DENVER — A Colorado hunter faces a citation after mistakenly shooting a wolf — a protected species under the state’s recently established reintroduction program — and a key advocate who helped shape that plan says the penalty imposed on the hunter is “unacceptable.” The citation, issued by Colorado Parks & Wildlife, stems from an incident in which the hunter, reportedly mistaking the wolf for a coyote while hunting in western Colorado, self-reported the encounter. The animal was found dead and the hunter was cited for taking a protected species. The advocate, a wildlife biologist who served on the state’s wolf reintroduction committee, argued the penalties — which include a fine and potential hunting license suspension — fail to account for the accidental nature of the kill and the fact that many hunters are still learning to identify wolves on the landscape. “This was a mistake, not apo
Sources: Denver7 (Denver TV station)
