Since the first grey wolves were reintroduced to Colorado in 2023, Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW) knew they had a headache on their hands. Just how immense the migraine was, however, surpassed their expectations—and continues to do so.
At commission meetings, members regularly spend an outsized amount of time arguing over wolf policy, detracting from time that could be used to guide the management of the state’s numerous other game species, like elk and deer. At a recent meeting on June 11, CPW director Jeff Davis intentionally omitted a wolf update from the agenda for that exact reason, but the conversation still ended up on the topic within minutes of his opening remarks.
Fielding concerns from commissioners, Davis even brought up a new idea: distracting problemed wolves with roadkill.
“‘Diversionary feeding’ is something that, when we talked with our counterparts in other states, has been shown to be effective—and we have considered that,” Davis said.
In essence, “diversionary feeding” would entail setting out roadkill or other meat for the wolves to consume, distracting them from nearby cattle—especially calves and yearlings. Davis’s primary concern, though, is that the tactic could detract from the state’s reintroduction goals, with wolves remaining sedentary rather than tracking elk herds around the state.
Several people present at the meeting expressed similar concerns. “The goal is not to create a pack of wolves that is seeking to be a predator simply by putting out feed for the wolves to come get,” said CPW northwest regional manager Travis Black. “Part of their biological makeup is to be taught to hunt.”
While Davis alluded to the use of diversionary feeding in other states, its use is not widespread. In fact, feeding roadkill or dead animals to wolves isn’t mentioned in the management plans of any western state. The only well-publicized use of the tactic in wolf management is south of the border in Mexico, where Mexican wolves were reintroduced into parts of Chihuahua and Sonora in the mid-2000s. In that case, wildlife managers used domestic pig meat to divert wolves away from cattle.
Mexican researchers studying the reintroduction from 2012 to 2022 found that cattle consumption was negatively correlated with an increase in diversionary feeding—meaning the more pork the wolves consumed, the less cattle they ate. Over the ten-year study, around 26 percent of the wolves’ diets were pork, compared to 20 percent cattle. The remainder was mostly whitetail deer and other small critters like skunks and rodents.
The only other well-known use of diversionary feeding is in Alaska, where the Department of Fish and Game has experimented with it to reduce brown bear predation on newborn moose calves. Between 1985 and 1991, the state collected moose carcasses that had been struck by cars or trains in the winter, and stored them under sawdust until spring. Then, during calving season, personnel used trucks, airplanes and boats to distribute the carcasses—mostly in the east-central part of the state. In 1985 alone, they dumped 12 metric tons of moose scraps in one area. That spring, wildlife biologists observed that the moose calf-to-cow ratio nearly tripled compared to the previous three-year average, indicating better calf survival. Wolves were also observed scavenging on the scrap piles.
Alaska’s tactic likely wouldn’t work in Colorado, though, due to the chronic nature of the problem. Though CPW won’t openly release the information, it’s reported that the Copper Creek wolf pack (after being relocated from Grand County due to cattle depredation problems earlier this year) is living full-time on or near large cattle ranches near the towns of Carbondale and Aspen.
Unsurprisingly—at least according to local ranchers—the pack has picked up killing cattle right where it left off. Mike Cerveny, who runs cattle on the Lost Marbles Ranch near Aspen, told the Colorado Sun that he’s not anti-wolf, despite losing several livestock to the canines, but he is frustrated with the way CPW has handled the situation.
“Everything has its own area and place to be where they thrive. But do I think wolves should be dropped off in the freaking first week of January, when it’s 20 below, next to my cows? Uh, no. I think this is the dumbest thing in the world,” he said.
This spring, the cattle-wolf interactions have escalated even more, such that CPW has hired two full-time range-riders—according to Davis at the June 11 commission meeting— to assist ranchers in the area with protecting their livestock and hazing wolves in the area. The agency also killed a young male wolf (number 2405) that was believed to have been involved with at least three separate cattle depredation events in May of this year. Biologists drew the wolf in with electronic calls, and killed it with a single shot from a .308 rifle.
So far, it’s the first wolf to have been intentionally dispatched by the state, but it’s unlikely to be the last. It’ll be interesting to see how CPW reacts to the ever-changing situation, and if they’ll actually use diversionary feeding in the area. If so, the commission is sure to talk about it—for hours, most likely.
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