8090

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 8090
• Author: Colorado Division of Wildlife.
• Title: Wildlife in Danger.
• USFW Year: 1986.
• USFW - Doc Type: Denver
• Copyright Material: NO

i
Gray Wolf
Canis lupus (Endangered Colorado, Federally)
The largest member of the dog family, the wolf may weigh as much as 170 pounds,
but generally, the males weigh an average of about 90 pounds and females weigh about
10 pounds less.
Although wolves are occasionally encountered singly, they usually live in packs.
The group's size generally consists of 2 to 8 animals, but packs as large as 30
individuals have been recorded. A wolf pack, which preys primarily on deer, elk and
moose, normally occupies a large area called a territory, and other wolves are excluded
from that area.
Two types of wolves once roamed Colorado, but pressure from man eventually
resulted in their disappearance from the state. Many wolves were trapped for their
fur during the 1800s and during the first quarter of the 20th century. Intensive private
and governmental poisoning further decimated Colorado's wolf population.
The last remnants of Colorado's native wolf population were probably eliminated
in the early 1940s. The Division of Wildlife receives some reports of sightings annually,
but there is no evidence to indicate that these animals have survived in Colorado.
The front foot tracks of the gray wolf front
are larger than the hind foot. Without a
the claws, the front foot track measures g _
4 to 5 inches long by 4 to 5 inches wide
in mud. The hind foot track may be 9 hind
33/4 to 43/4 inches long by 3 to 416 inches
wide. In snow the tracks are larger.
Above: Captive gray wolf in Colorado.