Colorado’s wolves are inching closer to the edge of the state, prompting questions related to what would happen if reintroduced animals end up crossing state lines.

On October 22, Colorado Parks and Wildlife released the latest mapping related to the movement of collared wolves. While the mapping doesn’t show the exact location of specific wolves – rather what watersheds one or more wolves have been present in from September 23 to October 21 – there are several takeaways to be gleaned from the report.

One takeaway that attentive observers might notice is that wolves seem to have traveled closer to Fort Collins than they’ve been thus far – present in a watershed that stretches to about 15 miles away from city streets, also about 10 miles west of Loveland.

Another major takeaway is that wolves were present in watersheds that border Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming – three of the four states that meet Colorado.

The situation related to these stateline watersheds begs a key question related to the reintroduction effort – what happens if collared wolves cross state lines? As might be expected, the policy varies a bit by state.

For starters, most who have been following along with the conversation know what happens in Wyoming – wolves don’t have protection there, and thus can be subject to being hunted and killed. Several of Colorado’s reintroduced wolves have died in Wyoming already.

That’s not the case with Utah or New Mexico though – or nearby Arizona, for that matter. According to Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the agency has an understanding with these three states that any wolf that crosses state lines can be recaptured and returned to Colorado. It appears as if officials have yet to exercise this agreement thus far.

As far as Utah goes, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) notes that wolves dispersing into the state from Wyoming and Idaho have been confirmed at least 21 times since 2004, with one wolf from Colorado known to have briefly entered the state in 2025. As of September 2025, Utah is aware of at least one lone male wolf that resides in the state.

Per UDWR, the general public is not allowed to hunt, kill, or trap wolves anywhere in Utah. There are, however, some options that apply specifically to livestock producers in a portion of the state. Additionally, federal and state law allows for the killing of a wolf if it’s posing a direct threat to human life.

Similar policies around wolves exist in New Mexico in that hunting, killing, or trapping of wolves is not allowed.

While it doesn’t get much talk, there was actually a wolf reintroduction program that took place in New Mexico (and Arizona) that started in 1998. This effort is believed to have resulted in a population of about 241 Mexican gray wolves, with about 136 of those wolves in New Mexico and the rest in Arizona.

With that said, it sounds like Colorado’s wolves will be mostly safe if heading west or south. North would be a different story.

Want to learn more about Colorado’s wolves and check out additional mapping? Find information provided by Colorado Parks and Wildlife here.