Colorado group seeks to eliminate mountain lion hunting, but state wildlife advocates oppose
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – Supporters of a proposed ballot initiative to ban the hunting of large cats in Colorado submitted a petition with over 180,000 signatures to the secretary of state on Wednesday.
The move means the group, championed by state animal rights activists, is one step closer to getting the issue on the ballot come November.
To qualify for the ballot, supporters were required to gather at least 124,238 valid signatures of registered voters across the state. Cats Aren’t Trophies, one group endorsing Initiative 91, had until July 5 to submit those signatures.
Currently, the Colorado mountain lion hunting season runs from November to May. A 2023 report from Colorado Parks and Wildlife showed that 502 mountain lions were killed by hunters during the 2022-2023 season.
The initiative would ban hunting and trapping mountain lions and bobcats in Colorado, making the act a Class 1 misdemeanor with a penalty of a five-year wildlife license suspension. However, it would still allow for the killing of big cats deemed a threat to human lives, livestock or property.
But the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project, a coalition of 20 organizations dedicated to protecting the state's wildlife, says it strongly opposes the proposal, with multiple representatives sharing their concerns at a press conference last week.
The coalition's representatives say that banning regulated hunting of the animals could disrupt the state's wildlife management practices.
“Mountain lion and bobcat populations are thriving in Colorado,” Luke Wiedel, lead policy volunteer for Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, said at the conference. “That wasn’t the case prior to their classification as a big game species in the state. Our wild cat populations are abundant today thanks to science-based management and regulated hunting.”
Colorado Parks and Wildlife estimates that the state’s mountain lion population is currently between 3,800 and 4,400.
