Tag Archives: harvest

The 2023 mountain lion hunting season in Nebraska’s Pine Ridge closed Jan. 8 when the harvest sublimit of two females was met. The season opened Jan. 2. Excellent snow tracking conditions likely helped hunters find success during the season. In accordance with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s management objective, the harvest of mountain lions allows the population to remain resilient and healthy, while halting growth or moderately reducing the population size. “This maintains the population density in the Pine …

Hunters and landowners are encouraged to offer their feedback on big game issues during the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s public information meetings this winter. Three-hour meetings are scheduled in each Game and Parks district. All in-person meetings, which will have a different format than years past, begin at 5 p.m. local time. The first hour will be an open house with time to talk with wildlife biologists, conservation officers and staff. Biologists will make a presentation at 6 p.m. and …

Hunters of upland and small game, waterfowl, fall turkey and deer will receive emailed invitations to participate in surveys about their harvest and hunting experiences. These surveys, which the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission uses to estimate harvest, hunter participation and satisfaction — and to inform management decisions — will be emailed over several weeks, beginning Feb. 14. Surveys generally are available to participants for two weeks starting from the initial invitation. Hunters who receive the invitation but have not …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Nebraska’s first regulated harvest season for river otters will close Jan. 11 due to the season close trigger of 75 otters being met. River otters incidentally trapped after Jan. 10 must be turned over to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. The season opened on Nov. 1 and otters only were allowed to be harvested by trapping. Game and Parks’ goal is to manage and maintain healthy, thriving wildlife populations for the long term. The pilot season …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Preliminary Nebraska deer check-in numbers indicate statewide harvest is down 12 percent compared to 2020 for the November firearm season. During the nine-day season, 37,053 deer were harvested, compared to 42,078 in 2020. While the overall statewide trend was down compared to previous years, regions of the state varied. Deer harvest in southeastern Nebraska was even with 2020, while southwestern Nebraska was down 19%. The northwestern district was down 8%, and the northeastern district was down 15% …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Bird dogs and blaze orange returned to the fields across rural Nebraska on Oct. 30, the state’s season opener for pheasant quail and partridge. According to field reports, hunter success for pheasants was highest in the Northeast (0.62 birds per hunter), with some of the better reports coming from the northernmost counties in the district. Pheasant hunters also had relatively good success on public lands in the Rainwater Basin region in south-central and southeastern Nebraska – with …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Nebraska’s first limited river otter harvest season opens Nov. 1, providing those with a valid fur harvest permit an opportunity to trap one otter per season. The season closes Feb. 28, 2022, or three days after the 75th otter has been harvested in the state, whichever comes first. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s goal is to manage and maintain healthy, thriving populations for the long term. This season will provide data about statewide river otter distribution, …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Join the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission in December for a virtual discussion on big game management via Zoom. Staff will talk about big game harvest results and season structure and will take questions on several topics, including big game management, depredation, permits, antlerless harvest, trophy management and diseases, among others. Zoom is a free app that can be downloaded to a web browser or mobile device. Participants are encouraged to submit questions during the presentation using …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Upland hunters were greeted by mild weather for Nebraska’s Oct. 31-Nov. 1 pheasant and quail season opener. Many hunters reported seeing relatively good numbers of pheasants but noted the dry conditions posed challenges. High temperatures were in the 60s Saturday and 50s Sunday. Although parts of Nebraska received snow last week, conditions remain very dry across much of the state. This coupled with high winds on Saturday likely contributed to poor scenting conditions reported by many hunters …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Excitement is building for Nebraska’s firearm deer season, which is Nov. 14-22. This season, hunters can expect good deer and deer populations. Buck age structure is at or near all-time highs, with 50 percent of mule deer and 40 percent of whitetails aged 3 or older during the 2019 firearm season. Many units have increased or expanded antlerless opportunity since both whitetail and mule deer populations are above or near desired levels in those units. “2020 looks …