The Agenda for the April Wildlife Commission Workshop and the Rule-Making Notice for the May Wildlife Commission Meeting have been posted.
You may view these documents at the following web address:
http://wildlife.state.co.us/WildlifeCommission/
April marks an important time for many hunters in Colorado. After a long winter and a slowly approaching spring, its time to apply for big game licenses and make plans for autumn hunting seasons. But April also brings another hunting opportunity, one that occurs much sooner than the distant big game seasons, and one that an increasing number of Coloradoans are pursuing, the spring turkey season.
With spring turkey seasons set to begin on April 14th and a plethora of good opportunities available, hunters are making plans now. Across much of the state, turkey populations are doing very well where good habitat exists to support the birds. Colorado is home to two types of wild turkeys; the native Merriam’s and the introduced Rio Grande turkey. In Colorado, Merriam’s wild turkeys are widely distributed, with core populations located on the southeast pinyon-juniper canyons, the southern Front Range, and western Colorado. Smaller populations are found along the northern Front Range. Rio Grande wild turkeys were introduced to Colorado from neighboring states to the east, and occur primarily within the cottonwood-riparian drainages on the Eastern Plains. The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) has been transplanting turkeys to suitable habitat for many years and because of this, turkeys may be more numerous now than at any point in history.
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Colorado Division of Wildlife officials will discuss big game license recommendations for fall 2007 at two meeting in the San Luis Valley.
DOW biologists will discuss deer, elk, pronghorn and moose. They will also explain the current status of the herds in the region, DOW big game planning efforts and license allocations.
The public is invited to ask questions and to discuss concerns.
The meetings:
• 7 p.m., April 9, at the South Fork Community Building in South Fork on Highway 149.
• 7 p.m., April 10, Room A103 in the student center building at Adams State College. Parking is available across the street from the student center. No parking pass is required.
Two Gunnison County men who killed at least two elk illegally will pay $2,700 in fines and could lose their Colorado hunting privileges.
The elk were killed in Gunnison County about halfway between Lake City and the town of Gunnison during the third week of November in 2006.
In a plea bargain, Larry McGraw, 49, of Gunnison paid $1,988, was assessed 30 penalty points against his hunting privileges and forfeited his rifle. Thomas McGraw, 21, of Crested Butte, admitted guilt to DOW officers, paid $616 and was assessed 35 penalty points.
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Taxpayers in Colorado can contribute to wildlife and the environmental quality of our state by simply checking the non-game box on their state tax forms and writing in the amount they want to contribute.
Since 2000, 270,000 state taxpayers have contributed nearly $2.8 million to conservation efforts of the Colorado Division of Wildlife through the non-game check-off program.
“One contribution on a tax return won’t guarantee the restoration of a species, but many contributions help to guarantee that the DOW’s important wildlife conservation work will continue,” said Tim Holeman, chief of public affairs for the wildlife agency.
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The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) has raised the ante against poachers by increasing the rewards for citizens who report violators. A program called TIP for “Turn In Poachers,” now awards preference points, and in some cases, free hunting licenses to people who provide information that helps catch poachers.
“Most hunters are law abiding citizens,” said Ron Dobson, a veteran DOW game warden from Chaffee County, “and they don’t want a few bad apples to spoil things for legitimate hunters.”
In one case Dobson handled last year, a tipster was awarded one of the most sought after hunting opportunities in the nation – a license to hunt a Mountain Goat. “People wait a life-time trying to get one of these rare opportunities. It’s only fair that when someone cheats, the person who turns them in should be rewarded,” said Dobson.
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The Colorado Division of Wildlife will host an Anglers’ Roundtable March 29 in Cortez to discuss fishing in the San Juan and Dolores river basins. The area includes all of southwestern Colorado from Pagosa Springs to the Utah and New Mexico borders and north along the continental divide near Silverton and west to Dove Creek.
The meeting is 6:30-9 p.m. at the Cortez Conference Center, 2121 E. Main Ave.
Aquatic specialists from the DOW will discuss fishing regulations, lake and stream management and overall fishery issues. Fish stocking plans for 2007 will be explained and the stocking schedule will be available. DOW biologists will also talk about the proposed removal of white suckers from Summit Reservoir.
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