Colorado Hunting News

Shell Exploration and Production Company Funds Major Projects

Elk Foundation and partners have completed 407 conservation projects with a value of nearly $95 million during organization’s history in Centennial State

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation announced it is funding 21 new conservation projects throughout Colorado this year that will make a critical difference in the organization’s efforts to conserve and enhance habitat for elk and other wildlife.

This year’s projects, which will receive additional funding from other conservation partners and will be supported with labor provided by Elk Foundation volunteers, will be supported by grants of more than $200,000 from the foundation. The Elk Foundation and its partners have completed 407 conservation projects in Colorado with a value of nearly $95 million since the organization began in 1984.

These conservation efforts have had a major impact on elk and other wildlife habitat throughout the state, permanently protecting and enhancing nearly 343,000 acres. Additionally, the Elk Foundation and its partners have opened access to more than 72,000 acres for public hunting, fishing and other recreation in Colorado.

Shell Exploration and Production Company funded two major projects this year in Colorado – a noxious weed control project in Garfield and Rio Blanco Counties, and a prescribed burning project in Rio Blanco County. Shell contributed $22,000 to complete the work.

“The daily threats of development and habitat loss are only getting worse,” said Lance Schul, Colorado Senior Regional Director for the Elk Foundation. “Thanks to our volunteers and partners, we are making a measurable and positive impact in elk country.”

Home to a considerable percentage of North America’s elk population, Colorado is also one of the fastest-growing states in the United States. The Elk Foundation has launched a Colorado Conservation Initiative to help address the mounting pressures felt by the state’s wildlife and their habitat. The primary goal of the initiative is to enhance habitat through projects such as water development, noxious weed control, prescribed burns, and wildlife plantings. The secondary goal is to permanently protect elk winter range and migration corridors.

Following are brief summaries of key projects that will be funded by the Elk Foundation this year in Colorado:

Park Creek Noxious Weed Control (Garfield and Rio Blanco Counties) – As part of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s Colorado Conservation Initiative, 12,000 acres in White River National Forest will be treated for toadflax, a noxious weed that competes with native forage. The work area is critical summer range for elk.

Oak Ridge State Wildlife Area Prescribed Burn (Rio Blanco County) – The project calls for prescribed burning on 776 acres of elk habitat near the Bureau of Land Management’s White River Field Office. The project will improve productivity of the land for elk and other wildlife.

White River Burn Block 2007 (Rio Blanco/Garfield Counties) – Also part of the Elk Foundation’s Colorado Conservation Initiative, 3,000 acres of winter range will be burned. The prescribed burn will reduce the impact of invasive plant species and improve the land’s ability to support larger numbers of wildlife.

Indian Run Prescribed Burn (Routt County) – The project calls for prescribed burning more than 1,000 acres of habitat used throughout the year by elk.

Becoming an Outdoors Woman Workshop (Jefferson County) – The Elk Foundation will support the Becoming an Outdoors Woman Workshop in Jefferson County this year. Becoming and Outdoors Woman is a conservation education program dedicated to women who would like to learn more about hunting, fishing, outdoor skills and conservation.

About the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Missoula, Mont., the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife and their habitat. The Elk Foundation and its partners have permanently protected or enhanced nearly 5 million acres, a land area nearly twice as large as Yellowstone National Park. Nearly 500,000 acres previously closed to public access are now open for hunting, fishing and other recreation. The Elk Foundation has more than 150,000 members, a staff of 150 and 10,000 active volunteers. To help protect wild elk country or learn more about the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, visit www.elkfoundation.org or call 800-CALL-ELK.

Because of continuing bear conflicts in residential areas in southwest Colorado, the Colorado Division of Wildlife plans to begin stricter enforcement of regulations that require removal of materials that attract bears from properties.

Late spring frosts and dry weather have limited natural sources of food for bears. The situation is causing bears to look for food in towns, rural subdivisions and campgrounds. Some conflicts have been reported: bears have broken into restaurants and houses, and are getting into garbage cans, bird feeders and dumpsters.
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Colorado Division of Wildlife officials will hold a deer management planning meeting, at 6:30 p.m., Aug. 13, at Memorial Hall in Hotchkiss.

At the meeting DOW big game specialists will talk about plans for managing the deer in game management units 411, 52, 521, 53 and 63. The public is also invited to give comments.

DOW staff will discuss the current status of the deer herd in those areas, history of management in those areas and future issues.

For more information, contact Brandon Diamond at the DOW office in Gunnison, (970) 641-7071.

For more information about Division of Wildlife go to: http://wildlife.state.co.us.

The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) will hold public meetings in Sterling, Fort Morgan and Greeley to gather input on deer herd management in the South Platte River Data Analysis Unit, which comprises Game Management Units (GMUs) 91, 92, 94, 96, and 951.

The Division is seeking public input to establish population and herd composition (buck/doe ratio) objectives for the next 10 years. “Getting public input is imperative to creating a balanced 10-year herd management plan for this deer herd,” said Larry Budde, Area Wildlife Manager for the DOW. “We hope that landowners and folks who have hunted this area will come and let us know what their thoughts and experiences have been in the GMUs.”
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The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) is opening 87,500 acres of private land in the southeast portion of the state for the public to hunt pronghorn and deer through the Big Game Access Pilot Program (BGAP). The program begins with the opening of the archery pronghorn season on August 15.

This is the first year of the 3-year pilot program that aims to provide additional big game hunting access to the public. The property enrolled for this year is in Game Management Units (GMUs) 120, 121, 122, and 126.
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Hot and dry conditions are pushing Colorado’s black bears out of their natural range in search of food. As in years past, this means residents in bear areas need to use extra caution with attractants such as trash, pet food, barbecue grills and birdfeeders; however, beyond the usual warnings and challenges, officials with the Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) are seeing some new problems crop up this year.

Bears are finding new sources of human food among the thousands of energy industry employees who work and, in some cases, live in prime black bear habitat. “Trash storage and trash disposal at man camps is the biggest issue right now,” explained J.T. Romatzke, DOW district wildlife manager for the Parachute area.
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