Public opinion sought for managing mountain lions in Trinidad area

If you want to have a voice in how Colorado Parks and Wildlife manages the mountain lion population in the areas around Trinidad, your time has arrived.

CPW is revising its population management plan that will guide the agency as it sets harvest objectives over the next 10 years.

As part of the process, the wildlife agency has scheduled a public hearing at 6 p.m., Sept. 4 at the Trinidad State Junior College. CPW is inviting hunters, ranchers and the general public to speak out on its management plan and influence policies governing the population.

The targeted mountain lion population spans Game Management Units 85, 851 and 140—essentially from Walsenburg and La Veta Pass south along the Sangre de Cristo Divide to New Mexico and east of Trinidad along Colorado Highway 160 to Highway 389.

CPW has a goal of updating objectives in its herd management plans every 10 years. The existing management plan, also called a Data Analysis Unit or DAU, for the herd was approved in October 2005.

Public feedback is being sought on whether to maintain the current objectives for the next 10 years.

Under the existing management objectives, hunters seem to be generally happy and CPW has not received a tremendous number of complaints about game damage.

If you disagree with those observations, please speak up. Your opinions and evidence could cause CPW to take a different approach in revising this plan.