Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) confirmed that a gray wolf mortality in Rocky Mountain National Park is currently under investigation.
CPW biologists received a mortality alert on April 20 for female gray wolf 2514-BC. In cooperation with the National Park Service the mortality was confirmed to have taken place in Rocky Mountain National Park.
As wolves gray wolves are federally listed under the Endangered Species Act, the death will be investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The cause of death is not yet public and a final determination will not be made until the USFWS investigation is complete including a necropsy.
“Wolf survival in Colorado is within normal margins for a wolf population in the Rocky Mountains. Any reintroduction effort includes eventual mortality levels and these were incorporated into the Colorado Wolf Restoration and Management Plan.” – CPW
No other details on the mortality are available at this time. Gray wolves in the Rocky Mountains usually live between 3 and 4 years.
