Quantity of deer licenses soar, hunters bag 94,000 deer, elk

Got your elk last year? Good, you’re entitled to gloat just a little.

Got your deer? Well, congratulations, but you have plenty of company.

In the annals of Colorado big-game hunting, the 2007 season won’t go down as a banner year, but it wasn’t without some bright spots.

According to statistics compiled by the Colorado Division of Wildlife, 227,262 elk hunters killed 49,012 animals, for a statewide success rate of 22 percent. Deer hunters did better from the percentage standpoint, with 98,283 hunters bagging 45,026 deer, for a 46 percent success rate. Pronghorn shooters did best of all, with 12,647 hunters collecting 8,492, for a success rate of 67 percent.

By the standards of the past decade, the 2007 elk harvest might be considered something of a disappointment. Hunters killed almost 8,000 fewer elk than in 2006, and the total harvest dropped below 50,000 for the first time since 1999.

Several factors likely contributed to the reduced take of elk. The first two rifle seasons had harvest totals that were comparable to past years. The third and fourth season splits had unusually mild and dry weather. Elk, as a rule, stayed higher and in timbered areas, rather than moving onto wintering ranges, where they are more easily accessible to hunters. Consequently, the elk harvest dropped significantly, especially for cow elk.

A contributing factor probably was a reduction in the number of limited elk licenses allocated, an indication that elk populations are nearing management objectives in some parts of the state. After years of providing high numbers of limited licenses to reduce elk herds in certain areas, last year’s total was cut by 5,000.

Finally, 10,000 fewer hunters pursued elk last year, which undoubtedly reduced the total kill. Some of the decline my be attributed to the fewer available licenses, but economic conditions, weather and other factors probably contributed to the decrease in hunter numbers.

Deer license sales, meanwhile, were the highest since 1999, reflecting a gradual resurgence of the state’s deer population, due in part to the limited license approach to deer management. Success rates during the past four years have consistently been at 45-46 percent. The annual hunter take of deer in all four years has exceeded the total for 1998, the last year when over-the-counter deer licenses were readily available.

Pronghorn hunters bagged the most antelope since 1997, indicating that the unusually severe winter hitting parts of eastern Colorado in 2006 did not have a major impact on the herds.

By Karl Licis
Special to the Colorado Hunting Guide