Mar 14, 2025
Powder Horn Area boat ramp at Merritt closed due to damages
The ramp at the SRA will be closed until further notice due to damage incurred this past winter.
The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will consider 2025-2026 waterfowl hunting season recommendations at its March 21 meeting in Ord.
The meeting begins at 8 a.m. at the Trotter Event Center, 127 Trotter Ave.
Staff will recommend the Tier I daily bag limit for ducks include no more than three pintails for the 2025-2026 duck season. This pintail bag limit would be determined on an annual basis based on population dynamics research and is not guaranteed for any season.
They also will recommend a nine-day early teal season in both Low Plains and High Plains zones after the 2024 blue-winged teal breeding population fell below 4.7 million birds. There had been a 16-day season in the Low Plains Zone in recent years.
The 2025-2026 Nebraska waterfowl recommendations are:
Early Teal:
Low Plains – Sept. 6-14
High Plains – Sept. 6-14
Daily bag limit – six; Possession limit – 18
Youth, Veteran, and Active-Duty Military:
Zone 1 – Oct. 4-5
Zone 2 – Sept. 27-28
Zone 3 – Oct. 18-19
Zone 4 – Oct. 18-19
Daily bag –Same as regular season
Duck and Coot:
Zone 1 – Oct. 11-Dec. 23
Zone 2 – Oct. 4-Dec. 16 and Jan. 7-28 (High Plains)
Zone 3 – Oct. 25-Jan. 6 and Jan. 7-28 (High Plains)
Zone 4 – Oct. 25-Jan. 6
Daily bag – Tier 1: six ducks, with restrictions; Tier II: three ducks, any species, any sex; Possession limit – three times the daily bag limit
Dark Goose:
Platte River Unit – Oct. 28-Feb. 9
Niobrara Unit – Oct. 28-Feb. 9
North Central Unit – Oct. 4-Jan. 16
Daily bag limit – five; Possession limit – 15
White-fronted Goose:
Statewide – Oct. 4-Dec. 14 and Jan. 25-Feb. 9
Daily bag limit – two; Possession limit – six
Light Goose Regular Season:
Statewide – Oct. 4-Dec. 31 and Jan. 25-Feb. 9
Daily bag limit – 50; Possession limit – none
Light Goose Conservation Order:
East Zone – Feb. 10-April 15
West Zone – Feb. 10-April 5
Rainwater Basin Zone – Feb. 10-April 5
Daily bag and possession limits – none
Also on the agenda is a staff recommendation that the commissioners approve a resolution to allow the agency director to sign future agreements with the Nebraska Department of Transportation concerning funding the surfacing of a section of the Cowboy Trail near Chadron.
Commissioners also will consider a right-of-way easement request from Omaha Public Power District, for the installation of new power poles and overhead lines at Louisville State Recreation Area.
Staff will give a review of the permit system from 2024, an update on the walleye spawn, and a habitat presentation.
To view a complete agenda, visit OutdoorNebraska.gov and search for Public Notices.
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