Colorado wolf reintroduction stokes fears, passions of ranchers, ecologists, sportsmen

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — In this picturesque valley 20 miles north of Steamboat Springs, where flatbeds rule the ranching roads and many ranchers' way of thinking aligns with the GOP, Jay Fetcher is a blue dot in a red valley.

While neighbors drive Dodge Rams and Ford F350s, Fetcher drives a smaller Toyota Tacoma. He has walked his Clark and Hahn's Peak ranches with former Colorado Democratic top guns Sen. Mark Udall and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar.

While his neighbors use horses to round up their cattle, Fetcher prefers fat-tire bikes. And he was on board when his son-in-law took such a disliking to hot-iron branding cattle that he started using ear tags with GPS chips to track and identify his herd.

Despite his contrary political leanings, Fetcher has forged a strong relationship with his Republican ranch neighbors over the nearly 70 years he’s lived in the Upper Elk River Valley. And while there can be plenty to debate politically, the two topics to which many in the valley agree on are keeping the land in ranching and keeping the wolf out.

While ranchers have control over the first topic, the second might be out of their hands a year from now. And that greatly concerns ranchers such as Fetcher.

“I'm more open-minded to wolves than probably a lot of my neighbors who fear reintroduction,'' Fetcher said last month, sporting a sweat-stained Yampa Valley Beef cap while herding his prize Red Angus cattle into corrals to be trucked to Centennial Livestock Auctions in Fort Collins. 

Ranchers, like those in the Upper Elk River Valley, in large part eradicated wolves from the state by the 1940s. They despised them then and they don't have much use for them now.

But efforts are underway to return wolves to the same Western Slope lands where they were poisoned, shot and trapped into extinction.

The Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund is gathering signatures to place a measure on the 2020 ballot forcing the state to reintroduce wolves. The group needs 124,632 valid signatures by Dec. 13 to place the measure on the ballot.

“While I'm OK with those wolves that wander in, I don’t want to manage wolves in Colorado by ballot,'' said Fetcher, who has run for political office. "I want to manage them scientifically."

Fair enough, say wolf advocates. They believe that’s what their Initiative 107 does.

Wolves:  Northern Colorado wolf sighting could be first confirmed in state in four years

The initiative in part asks voters if they wish for wolves to be reintroduced on public lands west of the Continental Divide. It says the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission, after holding statewide hearings and using scientific data, will devise a plan to restore and manage gray wolves in the state. It also requires the plan should not restrict private land use and should include fair compensation for losses of livestock to gray wolves. It calls for wolf reintroduction steps to be taken by the end of 2023.

Wolf advocates say they would like to eventually see 250 wolves in Colorado. Details of the reintroduction are left to be ironed out by the state.

“The initiative was very purposefully written to make sure that wildlife experts were in the driver’s seat,’’ said Rob Edward, president of the Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund board. “It wasn’t written like that to hoodwink anyone. This leaves the details of the plan in the hands of the biologists while allowing the public to be involved.’’

Reintroducing wolves into Colorado is a controversial and complex topic despite, or because, federal action reintroduced wolves into Wyoming, Montana and Idaho in 1995. Concerns are largely wrapped around three key elements — ecology, economics and social attitudes — all of which, like the landscape the wolf lives on, are intricately interwoven. 

Wolves are coming back to Colorado, but when?

Fetcher points to a lonely tree in a hayed meadow rimmed by fall’s last gasp of aspen glory streaking the mountain sides.

The Bedell Meadow was the home of Bill and Ora Bedell, where in 1919 they arrived from Nebraska. It’s also where their sons Orville and Earl are seen in a photo Fetcher has of the siblings with rifles in hand holding the front and back legs of a dead wolf. The date is 1924 and the photo is believed to be of the last wolf shot in Routt County. 

Wolves have almost certainly wandered through the Upper Elk River Valley since that time. The valley is only 20 miles from the Wyoming border and about 350 miles from Wyoming’s southernmost wolf pack.

Collared wolves have been positively identified in the region. Ranchers have noted other sightings. Some even believe there might already be an established pack of wolves in Colorado.

There have been five confirmed wolf sightings in Colorado over the last 15 years, including one last year about 70 miles east of Fetcher's ranch. Other sightings have been closer.

More:  W.O.L.F. Sanctuary prepares to break ground on new Livermore site

But the journey from northwestern Wyoming to northwestern Colorado is one wolves have mostly chosen to avoid.

Wolves from the 1995 Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho have spilled over into Washington, Oregon and California, where nearly 2,000 are estimated to exist across six states. Biologists say a steady pathway of forests from the original reintroduction states provides a more habitable migration route.

That wooded way for wolves to easily wander into Colorado does not exist.

Between Wyoming’s wolves and Colorado lies a major wall, the Red Desert. It’s 9,320 square miles of open sagebrush fraught with a maze of roads that zigzag through barren but oil- and gas-rich lands, where wolves can be legally shot.

Diane Boyd is a large carnivore specialist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks who has studied wolves since before the 1995 reintroduction. Boyd, who is neutral on the subject of Colorado reintroducing wolves, said she believes wolves will one day naturally recolonize in Colorado but questions whether people are patient enough for that to happen.

“Wolves will disperse just about anywhere they can avoid being shot,’’ Boyd said. “Natural recolonization is already happening in Colorado. It might take two, 20 or 200 years, but it is happening and it is free."

Terry Frankhauser, executive vice president of the 153-year-old Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, said his group and many ranchers in Colorado are OK with wolves naturally returning to the state but oppose what he called ballot-box biology.

He worries that should the initiative become law, ranchers will be less likely to work with public wildlife agencies and will return to the philosophy of shoot, shovel and shut up when it comes to wolves, which are a federally protected species in Colorado.

More:  Blind wolf-dog has life-saving surgery at Colorado State University

He said the measure, if passed, would be virtually impossible to repeal even if wolf reintroduction proves unsustainable. He noted the negative impacts on livestock owners after ballot initiatives were passed in 2002 to ban the spring black bear hunt and in 1996 to ban trapping.

"Were those the best decisions made for Colorado?'' Frankhauser asked. "I am concerned about the future of Colorado when we do our business by nature of ballot initiatives.''

Edward said those who are opposed to reintroduction saying they accept wolves naturally dispersing to the state is a red herring.

“It’s easy for them to say they embrace it when they know in our lifetime that it is very unlikely that wolves will recolonize in Colorado on their own,’’ he said. “They are banking on that.’’

Who pays the price?

Initiative 107 includes compensation for ranchers who lose livestock to wolf depredation. Those on both sides of the argument agree it is a critical component to wolf reintroduction.

But within that agreement lies a list of complexities not easily ironed out, and those complexities not only impact ranchers but potentially Colorado’s robust hunting industry.

From the ranching standpoint, Fetcher said it’s not as easy as writing him a check should a wolf kill one of his prized Red Angus. He has worked decades on his cattle herd’s genetics to bring prime dollar.

He added that wolves would make herd management more labor intensive and add time in providing burden of proof that one of his cattle was killed by a wolf. Ranchers in the northern Rockies complain of weight loss in cattle and calves being aborted due to the stress of wolf harassment, for which they're not compensated. 

“I can tolerate some loss as long as compensation is quick and is fair value,’’ he said. “But I want to find a dead calf and have a check in a week.’’

Statistically, depredation on livestock makes up a small percentage of losses nationally. According to a 2015 U.S. Department of Agriculture report:

• 2% of cattle and 28% of sheep losses in the country were due to predators.
• Of those, coyotes accounted for 40.5% of cattle and 54.3% of sheep depredation deaths.
• Dogs were the second-most likely killer of cattle (11.3%) and sheep (21.4%).
• Wolves ranked third for cattle losses (4.9%) and sixth for sheep losses (1.3%).

In 2017, Wyoming reported 70% of all sheep depredations (17,500) were from coyotes and 3% from wolves. Boyd said last year Montana verified 71 livestock animals killed by wolves, resulting in compensation of about $82,000 and 60 wolves being killed. Montana has 2.6 million head of cattle and 300,000 head of sheep. Despite the low depredation rate, she believes it is imperative any reintroduction plan includes compensation to livestock owners.

“There is a common goal of keeping livestock and wolves apart, and that is where you can start and agree on — doesn’t matter if you are red or blue or if your grandfather killed wolves or not,’’ she said.

Edward said he doesn’t believe livestock owners nor sportsmen should have to solely foot the bill for wolf depredation. He said the state will need to get creative to find funding to pay for losses that he believes would build to hundreds of thousands of dollars over years.

“That’s going to be up to the General Assembly to make compensation happen,'' he said. "Maybe we look at surcharges or taxes on certain items and wolf advocates can help out. We are just going to have to figure that out.’’

Frankhauser said the lawmakers face many programs that need and want funding. He doesn't believe compensation for wolf depredation will be one of them.

"I can assure you there won't be a meaningful compensation program in Colorado based on the significant lack of resources that the state has to allocate to programs,'' he said.  

The nonpartisan Legislative Council Staff estimated that if the initiative is successful, cash funds will need to cover $344,363 in fiscal 2021-22 and $467,387 for program management in 2022-23. Expenses are expected to increase as the plan is implemented.

Sportsmen's groups oppose reintroduction

Many sportsmen and sportswomen loathe Initiative 107 for two reasons. They see wolves as competing with them for prized elk, deer and moose whose populations are the highest or among the highest in the country. And the initiative calls for using the CPW’s wildlife cash fund, some of which comes from hunting license money, to pay for wolf depredation on livestock.

Big-game hunting has a more than $900 million economic impact that spreads through outfitters and rural businesses and largely funds Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

Denny Beherns is co-chariman of Stop the Wolf, a mix of sportsmen and sportswomen, ranchers, farmers and biologists who oppose the ballot initiative. He is incredulous as to why Colorado would want to reintroduce wolves, a predator whose prime prey base is elk. He claims reintroduction will severely hurt Colorado’s big-game hunting industry.

“Sportsmen and livestock owners already have had to put up with more predators since we can’t hunt bears in the spring and trap coyotes, and now you want to add an apex predator to the mix?’’ he questioned.

Boyd, a hunter herself, said wolf reintroduction won't mean the state's big-game hunting crashes, as some predict, but said there will be impacts.

"Colorado can expect some decline in elk herds in certain areas, but other areas will see no impact, and overall the state can expect to see little impact on its elk, moose and deer herds from wolf predation,'' she said.

Various studies confirm Boyd’s assessment. Several factors impact big-game species to varying degrees: harsh winters; degraded habitat caused by humans, overpopulation of elk and moose, wildfires or drought; disease; roads; and predators.

Opinion:  Let's reintroduce wolves to Rocky Mountain National Park

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission has repeatedly taken a public stand against wolf reintroduction, the last time with a resolution in 2016.

Mark Leslie, CPW’s Northeast Region manager, said he is unsure what impact reintroduced wolves would have on the big game the agency manages. But he believes the agency would like to "be in the driver's seat'' regarding wolf management in Colorado.

"This issue isn't a one-trick pony,'' Leslie said. "It's contentious with many different viewpoints and trying to balance all those needs. But we are very good at dealing with multifaceted issues, and I think we would do a good job managing wolves.''

Wyoming, Montana and Idaho now have state management of their wolves. 

Will wolves be welcomed?

A strong majority of Coloradans polled want to see wolves return to the state. That is true now and was 25 years ago, when Colorado State University's Human Dimensions in Natural Resource Unit conducted a study. At the time, Colorado was considered a potential candidate state for the Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery Plan before being passed over for various reasons, including larger human population and fewer large tracts of road-less lands than those selected.

Colorado is now home to about 5.7 million people, compared to 3.3 million for Wyoming, Montana and Idaho combined.

That 1994 CSU study showed 71% of those polled favored wolf reintroduction. Polling this year on Initiative 107 shows similar support.

Rick Knight, a retired CSU professor in the Human Dimensions of Natural Resources Unit and small ranch owner near Livermore, said the social component of wolf reintroduction is as important as any element of the issue.

“We know how to ecologically bring wolves back,'' he said. "What we've yet to learn is how to bring them back ecologically with due consideration to the human and economic dimensions. The emphasis on the ecological dimension while ignoring the other two will leave us with two casualties — wolves and rural communities.''

Edward acknowledges there will be conflicts to work through should wolves be reintroduced into the state. However, he believes through proper management, those conflicts will work themselves out.

“There will be friction, and wolves and livestock will be killed,’’ he said. “Coloradans will have to stay engaged in the process. But ultimately we will find our rhythm and things will settle down and there will be far less conflict than those who oppose wolf reintroduction would have you believe.’’

Boyd shares a similar belief.

“People from both sides go off the deep end on this issue,’’ she said. “But the sky is not falling. Colorado should be transparent, work out the issues, then move forward on their decision.''

Fetcher and his wife, Gael, recently moved off the ranch and into a home in Steamboat Springs that overlooks the ski resort his late father, John, helped found. But he still routinely helps on the ranch and believes it will survive even if wolves are reintroduced. However, his concerns go well beyond his ranch's boundaries.

“I know wolves will kill my cattle, but we will make it,’’ said Fetcher, who founded the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agriculture Land Trust, which has placed hundreds of thousands of acres in the Upper Elk River Valley and other areas into conservation easements. “But we have wonderful, longtime neighbors, and some of them run sheep. I believe if wolves are reintroduced, they will go out of business. If that happens, what happens to their 4,000 acres in this valley? Do those hay meadows become a golf course? It would totally change our neighborhood up here and how we work together.

“Wolf reintroduction is a complex issue. It goes well beyond simply wolves killing livestock.’’

A brief history of the wolf in Colorado

1876: Colorado admitted to the Union. Wolf scalps and ears bring 50 cents.

1909-1915: U.S. Forest Service reports killing 113 adult and pup wolves in Colorado.

1934: Wolf excluded from game status in Colorado and is left unprotected.

1943: Last wolf in Colorado reportedly killed in Conejos County.

1973: Wolves are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act.

1974: What was then the Colorado Division of Wildlife announces part of its objective is to provide protection and management to establish a minimum of 20 wolves in the state.

1982: Colorado Wildlife Commission releases a resolution against wolf reintroduction.

1991: San Juan Mountains added to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s “future consideration’’ list of areas to be evaluated for wolf reintroduction.

1993: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service begins $50,000 feasibility study to determine if biological and social attitudes conducive to wolf reintroduction exist in the state.

1994: Feasibility study indicates the state could support up to 1,128 wolves. CSU Human Dimensions in Natural Resources Unit’s poll on wolf reintroduction indicates 71% of Coloradans polled approve of it.

1995: Colorado not included in Northern Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery Plan.

2005: Colorado Wildlife Commission adopts a state working group’s Wolf Management Plan for the state.

2016: Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission reiterates its opposition to wolf reintroduction.

2019: Latest verified wolf sighting in Colorado.

2019: Rocky Mountain Wolf Project announces it will seek signatures to place on the 2020 ballot a measure that calls for the reintroduction of wolves in Colorado.

FAQ: Colorado wolf reintroduction

What does the ballot initiative (107) need to be added to the 2020 ballot?

124,632 valid signatures by Dec. 13. According to the Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund, which is running the campaign, it had about 170,000 signatures as of mid-October.

How many wolves would be reintroduced?

Rocky Mountain Wolf Project organizers would like to add 15 to 30 wolves the first year and over a period of time would like to have an established population of about 250.

When would this happen?

The measure calls for the necessary steps for wolf reintroduced by the end of 2023.

Where would wolves be reintroduced?

High-probability areas include San Juan Mountains, Flattops Wilderness, Grand Mesa and Uncompahgre Plateau of western Colorado

Are wolves protected in Colorado now?

Yes, under the federal Endangered Species Act, it is unlawful to harm, harass or kill wolves in Colorado other than in cases of self-defense.

How would that change if the ballot measure is passed?

Colorado Parks and Wildlife in consultation with other experts would devise a plan to implement reintroduction and eventual management of the species under state guidelines.

What if the measure doesn’t pass?

Wolves will continue to be managed under the federal Endangered Species Act.

Miles Blumhardt looks for stories that impact your life — be it news, outdoors, sports, you name it he wants to report it. Have a story idea, send it his way. Email him at milesblumhardt@coloradoan.com or find him on Twitter at @MilesBlumhardt. If you find value in these stories, support Miles and the other journalists at the Coloradoan by subscribing atColoradoan.com/subscribe