A licensed hunter reportedly killed one of Colorado’s female gray wolves in January.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife said in a Monday, Aug. 10 news release that the cause of death was confirmed by a joint investigation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service into the wolf’s death on Jan. 16. 

According to the release, the hunter mistook the wolf for a coyote and “promptly reported the incident to CPW and cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation.”

Killing gray wolves in Colorado, where they are listed as endangered both by the state and the federal Endangered Species Act, is illegal without authorization. 

Parks and Wildlife can prosecute illegal poachers under civil or criminal statutes, with fines up to $100,000, up to one year in jail or suspension of hunting privileges for anywhere from one year to life. Federal prosecution can result in a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to one year in jail. 

Parks and Wildlife said that the hunter was cited for violating the agency’s regulation — 2 CCR 406-0-002-A — that prohibits licensed hunters from killing wildlife or species not allowable under their license, but that the state is not pursuing further charges.

“Unlawful take of protected species is a criminal act that can carry serious penalties,” said Ty Petersburg, chief of law enforcement and assistant director of field services for Parks and Wildlife. “Through CPW’s thorough investigative process we recognized that the hunter made the ethical choice to immediately report the incident and take responsibility for the accident.”

According to Luke Perkins, public information officer for Parks and Wildlife, this citation carries a $139.50 fine and five suspension points. If an individual receives 20 points in a five-year period, the state agency can hold a hearing to suspend the license. 

Parks and Wildlife has a guide for hunters on the difference between gray wolves and coyotes. The biggest difference between the two canine species is their size. Gray wolves are almost twice the size of coyotes, according to the state wildlife agency. Additionally, wolves have bushier tails, larger and “blockier” snouts and shorter, more rounded ears. 

The female wolf, tagged as 2504, was among the 15 wolves brought to Colorado from British Columbia in January 2025. 

Of those 15 wolves, seven have died. Six of the 10 wolves brought to Colorado from Oregon in December 2023 have died. Additionally, there have been some reported deaths of wolves born in Colorado. 

Since Colorado began its reintroduction in 2023, while some have died in fights with other predators, most of the wolf deaths can be attributed to human actions. 

This includes several wolves killed by U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services or Colorado Parks and Wildlife in response to repeated killing of livestock, a vehicle collision, one that died after being caught and released from a coyote leghold trap, a few that have been killed after traveling into Wyoming where hunting of wolves is legal, and a wolf that died amid routine collaring opertations by Parks and Wildlife. 

Only one wolf death in Colorado — of 17 reported wolf mortalities to date — is being investigated as illegal poaching, but other investigations and allegations have revealed wolves being shot in the state. 

The necropsy of the Copper Creek male, who died in a sanctuary in September 2024 after being captured following repeated livestock attacks in Grand County, revealed that a gunshot wound was the animal’s ultimate cause of death. The death is still under investigation as a poaching by the Fish and Wildlife Service. 

A wolf that died in September 2024 was reportedly killed in a fight with another wolf, but a necropsy revealed that the animal had a healed gunshot wound. 

The March 11 death of the King Mountain wolf pack’s matriarch is still under investigation by Parks and Wildlife in consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service. A public comment sent to the federal agency, however, reported that the wolf was killed by a ranch hand while it was approaching cattle in northwest Colorado. 

While killing a gray wolf is illegal, Parks and Wildlife’s special 10(j) permit with the Fish and Wildlife Service, individuals are legally allowed to injure or kill a wolf when it is “observed in the act of attacking livestock or working dogs.”

Sam Miller, a Grand County resident and the senior carnivore campaigner for the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement Monday that the female wolf being accidentally shot by a hunter in January highlights why wolves need stronger protections. 

“In the wake of this tragic shooting it’s clear that Colorado’s wolves need stronger safeguards, especially from coyote hunting and trapping,” Miller said. “Preventable wolf deaths are compounding an already alarming number of deaths among our state’s small, recovering wolf population. Colorado should stop state-authorized wolf killings and adopt commonsense regulations to protect these incredible animals.”

In a statement, the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project, a nonprofit that helped lead the charge to reintroduce wolves in Colorado, said that while it is possible for individuals to confuse coyotes and wolves, the organization is concerned that it “may be impossible to determine” intention in these cases. 

“In this case, the shooter was cited for violating CPW regulations, but not state or federal endangered species law, both of which forbid take of an endangered species, even in the case of mistaken identity,” the statement read. “It is a clear vulnerability in the system that a hunter can profess to have not intended to kill a wolf in the pursuit of a coyote and face little responsibility for the killing of an endangered species. Such a weakness in the program leaves room for any bad actors to claim an accidental killing of an endangered species.”