SAGUACHE– Anyone who is interested in hunting and big-game in the northern San Luis Valley can now view preliminary deer and elk management plans on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website.
The public is asked to provide comments on the draft plans. Those should be sent to Brent Frankland, terrestrial biologist for the San Luis Valley, via email at: [email protected]. Comments must be submitted by Nov. 21.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologists and staff have been working for about a year to make updates to elk and deer management plans for the Saguache area. The revisions are for deer in game management units 68, 681 and 682; and the elk plan is for game management units 68, 681. To view the plans go: http://cpw.state.co.us/thingstodo/Pages/HerdManagementPlans.aspx, then click on the D-26 and E-26 links on the right side of the page.
Responding to public comments received during the summer, CPW is recommending actions in the draft plan that will increase the elk herd over the long term. CPW held public meetings about the plans last summer and also offered an on-line survey. The revisions will be presented to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission early next year.
The plans describe the history of the herds, recent harvest statistics and current status, including estimated populations and sex ratios. Biologists want to hear from hunters, ranchers, landowners and the general public about what they think of the plan.
“These big-game species are an important public resource and CPW intends to manage them for the benefit of all stakeholders,” said Rick Basagoitia, area wildlife manager in the San Luis Valley.