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The I-70 Scout & Eastern Colorado News

Tag: Gunnison

  • 10 new presumptive positive cases in Colorado

    10 new presumptive positive cases in Colorado

    CDPHE confirms limited community spread of COVID-19 in Colorado 

    DENVER, March 11, 2020: The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) identified 10 new presumptive positive cases of COVID-19, based on overnight testing results. The 10 new presumptive positive cases are in Pitkin, Eagle, Gunnison, Denver, Jefferson, and Arapahoe counties. That brings the total number of presumptive positive cases to 27, with one indeterminate case that public health is acting on as a presumptive positive. The state lab has run tests on approximately 300 people in Colorado since testing started on February 28.

    Based on the information CDPHE is receiving from presumptive positive cases, CDPHE has reason to suspect we are seeing limited community spread in Colorado. The Governor’s office will be holding a press conference at 5 p.m. tonight with more details. CDPHE has recommendations for ways to limit further community spread below. 

    Case 1:

    Gender: Male

    Age: 70s

    County of residence: Eagle

    Exposure: Under investigation

     

    Case 2:

    Gender: Female

    Age: 50s

    County of residence: Gunnison

    Exposure: Under investigation

     

    Case 3:

    Gender: Male

    Age: 50s

    County of Residence: In Pitkin County, but resident of Australia visiting Aspen

    Exposure: Travel, close contact with individuals

     

    Case 4: 

    Gender: Female

    Age: 20s

    County of residence: In Pitkin County, but resident of Australia visiting Aspen

    Exposure: Travel and contact with individuals

     

    Case 5:

    Gender: Female

    Age: 70s

    County of residence: Jefferson

    Exposure: Travel

     

    Case 6:

    Gender: Male

    Age: 70s

    County of residence: Jefferson

    Exposure: Travel

     

    Case 7: 

    Gender: Female

    Age: 50s

    County of residence: Gunnison

    Exposure: Under investigation

     

    Case 8:

    Gender: Male

    Age: 40s

    County of residence: Denver

    Exposure: Travel

     

    Case 9:

    Gender: Female

    Age: 80s

    County of residence: Arapahoe

    Exposure: Under investigation

     

    Case 10: 

    Gender: Female

    Age: 60s

    County of Residence: In Pitkin County, but resident of Australia visiting Aspen

    Exposure: Travel, close contact with individuals

     

    Limited community spread (or transmission) means there are cases and outbreaks in certain communities where people became infected, and we are unable to identify the source. Limited person-to-person spread (or transmission) means a person in Colorado became infected from a known exposure to another person in Colorado.  

    For limited community spread, community-based interventions such as school dismissals, event cancellations, and creating employee plans to work remotely can help slow the spread of COVID-19. If there is ongoing spread in a community, local and state officials, in consultation with federal officials when appropriate, will make decisions about implementing community interventions based on the scope of community spread. Community interventions may be different for each community.

     

    No matter where you live, everyone should practice daily preventive actions to reduce the risk of transmission, especially to people who may experience more severe illness. People in high-risk categories include: • Older people (over age 60), especially those over 80 years.

    • People who have chronic medical conditions like heart, lung, or kidney disease, or diabetes.
    • Older people with chronic medical conditions are at greatest risk. Other ways people can help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in communities: • Stay home when sick.
    • Don’t shake hands in greeting — instead bump fists or elbows.
    • When possible, increase the distance between people. Six feet is a distance that reduces the transmission of the virus.
    • If there is active transmission between multiple people in your community, consider reducing the number of large group gatherings.    
    • Try to go out as little as possible. 
    • Discourage children and teens from gathering in other public places while school is dismissed to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in the community.  • Consider ways of getting food brought to your house through family, social, or commercial networks.
    • If you have older or at-risk neighbors/family members check in with them frequently and see if they have any specific needs. 

    These measures could reduce the strain on local health care systems and help ensure that those who need treatment are able to get it. 

    State officials will share more information at a press conference at 5 p.m. today at the Governor’s Office at the state capitol. Media advisory to follow.

    To ensure expedience on reporting presumptive positive cases, the state will provide overall testing statistics as soon as we are able on the website. 

    Continue to stay up to date by visiting colorado.gov/cdphe/2019-novel-coronavirus.

     

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  • Blue Mesa Reservoir Lake Trout Tournament starts Feb. 1; $10,000 in cash prizes

    Blue Mesa Reservoir Lake Trout Tournament starts Feb. 1; $10,000 in cash prizes

    GUNNISON, Colo. – A six-month-long fishing tournament with $10,000 in prize money sponsored by Colorado Parks and Wildlife starts Feb. 1 at Blue Mesa Reservoir near Gunnison in western Colorado.

    The tournament, which continues through July 31, is aimed at maintaining adequate kokanee fry survival by limiting predation from lake trout. Anglers are asked to target smaller-sized lake trout, those that are 24 inches in length or smaller. 

    “By sponsoring this tournament, Colorado Parks and Wildlife is asking anglers to be our partners in helping to manage the renowned Blue Mesa Reservoir fishery,” said Dan Brauch, aquatic biologist for CPW in Gunnison. “We know we can have an excellent kokanee fishery and a trophy lake trout fishery, but we need to continue our work for both species and we need the help of Colorado’s anglers.”

    Here’s how the tournament works: Anglers who catch lake trout 24 inches or smaller will remove the heads and place them in a plastic bag provided at one of three boat ramps at the reservoir: Iola, Elk Creek and Lake Fork. Heads can also be turned in at CPW’s offices in Gunnison (300 W. New York Ave.) or Montrose (2300 S. Townsend Ave., U.S. Highway 550). There is no fee to participate in the tournament.

    Cash prizes will be awarded in three categories at the conclusion of the tournament:

    1) CPW has tagged 23 fish in the reservoir but anglers won’t know if they’ve caught one. CPW will scan the heads later to check for tags and those who caught them will receive $250 for each.

    2) Anglers catching the most fish: 1st place, $1,000; 2nd place, $500; 3rd place, $250.

    3) Anglers will be entered in a raffle for every lake trout head turned in. A total of 20 winners will be selected and each winner will receive $200.

    Kokanee provide the greatest draw for overall catch and harvest while lake trout provide the greatest draw for their trophy potential. Lake trout require plentiful kokanee as prey to achieve trophy size.

    Some lake trout that weigh over 50 pounds and 44 inches in length have been caught at Blue Mesa Reservoir. 

     A change in water management in the early 1990s at BMR resulted in improved conditions at lake trout spawning areas in the fall and now they reproduce naturally. As the number of lake trout grew, they feasted on kokanee which resulted in a significant population decline. Recently, through angler harvest and CPW’s lake trout suppression work, the number of predatory lake trout has been reduced and kokanee abundance has improved.

    CPW research shows that smaller lake trout, those 24 inches and smaller, consume the most kokanee. Consequently, the lake trout harvest tournament is focused on removing fish of those sizes.

    “Anglers harvest about 6,000 lake trout each year,” Brauch said. “But we need increased harvest of small lake trout to keep population growth in check and to reduce the need for additional lake trout suppression work by CPW.”

    Maintaining abundant kokanee will support quality fishing opportunities for kokanee and a source of kokanee eggs for restocking needs at up to 25 waters in Colorado while allowing for continued growth of trophy lake trout.

    There is no limit on the number of lake trout under 32 inches that can be caught in a day at BMR, but only one fish more than 32 inches may be kept.

    “By utilizing anglers’ skills and expertise we’re confident that we can maintain balance of the BMR fishery,” Brauch said.

     For more information about fishing at Blue Mesa Reservoir, including how to catch lake trout, research studies and management planning go to: https://cpw.state.co.us/learn/Pages/BlueMesaReservoirFisheryManagement.aspx.

     You may also call the Gunnison wildlife office at: 970-641-7060.

     

     

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  • Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Supports Coloradans Protecting Wildlife

    Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Supports Coloradans Protecting Wildlife

    DENVER, Colo. —The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) has joined Coloradans Protecting Wildlife (CPW), a coalition formed to fight a ballot measure that will be decided in the November 2020 general election. The measure would force the introduction of wolves along Colorado’s Western Slope.

     “This initiative is a reckless and dangerous approach that circumvents Colorado’s wildlife management authorities at Colorado Parks and Wildlife who have affirmed multiple times over the years that we should listen to the science and not force wolves into Colorado,” says Blake Henning, Chief Conservation Officer at RMEF. “Outdoor enthusiasts, sportsmen, farmers and ranchers, and many residents will be negatively impacted if this proposal is successful. Not to mention the millions of taxpayer dollars it will cost to implement.” 

     The 2020 initiative would ignore long-standing scientific processes, research, and expert guidance by forcing the introduction of wolves into Colorado without any analysis of the potential negative impacts on Colorado’s environment, ecosystems, or its citizens. 

     “Anyone who appreciates Colorado’s quality of life and natural beauty should be concerned by this proposal,” warns Henning. “Colorado is nationally and internationally renowned for its successful wildlife management. Introducing a new apex predator like the wolf will dramatically impact the state’s ungulate populations. Fifty-four of the state’s 64 elk and deer units that are under objective are in western or southwestern Colorado.” 

     As responsible stewards of the land, various stakeholders have previously worked with Colorado Parks and Wildlife to develop a “free-ranging” wolf plan, including necessary management strategies to ensure gray wolves that enter Colorado from other states are protected yet do not endanger animals or people that they may come in contact with. This plan is working as evidenced by the recent confirmation of a wolf pack living in northwest Colorado that migrated here without human intervention.

     By supporting CPW, RMEF joins a growing, robust coalition of stakeholders educating voters about the pitfalls of introducing wolves to Colorado’s landscapes. Trade organizations opposed to the initiative include the Colorado Farm Bureau, Colorado Cattleman’s Association, Colorado Wool Growers Association, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, Outdoor Channel, Colorado Mule Deer Society, Hunter Nation, Big Game Forever, Colorado Traditional Archers Society, Colorado Bowhunters Association, Four Corners Chapter of SCI, Colorado Outfitters Association, Bull Basin Guides and Outfitters, Code of the West Outfitters, Hunt 360, Colorado Independent Cattle Growers, Southwestern Colorado Livestock Association, La Plata-Archuleta Cattleman’s Association, Gunnison, Eagle, Garfield, and La Plata Colorado Farm Bureau boards, as well as Alamosa, Archuleta, Cheyenne, Crowley, Douglas, Fremont, Garfield, Hinsdale, Jackson, Kit Carson, Las Animas, Lincoln, Mesa, Moffat, Montezuma, Montrose, Otero, Rio Blanco, Rio Grande, Routt, and Weld counties.

     Together, these groups are urging voters to vote no on forced wolf introduction and leave species management up to wildlife biologists and the relevant state and federal agencies.

     For additional information about Coloradans Protecting Wildlife, please visit: www.RethinkWolves.com.

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  • Wild rainbow trout population growing in the Gunnison Gorge

    Wild rainbow trout population growing in the Gunnison Gorge

    MONTROSE, Colo. – Work to restore wild rainbow trout in the Gunnison Gorge is starting to pay off as the population of the species is slowly increasing, according to surveys conducted recently by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. CPW biologists are hopeful that the success on the Gunnison will eventually help bring wild rainbows back to all Colorado’s rivers and streams.

     Rainbow trout once dominated the renowned Gunnison River; but in 1994 CPW biologists found fish there infected with whirling disease and their population drifted toward zero. Brown trout, which are much more resistant to whirling disease, quickly took over and now are the dominant fish in the gorge and many other Colorado streams. Whirling disease infected streams and rivers throughout the state and imperiled rainbow trout populations.

     The most significant observation from the Gunnison survey completed in October showed an abundance of “young of the year” fish that hatched in mid-summer and that showed no symptoms of whirling disease.

    A tiny rainbow trout fry is giving CPW biologists hope that wild fish are reproducing naturally in the Gunnison River Gorge and that will eventually help to restore wild rainbows to rivers throughout the state.

     

    “We found the highest number of rainbow fry we’ve ever seen since the 1990s and they were spread over multiple sites in the canyon,” said Eric Gardunio, aquatic biologist for CPW in Montrose. “We’re seeing natural reproduction throughout the canyon and survival of wild fish in the life stage where they can be affected by whirling disease. It’s very encouraging.”

     For adult fish, the survey found 630 rainbow trout per mile in the survey sections. That’s significantly fewer than the 1,500-2,000 rainbows found per mile in the days before whirling disease; but improvement from the last few years is evident. In 2014, surveys found just 173 fish per mile; 489 fish per mile in 2016; and 522 fish per mile in 2017.

     By comparison, brown trout now number about 5,000 fish per mile.

     “It’s a very healthy river, but for rainbows we have a long way to go before we’ll be comfortable saying they are fully recovered,” Gardunio said.

     CPW continues to stock whirling-disease resistant rainbows in that section of the Gunnison and at other rivers throughout the state.

     The recovery plan for the fish started tentatively in 2003 when CPW obtained a whirling-disease resistant strain of rainbows from a hatchery in Germany. The fish, however, had been hatchery-raised  for decades and were “domesticated”, meaning they had no experience in the wild. CPW researchers crossed the spawn of these fish, known as Hofers, with several other strains of rainbow trout. The crosses showed significant resistance to whirling disease and exhibited a “flight response” when placed in reservoirs.

     In the spring of 2007, biologists started stocking the Hofer-cross fry in rivers and reservoirs statewide. Results were mixed throughout the state, but biologists found that the new strains did best in the East Portal section of the Gunnison River where CPW had, for many years, spawned wild trout to supply state hatcheries. That spot continues to be a productive area and rainbows are spawned there every year. They’ve even been given their own name – Gunnison River Rainbows.

     Finding the young wild fish downstream in the Gunnison Gorge provides another encouraging sign that the 20-year journey to recover rainbow trout has been worth the effort. The abundance of brown trout, predators that feast on small fish, are perhaps the biggest challenge in the Gunnison and other rivers.

     “The wild fry are the best thing for us to see down there,” Gardunio said. “As those fish grow into adults  we’ll have more and more fish and hopefully, a self-sustaining population. We hope to see a continuing gradual increase.”

     And if they thrive in the Gunnison, biologists are confident they’ll eventually take hold in big rivers throughout the state. 

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  • Colorado Parks and Wildlife Starting Winter Big-Game Classification / Capture Flights in Southwest Colorado

    Colorado Parks and Wildlife Starting Winter Big-Game Classification / Capture Flights in Southwest Colorado

    MONTROSE, Colo. – As part of its ongoing work to monitor the health of the state’s big-game herds, Colorado Parks and Wildlife has started its winter classification and capture flights in southwest Colorado.
     
    CPW biologists use the flights to observe and record trends in deer and elk populations. Employing survey methods used for decades, biologists are flown by helicopter over areas where animals historically congregate during the winter months. Using a specialized “counting” technique, biologists record their observations of female, male and young animals. This allows biologists to understand the ratio of male-to-female animals following the hunting seasons, and ratios of young-to-female animals going into winter.
     
    “We use our classification data, harvest data and collar data to plug into our computer models and determine trends in the health of herds and make population estimates,” said Brad Banulis, a terrestrial biologist for CPW in Montrose.
     
    The classification data, population models and herd-management plans provide big-game managers with the information needed for setting license numbers for the next fall’s hunting seasons.
     

     

    People on the ground who sometimes see the helicopters will notice a change in the type of aircraft being used this year. In past years, CPW contracted with a company that flew a yellow helicopter – small with a large glass bubble. This year a larger, white helicopter is being used.
     
    Besides the classification flights, CPW also utilizes helicopters for long-term studies that are examining survival of deer and elk. For example, on the Uncompahgre Plateau west of Montrose, CPW has used helicopters to catch and place telemetry collars on deer since 1997. In the Gunnison area, similar captures have been used for deer and elk-survival studies occasionally over the years.
     
    The biggest project for the agency involves capturing and monitoring elk in the southern tier of the state where calf-to-cow ratios have been declining for the last decade. The purpose of the project, which started last spring, is to determine why survival of young elk is declining in southern Colorado. For this study, elk are being captured in the area west of Trinidad, on the Uncompahgre Plateau and in the Glenwood Springs-Carbondale area. Captures near Craig are also being done to act as a “control” in the study; elk in northern Colorado are doing very well.  
     
    Captures for the long-term elk research started last spring when about 100 cow elk were captured. Pregnant cows were fitted with telemetry collars. In the spring, technicians on the ground captured and collared newly born elk. In the next few weeks more young elk, about six months old, will be captured and collared.
     
    The telemetry collars are GPS equipped, so biologists can watch their computers to see how elk are moving and if any animals die. In case of a mortality, biologists go to the site, examine the animals, and attempt to determine cause of death. The study is scheduled to continue for six years.
     
    “This is a very big and important study. We expect that it will provide valuable data, but it will be at least a year before we’ll have relevant information,” Banulis said.
     
    To learn more about big-game management in Colorado, go to: https://cpw.state.co.us/thingstodo/Pages/BigGame.aspx.

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