Hunting

Hunters will have a chance to pursue deer at three state park areas along the lower Platte River this fall and winter. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is offering special antlerless deer hunting opportunities within Eugene T. Mahoney and Platte River state parks and Schramm Park State Recreation Area. Successful applicants will be issued a special access permit that allows them to hunt antlerless deer in designated areas of a park on certain dates, using specific equipment. Successful applicants …

I hear that tomorrow is National Hunting and Fishing Day.  Sounds like a great idea to me!  As a matter of fact, with our diversity of hunting and fishing opportunities, I believe Nebraska is the perfect place to spend some time outdoors doing both!  Fall is the perfect time to do that.  Let me offer my kid’s recent adventures as proof. . . . Last weekend both of my kids were in western parts of Nebraska.  First, I got a …

By Brian Peterson In Nebraska, male white-tailed and mule deer are most recognized by their elaborate, showy antlers. While we all have observed deer or pictures of deer with antlers, have you ever encountered a deer with fangs or tusks — canine teeth? If you have, this is extremely rare, possibly a 1 in 10,000 occurrence. Both whitetail and mule deer have two lower “incisiform” canines which look and function like incisors and are used for foraging and browsing vegetation, …

Access to roads, the campground and boat ramp at Burchard Lake Wildlife Management Area in Pawnee County may be closed temporarily due to a road repair project there this fall. This project consists of improvements to the interior WMA road, WMA campground road and to a portion of 615 Avenue from Highway 4 to the WMA. Burchard Lake is closed annually to all access Oct. 15 through Jan. 14, except walk-in access for bank fishing along the perimeter of the …

Story and photos by Eric Fowler Wetlands in the Rainwater Basin provide premier habitat for ducks, geese, shorebirds and other species during the spring migration. While in this part of south-central Nebraska, the birds fatten up for the rest of their journey to breeding grounds in the north, whether it be in the Sandhills or the prairie potholes of the Upper Midwest and Canada. But that is only the case when the wetlands are wet. This spring, during severe drought, …

Hunters may begin donating deer to the Hunters Helping the Hungry program at seven processor locations around the state. The participating meat processors are: Amherst – Belschner Custom Meats; Norfolk – R&M Meats; North Platte – Kelley’s Custom Pack; Table Rock – Den’s Country Meats; Franklin – Franklin Locker; Ulysses – The Butchery; and Lindsay – Melcher’s Locker. Due to staffing difficulties, many processors are not accepting deer this year, so hunters should call to check availability before hunting. This …

Nebraska’s fall wild turkey season opens Sept. 15, when hunters will get out to the woods and fields for a chance to bag some birds. The fall season is a great opportunity to get outdoors, either on a solo hunt or with family and friends. Fall 2022 permits may be purchased over the counter, are unlimited in quantity, and are valid statewide. Youth permits for hunters ages 15 and under are $8. Fall hunters can buy up to two turkey …

An ethical guide to public hunting Story and photos by Jeff Kurrus “I think we got a shot,” said hunting partner Todd Mills, peering through grass on the edge of a Rainwater Basin wetland as a flock of pintails made a turn below the tree line and were cupping their wings in our direction. “Eli, be ready,” I told my 9-year-old son. “Mills will make the call to shoot.” But when someone did shoot, way out of our range and …

Diverse hunting opportunities await Nebraska’s upland bird hunters again this fall, and those willing to adapt to the changing weather and habitat conditions should find success in many areas of the state. “Surveys conducted earlier this summer looked more promising this year, but variable habitat conditions may pose challenges to hunters this fall due to the increasingly dry conditions that have prevailed throughout much of the state,” said John Laux, upland game program manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks …

Hunters are reminded Nebraska’s state recreation areas are closed to hunting until Sept. 6. Several hunting seasons open in early September, including archery deer, dove, grouse and other small game and furbearer seasons on Sept. 1. Early teal opens Sept. 3 and fall turkey on Sept. 15. Regulations state that portions of some SRAs are open to hunting from the first Tuesday following Labor Day – this year is Tuesday, Sept. 6 – through the end of the spring turkey …