The biggest Colorado Parks and Wildlife dragnet in nearly 20 years resulted in 22 infractions by 13 hunters and fishermen as they passed through a 24-hour check station on Interstate 70 west of Grand Junction last month. The sequel is coming soon.
After five months of planning, more than 1,750 westbound vehicles entered the wildlife checkpoint at the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Port of Entry weigh station in Loma, about 15 miles from the Utah border. CPW law enforcement officers searched about 180 vehicles occupied by about 300 people who had been hunting or fishing on Nov. 7-8.
“We were pleased but not surprised that a vast majority of the hunters and anglers we contacted were in compliance with the law,” said JT Romatzke, check station supervisor and area wildlife manager.
The majority of infractions involved hunters failing to provide evidence of sex for their big-game kills. But perhaps the most eye-catching was a fisherman with 78 white bass and two walleyes in his possession. Others related to license violations. All illegally harvested wildlife was seized on site.
While small-scale check stations are conducted annually throughout the state, this was the first time since 1993 that a wildlife check station was carried out on a Colorado interstate. In addition to compliance checks of applicable game laws, the 97 CPW officers involved collected DNA samples from harvested big game and conducted hunting and fishing satisfaction surveys.
“It was a big success,” CPW public information officer Mike Porras said. “And because of that, we will try to do these on a regular basis. Probably not every year, but we’ll do another one in a different location soon.”
According to the agency’s “2010 Law Enforcement & Violation Report” published in October, the state has seen a declining trend in wildlife-related violations since a peak of 7,836 in 2006. Total hunting and fishing violations have decreased annually to 4,603 last year, while the number of commissioned wildlife officers in the state (now 224) has remained about the same. Figures for 2011 won’t be published until next fall.
“We feel like hunter education is paying off and the majority of sportsmen are being ethical and responsible,” Porras said. “There are other reasons, but we believe that ethics and hunter responsibility are the primary reasons for the numbers coming down.”
Poaching continues to be a problem statewide, including the recent report of a large bull elk killed Thanksgiving night off Larimer County Road 18E in Pinewood Lake. Only the head, hindquarters and backstraps were removed from the bull. The rest was left to rot.
In Boulder, a trophy-sized mule deer was found dead on Nov. 30 just off Cloverleaf Drive. The animal displayed wounds that may have resulted from being shot, though officers are unsure whether it was shot at that location.
Operation Game Theft is offering a $500 reward in each case. The CPW program that pays rewards to citizens who turn in poachers generated a 788 reports in 2010, down from a high of 942 in 2009.
Of those 788 reports, 433 were for big game violations; 123 for fishing violations; one for licensing violations; 64 for small game violations; 47 for waterfowl violations; 22 for nongame violations; eight for threatened/endangered species; and 90 classified as other.
The 2010 reports resulted in 29 citations being issued to individuals to date. A total of 22 rewards worth $11,000 were paid out.
Unlike the Operation Game Thief program, wildlife check stations are designed to reach beyond law enforcement. Among the primary goals is personal contact with sportsmen, offering them an opportunity to provide opinions about the hunting season and contribute to the state’s wildlife management.
“We understand that not everyone will be 100 percent satisfied,” Romatzke said. “But we were pleased to hear that the vast majority of our contacts had good, and in some cases, great hunting or fishing experiences in Colorado, and they understood the need for a check station.”
Scott Willoughby: 303-954-1993 or swilloughby@denverpost.com
