Colorado Parks and Wildlife is seeking public input from area landowners and hunters on its plans for managing two deer herds in Southeast Colorado.

The call for public input comes as CPW is revising deer herd management plans for the Arkansas River and the Mesa de Maya deer herds. These plans will guide CPW’s management for these herds over the next 10 years.

In preparation of the plans, CPW conducted extensive hunter and landowner surveys. Now, CPW is inviting input from all stakeholders in hopes of getting a wide sample of opinions to guide wildlife managers writing the plans.

The herd management plans to be revised include 14 Game Management Units, or GMUs, including 122, 125, 126, 127, 129, 130, 132, 137, 138, 139, 143, 144, 145 and 146. These units are located in Cheyenne, Kiowa, Crowley, Otero, Bent, Pueblo, Prowers, Baca and Las Animas counties.

“Landowners, wildlife enthusiasts, and hunters who are interested in deer management in this area are encouraged to review the management plan drafts and let us know what you think,” said Jonathan Reitz, wildlife biologist.

Drafts of the plan can be found on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website https://cpw.state.co.us/ and type “herd management plans” in the search box.

There are several options for anyone who would like to provide feedback. They can drop by the CPW Service Center in Lamar or call at 719-336-6600. 

Or they can call Wildlife Biologist Jonathan Reitz at 719-691-9130.

The purpose of a herd management plan is to integrate CPW’s management strategies with concerns and ideas from interested publics to determine how a big game herd should be managed.