Colorado Deer Population: The state estimated a post-hunt deer population of 375,710 in 2023 with about 357,000 mule deer and 19,000 whitetails. An estimate in 2022 of 391,921 with 372,325 mule deer and 19,596 whitetails. The population is down from 416,426 in 2021 and 427,570 in 2020 An estimated 418,310 deer in 2019, 433,140 deer post-hunt in 2018. Up from 418,800 post-hunt in 2017; 418,500 in 2016, a decline in part as a result of a harsh winter. In 2015 about 435,660 deer. The mild 2014-15 winter allowed for better survival, especially in the northwest. The 2014 post-hunt population was estimated at 424,190 compared to 390,660 in 2013. An estimated 1.2 million or more mule deer in the state during the 1940s.
Colorado Deer News
Colorado voters to decide on anti-trophy hunting measure in November July 24, 2024 The Sopris Sun
...If passed, the initiative would establish as a class one misdemeanor the intentional killing, wounding, pursuing, entrapping, discharging or releasing of a deadly weapon at mountain lions, lynx and bobcats. Fines and hunting license suspension are also potential consequences ...
Wildlife Officers Rescue Deer With Rat Trap Latched To Jaw in Colorado July 23, 2024 Unofficial Networks
... The trap likely prevented the doe from eating or drinking and without human intervention could have lead to her death. This type of trap is often baited with attractants like peanut butter ...
Habitat growth fosters wildlife use at North Star, study shows July 22, 2024 Colorado, Aspen Journalism
.. A report, ... the percent cover of willows and cottonwoods, and secondary shrubs like alders, along the Roaring Fork and its various oxbows, has grown exponentially,” Lowsky said. “The benefit of that is it’s created orders of magnitude more habitat for songbirds and small mammals, cover for deer and elk ...
Hunting, Fishing, and Conservation Organizations Applaud BLM's Decision to Align Big Game Management with the State of Colorado July 18, 2024 Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
... “As ungulate herds face daunting challenges from an array of uses on Colorado’s public lands, it is vital that BLM take these additional management actions to address oil and gas siting and development and lessen the pace of fragmentation to crucial habitats,” said Suzanne O’Neill, Executive Director of the Colorado Wildlife Federation...
BLM proposes plan to conserve wildlife and manage oil and gas in Colorado July 18, 2024 Bureau of Land Management
... Under the preferred alternative, where lands are open to oil and gas leasing under existing Resource Management Plans, the BLM would prescribe measures consistent with the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Regulation to conserve seasonal habitats and connectivity within big game high priority habitat in support of Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s big game population objectives...
Colorado Constructing More Wildlife Crossings for Front Range Corridor July 5, 2024 Denver Westword
... Across Colorado’s highways, there are over 100 structures that help wildlife navigate roads and connect to the environment on the other side; the infrastructure helps animals rebound from disruptions to their habitat from roadways. Overpasses, concrete culverts, underpasses and bridges all contribute, as do 450 miles of fencing ...
Colorado Elk Caught Tossing a Ball With Kids Looks Like They Just Want to Play June 22, 2024 PetHelpful on MSN
... the boys were mindful not to throw the ball right at the wild animal... the male elk was just as curious and friendly as the boys ...
Colorado first confirmed gray wolf pup reintroduction June 21, 2024 Colorado Politics
... Colorado has its first confirmed gray wolf pup since voters approved reintroduction of the apex predators roughly four years ago... The prey wolves in Grand County are chasing have been calves, yearlings, sheep and working dogs, as well as any elk, moose, deer or other prey..,
I-70 welcomes its first wildlife crossing across mountain corridor June 20, 2024 Colorado, KKTV on MSN.com
... this wildlife underpass could decrease wildlife collisions by up to 90%. This underpass will hopefully help elk, mule deer, black bears, coyotes, mountain lions and bobcats ...
Elk plans largely keep current population targets June 20, 2024 Colorado, The Daily Sentinel
... Colorado Parks and Wildlife is seeking public comment on proposed elk management plans in northwest Colorado that seek to maintain the current population targets in the case of the majority of herds, including the one on the Grand Mesa. The plans are open to public review and comment through June 30...
Colorado Eliminates Over-the-Counter Archery Elk Tags for Nonresidents June 17, 2024 Yahoo
... The decision comes after extensive public input, particularly from resident hunters who were outspoken about initial recommendations to cut OTC archery elk tags altogether, as originally recommended by agency staff... CPW guessed that limiting nonresident OTC elk archery licenses by 10 percent would reduce its revenue by almost $2 million ...
It Could Soon Be Illegal To Hunt Mountain Lions In Colorado — Here's Why June 17, 2024 Colorado, wideopenspaces.com
,,, a petition for Initiative #91 before the July 5 deadline ... would put it on the general election ballot in November... the proposition would ban hunting and trapping of mountain lions in Colorado...
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts policy for big game season June 14, 2024 Sky-Hi News
... Elk numbers are also up to about 303,000 post-hunt in 2023, according to Brandon Siegfried, founder of the Resident Hunter Association. He said this is an increase from previous years and believes the biological needs to limit licenses aren’t needed..,
It's official, wolverines will be reintroduced in Colorado May 21, 2024, 98.5 KYGO
... Wolverines are a native species to Colorado, but the last wolverine confirmed in Colorado was in 2009: a male that traveled from the Tetons in Wyoming to central Colorado, then to North Dakota, where it was shot... Wolverines will occasionally eat deer...
Polis addresses latest wolf depredation in Colorado April 30, 2024 KDVR
... six confirmed incidents since the beginning of 2024... The latest wolf depredation incident happened on a ranch where a producer has already seen four incidents involving calves... We went to a state a thousand miles away, and we ran them down with a helicopter, and we shot them with a net gun or a tranquilizer, put him in a cage … took him away from his pack ...
A new era for environmental conservation in Colorado April 24, 2024 Colorado Newsline
... The federal Bureau of Land Management ... will offer new kinds of leases for conservation. The purposes of the leases will be to restore public lands to and protect them from harm...say a nonprofit wants to improve mule deer habitat. It could seek a restoration lease and foster new habitat on BLM property that currently isn’t suitable for it...
Colorado Elk Migration Corridor Conserved, Public Access Expanded April 5, 2024 Ark Valley Voice
... A key parcel of elk and mule deer habitat ... Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) has worked with a local family ...
Colorado Parks and Wildlife lands a spectacular hunting and fishing ranch in South Park March 12, 2024 The Colorado Sun
... Great Outdoors Colorado funded most of the $8.25 million purchase of Collard Ranch ... a corridor for thousands of migrating elk moving to and from the surrounding high mountains, as well as mule deer, pronghorn and other wildlife...
Young elk falls through ice on Colorado pond, video shows. See ‘heartwarming’ rescue March 8, 2024 Colorado, Yahoo
... The video shows the elk floating near the edge of the pond and struggling to keep its head high enough above the water. The video doesn’t show the rope rescue ...
CPW study shows zombie deer disease affects 40 out of 54 deer herds in Colorado March 7, 2024 Colorado, KREX Grand Junction on MSN
... Mesa County has shown less than five percent of deer populations are infected, …in unit 60, we’ve got greater than 20 percent prevalence, and in 61, it’s between 10 and 20 percent ... across the state, they’ve identified chronic wasting disease in 40 out of 54 of our deer herds. 17 out of 42 elk herds are also now infected...
Bill calls for reintroduction of predator 'capable of killing deer' in Colorado March 5, 2024 OutThere Colorado
... to reintroduce wolverines ... there was once a viable population of wolverines in the state, but this was last confirmed in 1919 ... a wolverine was tracked traveling into northcentral Colorado in 2009 ... As stated in the proposed bill, there are an estimated three hundred to four hundred wolverines left in the lower 48 states ..,
CPW unveils draft Front Range mountain lion plan March 1, 2024 Colorado, The Colorado Sun
... “on a statewide level, we have 3,800 to 4,400 independent lions not including kittens,” with “one of the higher densities in the country on the Front Range.” ... The agency will also shift management goals from stabilization and suppression to stabilization only..,
CPW reports good signs for herd recovery while reminding hunters to be aware of license reductions February 17, 2018 Colorado, Craig Daily Press
... While CPW biologists were encouraged by what they saw during this year’s flights, the overall numbers of big game are still down in Northwest Colorado due to the high mortality that occurred last winter..,
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Initiates Wintering Wildlife Conservation Campaign February 12, 2024 BNN Breaking
... The crux of this campaign revolves around minimizing human disturbance to wildlife, particularly big game species such as elk, mule deer, moose, and bighorn sheep... a bid to safeguard wildlife during the harsh winter months ...
CSU study: Wolf reintroduction ecosystem restoration claims may be overblown February 9, 2024 Colorado, The Fence Post
... conducted over a 20-year period in Yellowstone National Park ... Colorado researchers found that “Claims of ecosystem restoration, resulting from a trophic cascade following the restoration of the gray wolf to Yellowstone, have been used to justify translocation of wolves to their unoccupied former range in many areas of the world,” the study states. “Careful scrutiny has revealed these claims to be exaggerated or false.” ...
I-70 wildlife underpass is nearing completion February 8, 2024 Colorado, 9NEWS
... the first wildlife underpass on the Interstate 70 mountain corridor.... will allow elk, deer and other animals to move freely from one side of the interstate to the other ...
Our View: BLM’s big game plan must protect further February 1, 2024 Colorado, The Durango Herald
... In the Southwest alone, elk calf survival rates have declined significantly since the 1980s, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife... Current elk populations aren’t likely sustainable over the next 20 years. The BLM knows this...
Drilling could ravage wildlife habitat in draft Colorado plan. There's still time to change course. January 24, 2024 Colorado, The Wilderness Society
... One of the major stumbling blocks in the current draft is its focus on mitigating impacts to wildlife instead of avoiding them altogether. For example, the current draft would place new limitations on how many structures can be built in an area, but it does not change how much land is available for leasing to being with...
Colorado Parks and Wildlife carries out deer collaring with herd southwest of Durango January 24, 2024 Colorado, The Durango Herald
... will help wildlife biologists ... piece together how the animals live and survive on Southwest Colorado’s landscape and how they interact with people... The collars deployed this winter will remain fixed to the deer around their necks for two years. A timed detachment mechanism will release, the collars will drop off ...
BLM assessing big game corridor protections January 20, 2024 Colorado, The Durango Herald
... Deer and elk herds across Colorado face ever increasing obstacles as unfettered development shrinks available habitat... BLM is considering restricting the amount of disturbance to 3% of high priority habitat ...
Colorado Range Scientist Says Wolf Reintroduction Will Be Good For Ranchers & Hunters January 13, 2024 Colorado, Cowboy State Daily
... “People are worried that wolves are going to kill elk, kill deer, kill cattle and kill sheep. And they’ll do all of that, those fears are not unfounded,” said Matt Barnes, a range scientist ... But those fears also are likely blown out of proportion, Barnes told Cowboy State Daily ...
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Urges Public to Give Wintering Animals Space January 9, 2024 Bollyinside
... Seasonal closures have been implemented to protect mule deer and elk, who are struggling to find food and shelter. The increasing human footprint is encroaching on their habitats, making it crucial to respect these areas...
Living with wolves: Not as rosy as media would like us to believe January 6, 2024 Colorado, TheFencePost.com
... . In the fall of 1995 I saw one track of a lone wolf. Then in January 1999 my son and I tracked a pair of wolves in the snow. A pack arrived that summer. Within three months not a deer was to be seen, or tracked, in these meadows — even during the rut ... [Geist has published 17 books on wildlife and large mammals]
Don't fence me in: CPW officials warn of wildlife conflicts January 3, 2024 Colorado, The Durango Herald
... Specifically, fences with 6-inch openings. Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers in the southwest region respond to dozens of reports each year of deer stuck in fences...
Colorado Man Spots Young Buck With Monster Cyst On Its Body January 2, 2024 Whiskey Riff
... National Deer Association director of conservation Matt Ross told the outlet that this growth is most likely ... fluid filled cyst that began to accumulate after a soft-tissue injury. Most likely this buck took an antler to the chest, the wound filled up with fluid, and the cyst continued to grow ...
Colorado releases additional 5 gray wolves as part of reintroduction effort December 23, 2023 Yahoo News
... Biologists chose wolves that were mature enough to hunt on their own, the agency said. Colorado officials anticipate releasing 30 to 50 wolves within the next five years ..,
CPW to use low-flying helicopters to assess deer, bighorn sheep in SE Colorado December 11, 2023 Colorado, Denver7
... According to CPW, 60 mule deer fawns, 65 cow elk and 60 calf elk will be fitted with radio-collars during the flights in southwestern Colorado... The data is critical to our work of forming population models, management strategies and to set future hunting license numbers.” ...
Federal grants given to 17 states to help keep wildlife off roads December 6, 2023 ABC Action News
... The U.S. Department of Transportation is awarding $110 million for projects across 17 states to help reduce vehicle collisions ... One of the largest overpasses in North America will be built in Colorado ...
Writers on the Range: What really affects hunting in the West November 29, 2023 Colorado, Aspen Times
... Private lands provide up to 80% of habitat for all wildlife species, including critical winter range that’s the limiting factor for most big game populations. Yet these family farms and ranches are struggling for economic survival and in many places are under immense development pressure...
Crane comes to rescue when icy deer gets trapped on frozen Colorado lake, photos show November 27, 2023 YAHOO!News
... Wildlife officers tranquilized the deer and strapped it up so the crane could lift it over a fence along the road ...
Hunters, Anglers, and Other Wildlife Conservationists Ready to Ensure Colorado Deer, Elk ... November 9, 2023 Colorado, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
... the Colorado Bureau of Land Management published their Draft Big Game Corridors Resource Management Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement ... This Plan Amendment offers a pathway for BLM to create a standardized approach across relevant field offices that facilitates responsible oil and gas development to avoid the highest value habitats for big game wherever possible ..,
Watch out for wildlife crossing Colorado highways as sunset arrives earlier November 6, 2023 KOAA
"...in the last couple years, more mule deer getting hit in Colorado by cars and trucks, than are getting hunted ..." said Chuck Attardo, the C-DOT Environmental Manager..,
Colorado Has Wyoming to Thank for Its Wonderful Elk Population October 31, 2023 Retro 102.5
... back in the early 1900's, Colorado's elk population was so low, that help was needed to keep up any sort of continued population...in 1916, Wyoming transported a mere 50 elk to get Colorado's population up and r
unning, again... After over 100 years, those 50 elk from Wyoming have turned into the 280,000 strong that Colorado sees today..,
'Tourism Hunting?' The West has too many visiting hunters October 30, 2023 Colorado, AOL
... Western states such as Colorado, Montana, Idaho, New Mexico, and Wyoming receive more than 60% of their license revenue from non-resident hunters... Colorado, where as many as 35% of the licenses go to out-of-state hunters. Colorado also sells unlimited “over-the-counter” licenses that do not require a lottery entry to purchase.,,
CPW Seeks Public Input on Mule Deer Herd Management Plans October 27, 2023 Colorado, arkvalleyvoice
... the Southwest Region of Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) published its proposed Herd Management Plans (HMPs) for 14 mule deer herds in southwest Colorado. The draft plans are open to public review and comment now through Dec. 15... The Executive Summary of the draft HMP is here, and the complete text is here...
Colorado Deer Archive: Population and Management, Deer in the News, Disease, Suburban Management, Transportation
Colorado data: A harsh 2022-23 winter, particularly in the northwest reduced deer and elk populations, resulting in reduced hunting permits in 2023 to allow the herds to recover. Northwest populations were still down going into 2024. The state commented in 2023 that: "Over the last 3 years, the statewide population estimate for mule deer is on a declining trend. This decline will continue for 2023 because the winter of 2022-2023 was above average in severity on the entire Western Slope and was extremely severe in the northwestern portion of the state." The Department of Transportation reported in 2023 that more mule deer were getting hit by vehicles that are getting hunted.
Deer populations were down in 2022 with stable elk populations. The state made historic cuts in hunting licenses to support the herds. About 427,570 deer in 2020. Colorado has many more hunters than the herd can support with 218,000 applications for licenses in 2022 but only 102,000 authorized. An estimated 418,310 deer after the hunt in 2019, down somewhat from the state estimated 433,140 post-hunt in 2018 [also see 2020 Big Game Status Report].
In 2019 the state proposed buck-to-doe ratios as low as 25 to 100. Another hard winter for 2018-19 but good doe and fawn survival in 2018. Drought in 2020. Deer licenses for 2018 were increased by 3 percent to 94,900 with good doe and fawn survival for the year. In 2022, related to a bill to increase wildlife crossings, an estimate that more does are killed by vehicles each year than hunters.
During the winter of 2016-17 CPW fed deer to draw them away from the highway. The deer population estimated at 418,800 in 2017 post-hunt, down from about 436,000 in 2016 in part as a result of a harsh winter. There are many estimates of long-term deer population declines with estimate putting the population at a third of what it was in the 1990s. In 2016 the state started a controversial experiment to kill lions and bears to boost deer populations.
Population data below is from Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) from 2004 to 2021. Years 2001 to 2003 are estimated from a CPW graphic and year 2000 is estimated from hunting data.
In 2015 about 435,000 deer. The mild winter allowed for better survival, especially in the northwest. Deer were generally doing well in the central and northern mountains. Low birth rates for deer and elk in the Aspen area, 2015.
About 390,600 mule deer and 20,000 whitetails in 2013 and 2014. CPW estimated the total deer population fell by 36 % from 613,450 in 2005. Deer licenses were reduced in 2014 to help boost the population. Licenses were reduced from 130,106 in 2007 to about 80,000 in 2014. The post hunt deer population in the spring of 2012 was estimated at 408,000 - 418,000 deer. About 461,000 in 2011, 600,000 in 2000. Mule deer hunters have about a 50 percent success rate.
In 2014, 169,000 hunters applied for Colorado deer licenses. In 2015, 83,200 deer licenses were available, about 400 more licenses than 2014. A total A severe winter in 2007-08 reduced populations around the state, a loss of more than 30 percent of the mule deer fawns and does. The state spent about $2.8 million on emergency feeding.
A mule deer population estimate of 390,660 in 2013, 613,450 in 2006, and 600,000 in the 1980s. A population estimate of 5,000 whitetails in 1990. Severe winters reduced deer populations in 1983-84, 1992-93, 1995-96, 2007-08, and 2010-11. A state analysis in 2021 notes that "between 2007 and 2013, Colorado’s estimated statewide deer populations declined from 600,000 deer to approximate 390,000 deer."
History Mule deer distribution from 1750 to 1850 was not much different than today except where historic habitats have been dramatically altered by roads, reservoirs, cities, agriculture, etc [see page 4]. Hunters reported abundant mule deer in the 1870's [see page 7]. By 1903 mule deer populations were low, Colorado began issuing hunting licenses and feeding elk herds in winter. At the beginning of the 20th century there were an estimated 6,000 deer in the state. Deer were almost extirpated from the state in 1920 to 1930.
In 1911 Colorado Game and Fish Commissioner James Shinn, wrote "the more general settling-up of our state, the deer have been killed; until now they must be carefully protected, or they will meet the fate of the buffalo and become entirely extinct." Bucks were protected until 1918 and antler points restrictions were adopted in 1923. An estimated 17,000 elk and 45,000 deer in 1929.
The current population is one half to one third of the herd size in the 1940's [see page 9] and far below the pre-settlement numbers. A recent peak in 1950. USDA estimates the 600,000 mule deer in 2005 was half the total in the 1940s [see page 2]. Causes for the decline are thought to include habitat fragmentation and decline quality, a decline of winter range from human population growth, disease, predation from mountain lions, harsh winters in 2007 and 2008, competition from elk, migration barriers, drought, and outdoor recreation. The nation's largest mule deer herd in northwest Colorado has fallen from 105,900 in 2005 to about 32,000. The recent peak estimated at 625,000 mule deer in 1983.
Does make up about one quarter of the harvest. The mule deer buck-to-doe ratio was about 31 to 100. The success rate for the state's 74,000 hunters in 2013 was about 44 percent, about 48 percent in 2014 for 57,000 hunters. Total deer and elk license revenues in 2013 were about $46 million. Bucks were 77 percent of the 2014 deer harvest.
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), caused by misfolded proteins, was first observed in 1967 at the Colorado Division of Wildlife Foothills Wildlife Research Facility in Fort Collins among captive deer held in a pen next to sheep with scrapie, also a prion based disease. It was identified in Wyoming in 1978 at a research lab that had traded deer with Fort Collins. Also identified in captive elk in these two locations. First identified in the wild in 1981 in a elk in the Fort Collins area. In the 1980's it was found in wild mule deer and elk in Colorado and Wyoming.
Through the 1990's it spread to Saskatchewan, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Montana. In parts of Northwest Colorado CWD infection rates have increased from about 1 to 2 percent in early 2002 through 2004 to an average of 15 percent in 2017 when the disease was in half of the state's deer herds and one-third of the elk herds..
The first infected deer in southwest Colorado died near Montrose in 2016. A deer herd around Boulder tested 40 percent positive for males in 2018, the herd population fell from 500 to 300. Testing around the state at 16 percent of all deer in some areas. Testing completed in 2019 showed infection rates of 33.9 and 25 percent in two herds near Fort Collins and it was becoming clear that this disease would be very difficult to eradicate. As of February 2020, CWD had been detected in 33 of 54 deer herds, 14 of 43 elk herds, and two of nine moose herds. A CWD infection map as of January, 2022. By May 2022, CWD was in 40 of our 54 deer herds, 17 of 42 elk herds, and 2 of 9 moose herds. Rising infection rates in 2022 with 14 to 15 percent infected male deer in some areas. By 2023, the disease was present in 40 of 54 deer herds, 17 of 42 elk herds, and two of nine moose herds.
Hemorrhagic Disease In 2021 two deer were confirmed dead with both the the bluetongue virus and the epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus.
Elk An estimate from the state of 303,000 elk post-hunt in 2023. Over 280,000 in 2020. An estimate of nearly 278,000 elk in 2017, may be over 300,000. The 2014 post hunt population was estimated at 280,000, about 264,000 in 2013, about 280,000 in 2012, down from the peak of about 305,000 in 2001. More than any other state, a managed decline. Elk hunters have about a 22 percent success rate. In 2019 CPW tracked an elk that migrated from Steamboat Strings over the Continental Divide to give birth to her calf. When not hunted, elk calves have about a 95% survival rate.
By the early 1900s elk had virtually been hunted to near oblivion. In 2016, 50 elk were transported to Colorado from Wyoming, forming the basis for the modern elk herd.
The Moose population was about 3,500 in 2023, 3,000 in 2021, above 3,000 in 2017, estimated at 2,995 in 2016, up from 2,400 in 2014. Colorado's moose population was repopulated starting in the 1970's. In 1978, state wildlife officers transplanted 24 male and female moose from Wyoming and Utah into North Park in the northern part of the state. By 2012, the breeding population of moose in Colorado was estimated at 2,300. Moose forage on willows and wetland plants and depend on Colorado’s riparian areas.
Bear A 2023 population estimate of 17,000 to 20,000. An estimate of 17,000 in 2017. The 2015 population was estimated at 17,000 to 20,000.
Mountain Lion population estimate from the state in early 2024 of 3,800 to 4,400 lions, not including kittens. About 4,000 to 7,000 lions in 2023; about 4,000 to 5,500 in 2019, and about 4,500 in 2017. The Sierra Club puts the estimate at about 3,000 in 2020. Estimated at 5,000 to 7,000 in 2015 by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Estimated at 3,500 to 4,500 in 2015 by MountainLion.org.
Wolves were nearly exterminated by the 1930s with the last kill reported the the around 1940. Confimed sightings of individual wolves since 2004. Since The first new wolf pups were sited in 2021. To report a sighting to CPW, use this form. In 2023 questions were raised about the theory that wolves control chronic wasting disease in deer and the impact of wolves on herds. The state is having problems finding wolves to import. The plan is to release about 50 wolves. The first gray wolf pup in Colorado was confirmed in 2024.
Wolverine A deer predator, once a viable population of wolverines in the state, last confirmed in 1919 although one was sighted traveling into north central Colorado in 2009. In 2024 a proposal to reintroduced wolverines to the state, the bill was signed into law.
Report Poaching: call Operation Game Thief at 1-877-265-6648 or email a tip to game.thief@state.co.us
Other useful links:
- Colorado Parks and Wildlife 2015 Strategic Plan
- Colorado Department of Natural Resources
- Colorado Division of Wildlife
- Colorado Mule Deer Story prepared to help understand declining mule deer populations
- Colorado Mule Deer Association
Historic Deer Population
"Historical records testify to the original abundance of mule deer encountered by early settlers ... As a result of this large-scale harvesting, the Colorado Territory established its first wildlife protection agency in 1879 ... mule deer populations didn't fully rebound until after the dust bowl era of the early to mid 1930s. During the mid to late 1800's, populations of deer, elk and other species were decimated to feed miners and settlers during the gold rush. Colorado established a wildlife protection agency in 1879 to set limits and seasons on hunting.
While exact numbers were not collected until the 1970s, wildlife professionals generally agree that herds reached modern highs in the 1940s, with populations between two or three times as large as the current 2012 post-hunt estimate of 420,000." John Ceballos
