EDITOR: Colorado Parks and Wildlife has recently released their draft West Slope mountain lion management plan which will expand mountain lion trophy hunting, including by allow hunting of mountain lions during deer and elk season. This is a terrible idea as it overlaps with peak birthing season for female mountain lions.
Killing female lions during this season will lead indirectly to the deaths of kittens that often die from starvation, predation, or exposure following the loss of their mother. Surviving kittens will be less experienced hunters, not benefiting from lessons learned from their mothers and increasing their chances of being killed after getting into conflicts.
Colorado residents must take action against this plan by submitting comments on the CPW website, telling the agency to stop using trophy hunting as a management tool for mountain lions.
This trophy hunting plan is singularly focused on hunter satisfaction, and not the conservation of a very rare and ecologically invaluable species. It is not backed by the best available science and will lead to a spiral of unintended deaths and population decimation. Please contact CPW to learn about the plan and submit your comments on the plan by the April 30th deadline.
— Britton K, via letters@sentinelcolorado.com