With an estimated posthunt population of more than 265,000 elk, Colorado is home to the largest elk herd anywhere in North America. Now, it’s a matter of maintenance.
The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission is expected to set the quota for limited elk hunting licenses in 2012 about 2 percent lower than in 2011 when the 14-member board gathers for its monthly meeting Thursday in Grand Junction. With elk herds in many parts of the state nearing objectives, biologists are adjusting license numbers to maintain population levels.
That translates to a quota of 139,000 limited elk licenses recommended by wildlife managers for the coming fall, providing ample opportunity for big game hunters from around the world and right here in Colorado in spite of the decline in licenses.
Deer and pronghorn quotas also are expected to see slight declines as wildlife managers are proposing 80,000 deer licenses and 24,000 pronghorn licenses based on posthunt populations estimated at 418,000 deer and 71,000 pronghorns.
Meanwhile, licenses for the state’s growing moose population are recommended to rise by 12 percent, while increasing bruin populations in many hunt units are leading to a 25 percent jump in bear licenses as managers look to stabilize growth. There is also discussion of opening a limited hunting season for sandhill cranes in northwestern Colorado, although no decision is expected from the commission Thursday.
If such a proposal is approved by the commission, hunters in Routt and Moffat counties would be allowed to harvest a portion of the quota established annually by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the migratory group known as the Rocky Mountain population. There is a fall hunting season in eastern Colorado for the state’s other crane population, the Mid-Continent population, typically found in the San Luis Valley during fall and spring migrations.
Contest. The mother of all fishing derbies, the Cabela’s “Wanna Fish for Millions?” contest, has revealed the two Colorado reservoirs stocked with a portion of the 1,000 tagged fish worth up to $2 million cash or $225,000 in prizes during the next two months. Once again, Pueblo and Blue Mesa reservoirs are holding tagged fish worth mystery amounts in the contest, which begins Saturday.
Contest details and registration are available at .
Young anglers. Props go out to the town of Frederick, which hosted more than 275 children at the seventh annual Fishing Clinic at Frederick Recreation Area’s Milavec Lake last Saturday, a record number at the free event. The clinic, hosted by the Frederick Police Department, gave out 250 free fishing poles donated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife before running out.
Kids learned about equipment, casting and knot tying along with fish biology, proper handling and other tips. Five-year-old MicKale Ford caught the first fish of the day.
Honors. Further congrats go out to the Grand County government — led by county commissioners Gary Bumgarner, James Newberry and Nancy Stuart — which was recognized this week by Colorado Trout Unlimited as the recipient of the 2012 Trout Conservation Award for its work protecting the Upper Colorado River watershed in the face of multiple threats.
According to CTU executive director David Nickum, Grand County officials have invested more than $3 million into assessing and addressing the needs of its rivers, and spent thousands of hours negotiating with Front Range water users and advocating to federal permitting agencies for better protections for the Upper Colorado River watershed.
Scott Willoughby: 303-954-1993 or swilloughby@denverpost.com
