Colorado Parks and Wildlife is currently accepting contributions for its "Non-game and Endangered Wildlife Cash Fund" during tax season. Such resources go toward many conservation activities, including winter tracking of Canada lynx populations throughout the state.

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Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) encourages residents to keep the organization in mind during tax season by helping threatened and endangered wildlife with a voluntary contribution to the “Non-game and Endangered Wildlife Cash Fund” through the income tax check off.

CPW works to monitor and maintain these animal populations for the benefit of all wildlife in the state. The Non-game and Endangered Wildlife program supports myriad species conservation such as: black-tailed, white-tailed and Gunnison prairie dogs, native cutthroat trout, bats, boreal toads, Gunnison sage-grouse, lynx, black-footed ferrets, Arkansas darters and dozens of others.

“Non-game species are indicators of a habitat’s overall health,” Reid DeWalt, assistant director of CPW’s Wildlife and Natural Resource branch, said in a news release. “CPW is vested in the long-term sustainability and balance of wildlife for future generations. Doing so is not without cost, and will be done only with the support of all outdoor recreationalists.”

Colorado’s outdoors is home to more than 750 vital species of wildlife that are categorized as “non-game” or animals that are not hunted, fished or trapped. Some of the ongoing work and success of CPW’s conservation species program include, among many others, such activities as partnerships with private landowners for black-footed ferret releases, winter snow tracking to monitor the status of Canada lynx populations and surveillance monitoring of Colorado’s bat populations to keep tabs on their health.

CPW recently submitted a final draft of the State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for approval. SWAP identifies the top-priority species and the habitats that need conservation efforts in the state, as well as the potential actions that can address threats these species and habitats face.

The “Non-game and Endangered Cash Fund” check off box is located under the voluntary contributions section of the 2015 Colorado state income tax form 104A, line 50. Contributions specify the amount of their donation, and donations may be tax deductible.

Coloradans contributed more than $150,000 to help a variety of species through the tax check off. In 2013, approximately 11,000 taxpayers contributed about $14 each.

For more information, contact CPW’s communication center at (303) 297-1192, or to learn more about SWAP, visit the plans webpage: http://cpw.state.co.us/aboutus/Pages/StateWildlifeActionPlan.aspx.

Regional Sportsmen Roundtable

Hunters and anglers interested in having their ideas and concerns heard to their representatives on the Sportsmen’s Roundtable are invited to attend a public meeting on Monday, Feb. 29, in Glenwood Springs.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials will be on hand to update sportsmen about recent issues and answer questions about a variety of hunting and fishing topics. In addition to regular business, attendees will have the chance to nominate and vote to elect one of two Northwest Region representatives to the Roundtable.

Anyone wishing to represent the Northwest Region on the Sportsmen’s Roundtable should be present and prepared to offer a brief explanation about why they should be elected. The other elected member will be chosen at a future meeting later this year.

Elected members serve two-year terms and may run twice. Their duties include gathering input from the region’s sportsmen and sportswomen, organizing and leading two regional meetings, and attending two statewide meetings with high-ranking officials from CPW.

CPW formed the Sportsmen’s Roundtable in 2012 to provide an opportunity for members of this community to submit feedback about wildlife management decisions directly to CPW leadership. Regional caucus meetings are open to participation by any hunter or angler who has an interest in the Northwest Region.

These meetings can include any number of participants and no active hunter or angler will be excluded from the discussion. In addition to voicing their opinions at regional meetings, members of the public can contact their representatives directly at any time.

The Northwest Region Sportsmen’s Roundtable caucus for the purposes of meeting and electing the next elected representative will be held at the Glenwood Springs Community Center at 100 Wulfsohn Road, Sopris Room C, in Glenwood Springs on Monday, Feb. 29, at 6:30 p.m. Come one, come all.

For more information about the Sportsmen’s Roundtable, visit: http://cpw.state.co.us/aboutus/Pages/Roundtable.aspx. The next statewide Roundtable meeting is scheduled for Saturday, March 5, in Buena Vista.