08-18-2010, 11:10 AM
GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. - The Colorado Division of Wildlife is inviting the public to provide input on the future management of deer herds in the Eagle and Aspen areas. The Sweetwater deer herd in the Burns/Sweetwater area will be discussed at a public meeting to be held in Burns on Aug. 25. The Maroon Bells deer herd will be the focus of a public meeting in Carbondale on Aug. 26.
The Sweetwater deer herd stretches across Game Management Units 25, 26 and 34. These units are a mix of private lands and public lands managed by the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The units stretch from the area north of Glenwood Canyon along the Colorado River to the Flattops Wilderness Area within the White River National Forest. The units include portions of eastern Garfield and northern Eagle and southwestern Routt Counties.
The Maroon Bells deer herd is comprised of Game Management Units 43, 47 and 471. The area reaches from the top of Independence Pass down the Roaring Fork River Valley and includes the communities of Aspen, Basalt and Carbondale. The units are a mix of public and private lands.
Herd management plans are based on wildlife management principles and public input and are revised approximately every 10 years. To aid the public in discussion, several management alternatives will be presented at the public meetings. The alternatives cover increasing or decreasing overall herd size, revising desired male-female ratios or leaving the population and gender objectives at their current levels. The benefits and drawbacks to each alternative will be presented at the meetings.
Public input is critical in helping revise herd management plans, which establish herd population objectives and set goals for male-female ratios within populations.
Interested members of the public are invited to attend a planning meeting for the Sweetwater deer herd in GMUs 25, 26 and 34. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 25 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Burns Baptist Church (on Colorado River Road just south of the Burns Post Office).
The Maroon Bells herd meeting will take place on Thursday, Aug. 26 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Carbondale Fire Station (300 Meadowood Drive).
Anyone who cannot attend the public meetings in person is welcome to review the draft management plans and fill out a questionnaire about the herds. The draft plan and the questionnaires will be available on the Division of Wildlife website (http://www.wildlife.state.cous) just prior to the public meetings. Completed questionnaires or written comments on the draft plans is due to the DOW Glenwood Springs office by Friday, Sept. 24.
The Sweetwater deer herd stretches across Game Management Units 25, 26 and 34. These units are a mix of private lands and public lands managed by the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The units stretch from the area north of Glenwood Canyon along the Colorado River to the Flattops Wilderness Area within the White River National Forest. The units include portions of eastern Garfield and northern Eagle and southwestern Routt Counties.
The Maroon Bells deer herd is comprised of Game Management Units 43, 47 and 471. The area reaches from the top of Independence Pass down the Roaring Fork River Valley and includes the communities of Aspen, Basalt and Carbondale. The units are a mix of public and private lands.
Herd management plans are based on wildlife management principles and public input and are revised approximately every 10 years. To aid the public in discussion, several management alternatives will be presented at the public meetings. The alternatives cover increasing or decreasing overall herd size, revising desired male-female ratios or leaving the population and gender objectives at their current levels. The benefits and drawbacks to each alternative will be presented at the meetings.
Public input is critical in helping revise herd management plans, which establish herd population objectives and set goals for male-female ratios within populations.
Interested members of the public are invited to attend a planning meeting for the Sweetwater deer herd in GMUs 25, 26 and 34. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 25 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Burns Baptist Church (on Colorado River Road just south of the Burns Post Office).
The Maroon Bells herd meeting will take place on Thursday, Aug. 26 beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Carbondale Fire Station (300 Meadowood Drive).
Anyone who cannot attend the public meetings in person is welcome to review the draft management plans and fill out a questionnaire about the herds. The draft plan and the questionnaires will be available on the Division of Wildlife website (http://www.wildlife.state.cous) just prior to the public meetings. Completed questionnaires or written comments on the draft plans is due to the DOW Glenwood Springs office by Friday, Sept. 24.