For the first time, state Parks and Wildlife officials collared a gray wolf pup that was born in Colorado, the agency announced on Thursday morning. 

Female wolf F1084 and male wolf 2101 gave birth to the female pup last year. She was found Wednesday in North Park near Walden and will be referred to as 2202, wildlife officials said.

“The second GPS collar in this pack will allow our biologist and wildlife managers to learn more about the behavior of these naturally migrating wolves,” Parks and Wildlife Director Dan Prenzlow said in a news release. 

2202’s mother migrated to the Centennial State from the Snake River Pack in Wyoming, where she wore a previously-fitted collar. That collar has since stopped working and led to officials wanting to collar another member of the pack, according to the release. 

A state-contracted company safely tranquilized the animal to be fitted and collared. Officials also gave it a health check and determined it was in good health, said Parks and Wildlife Terrestrial Section Manager Brian Dreher. 

Wildlife officials said the collar only gives researchers and managers a snapshot of information. Officials use physical evidence such as wolf prints and scat during field investigations to verify the presence of wolves in a specific area, according to the release.  

Officials encouraged anyone who sees a wolf to complete a sighting form. 

Colorado voters along the Front Range approved the reintroduction of gray wolves on the 2020 ballot, despite objections from ranchers and rural Coloradans that wolves are a threat to livestock. Proposition 114 called for reintroducing between 20 and 30 wolves to the Western Slope by 2023.

The measure, which passed 50.9% to 49.1%, succeeded largely because of support from voters in urban, Democratic-leaning counties where wolves would not be reintroduced. In the northern Colorado counties where wolves would be reintroduced (Jackson, Moffat, Rio Blanco and Routt), the measure failed by a nearly 3-to-1 margin.

The Cattlemen’s Association was among the most vigorous opponents of Proposition 114. Ranchers and hunters opposed the measure, citing concerns for the safety of livestock and big game, specifically elk and deer.

Backers of Proposition 114, however, said in 2020 that wolves can coexist with ranchers.

No wolves have been introduced under 114, but some wolves have migrated into the state from Wyoming.

Earlier this month, Jackson County rancher Don Gittleson said Colorado Parks and Wildlife paid him $1,800 for the 600-pound registered Angus calf that the state wildlife agency confirmed was killed by a pack of wolves on his ranch northeast of Walden in December.