Evidence of Sex

Colorado has certain regulations that are different from other states, and one of those is the Evidence of Sex regulation. Colorado requires hunters to prove the sex of the animal they harvested and has some very specific ways to do this. Since so many of their licenses have a sex associated with it, this is a way of checking to ensure that hunters harvest the correct animal and species. Hunting in Colorado is often done on public lands, forcing the hunters to carry out their animal, and the easiest way to do that is to quarter the animal in the field. Even when an animal is quartered, maintaining evidence of sex is required.

Evidence of sex is:

• For a bull/buck: Head, with antlers or horns, or a testicle, scrotum, or penis naturally attached to carcass.
• For a doe/cow: Head, udder (mammary), or vulva naturally attached to the carcass.
• For bear: Only sex organs suffice, so for male, testicle or penis and vulva for female naturally attached to the carcass.
• For turkey: The beard needs to be naturally attached to the carcass for spring seasons only.

The issue we see is that hunters will either forget about this rule altogether, or they will remember too late and bring the proof of sex unattached. Both are wrong, so make sure to keep this in mind when you harvest a big game animal.

For migratory bird species, we also ask you take a few steps to prove what kind of bird you have in your possession. A fully feathered wing or head must be attached to all birds, except turkeys, doves, and band-tailed pigeons, in transit to hunter’s home or commercial processor. For pheasants, a foot with visible spur can be substituted.