DENVER — A hunter in Northwest Colorado was cited after killing a gray wolf that was mistaken for a coyote, prompting an advocacy group to call for stronger protections for the state's wolf population.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service determined this week that the hunter killed the wolf by mistake in January. The hunter cooperated with investigators and was cited $139.50 but did not face the full penalties available under state or federal law.
Killing a gray wolf in Colorado is illegal under both state and federal law. State penalties include jail time and fines of up to $100,000. Federal penalties include fines of up to $50,000.
Project Coyote, a nonprofit that promotes conservation and coexistence between people and wild carnivores, argues that "mistaken identity" should not be a shield against accountability.
Mark Surls of Project Coyote said the regulations that allow coyotes to be killed so broadly create conditions where wolves are at risk.
"A lot of ways for people to be able to kill a coyote would then also lead to the potential to kill a wolf, and so really looking through these permissive regulations and tightening them would be incredibly important, not just to help wolf recovery, but to get coyotes more in line with the other species that they're listed with," Surls said.
Gray wolves are about twice the size of coyotes, have rounder ears, and bushier, shorter tails.
Project Coyote is calling on CPW to make several changes to coyote hunting rules, arguing that wolf reintroduction cannot succeed without them. The organization's requests include:
- Establishing a shorter hunting season for coyotes instead of the current year-round season
- Prohibiting night hunting of coyotes on both public and private lands
- Requiring hunters to complete species-identification training
- Prohibiting coyote trapping in areas that overlap with active wolf territory
Surls said the goal is to shift public perception of coyotes as well.
"My goal in life is to just take those fears and misconceptions away from coyotes, and once you do that, we realize how amazing these animals are, and how individual they have individual personalities and characteristics," Surls said.
This is not the first time a Colorado hunter has mistaken a wolf for a coyote, according to Project Coyote. A similar case occurred in 2015 near Kremmling. In May 2025, a wolf died from injuries sustained in a legally placed foothold trap intended for a coyote.
CPW said hunters and others seeking changes to its rules and regulations have a path forward.
"Individuals seeking changes to CPW rules and regulations are encouraged to submit citizens' petitions for consideration by the Parks and Wildlife Commission," CPW said.
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