Being recognized by co-workers is an honor for anyone. But for Wildlife Officer Tony Bonacquista, the recognition by his peers also meant being named by Colorado Parks and Wildlife as the recipient of the John D. Hart Wildlife Officer of the Year.
The annual award is the highest honor for a CPW wildlife officer. Bonacquista is the district wildlife manager in the Nucla area known as the “West End” in southwestern Colorado. His district includes, approximately, the area from the west side of the Uncompahgre Plateau to the Utah State line. CPW’s wildlife office for this area is located in Montrose.
“It’s a great feeling to have your counterparts give you these kind words,” Bonacquista said.
A Colorado native, he graduated with a degree in biology from Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction. He started working in the Nucla District in 2006 and has been there ever since.
Fellow officers from CPW’s Montrose office wrote that Bonacquista is an officer dedicated to the profession and the community: “Tony is the kind of person you can count on to help out no matter the job. Tony regularly teaches hunter education classes, primarily for kids. Tony can be found doing sage grouse lek counts, organizing desert bighorn sheep surveys in his district, helping out on the State Wildlife Areas with fence projects and helping empty the trash in the campground at Miramonte Reservoir or dragging bear traps to Telluride to help out his neighboring officers.”
Being community-minded is an important aspect of a Colorado wildlife officer’s job. Bonacquista is married with three children and is involved with youth activities in his district. He’s gained the trust of area residents and that has proved invaluable for his law-enforcement duties. He’s received tips from locals about wildlife violations that have led to fines and citations.
Besides teaching hunter education courses, he has lead seminars on properly caring for big game after harvest. His “how to skin and field dress a bear” has been viewed more than 100,000 times on the CPW web site.
Bonacquista said that working in a remote rural area suits him just fine. He’s involved with investigations, teaching youth, conducting big game counts, fencing projects, helping with fish sampling, instructing at hunting and fishing clinics and more.
“I like this place where I still get to work as a game warden. I’m glad I’m not tied down by the kind of calls the officers who work in towns have to respond to,” he said.
One of the aspects of the job he likes most is helping young and novice hunters. He’s organized youth hunts and outings for inexperienced millennial-aged hunters.
“A highlight for me is seeing that look of accomplishment on hunters’ faces when they’ve put in the work for a successful hunt,” he said.
Helping other officers is another part of the job he values. He is a lead fire-arms instructor for the agency; and every year he helps with the annual officer survival training where he specializes in teaching interviewing and interrogation techniques.
Bonacquista’s co-workers noted that he takes good care of his family but never seems to lack the time to be ready to perform his duties as a wildlife officer.
They wrote: “Tony can be found working tirelessly day and night throughout the year to help protect Colorado’s wildlife resources.”
Rachel Sralla, area wildlife manager in Montrose and Bonacquista’s supervisor, added her commendation: “The John D. Hart award is a great honor and a longstanding tradition among Colorado Wildlife Officers. Officers are nominated by their local team of peers and the recipient is selected for the award by their peers from across the state. The winner is exemplary of the best of the best of Colorado Wildlife Officers and all that the position encompasses. Tony is well deserving of this recognition. He is highly respected by our local team, our fellow wildlife officers, and by the communities and public he serves.”
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