisiana’s fabled black bear became part of American culture in 1902 after President Teddy Roosevelt refused to shoot one that had been trapped and tied to a tree by members of his hunting party.

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The episode was featured in a cartoon in The Washington Post, sparking the idea for a Brooklyn candy store owner to create the “Teddy” bear.

Today black bears roam the deep woods of the Tensas National Wildlife Refuge, Upper Atchafalaya Basin and other connecting corridors such as Three Rivers Wildlife Management Area, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

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The bear’s Louisiana recovery was celebrated in 2015 during an event at the Governor’s Mansion that Theodore Roosevelt IV attended and the following year during a ceremony at the Tensas National Wildlife Refuge that then U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewel attended.

“I like to think this is partially a result of one of the greatest hunting stories in American history,” Roosevelt told USA Today Network in 2015.

Hunts will be restricted to properly licensed Louisiana residents by lottery. All successful applicants for the hunt will be required to attend a LDWF bear hunter training course.

Lottery applications are available only on the LDWF website at https://louisianaoutdoors.com/lottery-applications. Those interested in applying should update or create their customer details similar to buying a license and then submit an application. Possession of a valid black bear hunting license is required prior to applying for the WMA and the general Black Bear Lotteries. A $50 non-refundable application fee will be charged to each applicant. All applicants will be notified of their results via email.

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