Bumpus' "Bites from our NGPC"

Harold · 10-29-2009, 01:36 PM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Commissioners Approve Low-Cost Youth Permits

LINCOLN, Neb. – There has been a national trend of declining participation in hunting for years. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission took a step Thursday to attract more young big game hunters.

The Board of Commissioners approved youth deer, turkey and antelope permits that cost $5 each. The board held its regular meeting at Pheasant Bonanza, northwest of Tekamah.

The current prices for selected permits are, excluding agent fees: resident deer ($29), nonresident deer ($208), resident antelope ($29), nonresident antelope ($149.50), resident turkey ($23), and nonresident turkey ($90). All hunters, including youth, pay those prices. Now, youth under age 16 may purchase those permits for $5 each.

Other permits were created and fees amended by the board.

In an effort to raise funds that will do such things as acquire land, support public access programs and improve habitat, the board raised the cost of an annual Nebraska Habitat Stamp by $4 to $20. It also raised the annual Nebraska Aquatic Habitat Stamp by $2.50 to $10.

New permits that were created include nonresident paddlefish, nonresident combination hunt/fish permit, lifetime fur harvest, nonresident elk, and nonresident landowner elk.

The board also raised the cost of a lifetime habitat stamp by $80 to $400 and created agent fees of $1 (purchased through Commission) and $2 (purchased through an agent other than Commission) for most hunting, fishing and fur harvest permits.

Changes to the 2010 fishing and turkey hunting regulations also were approved.

Changes to turkey regulations include a spring turkey permit that may be used in either the shotgun or archery season. In the past, spring turkey hunters were required to purchase either a shotgun permit or archery permit to hunt with those respective weapons during designated seasons.

The board made the following changes to other wildlife regulations:

-- Suspended the bighorn sheep harvest in 2010. A pneumonia outbreak has reduced the population of the Fort Robinson herd, where sheep are hunted.
-- A limited landowner applicant may be a spouse or child of the owner or leaseholder of qualifying land or a sibling sharing ownership of the qualifying land. The spouse or child need not be residing in the same household of the owner or leaseholder.
-- Added landowner bull elk to the list of permit applicants who receive preference points if denied a permit and who lose all preference points if granted a permit. It also removes language that states all preference points will be lost if a person does not apply at least once for five consecutive years.
-- Removed all restrictions on draw weight and draw length of archery equipment used to take deer, antelope, turkey, elk, and bighorn sheep.
-- Removed all restrictions on how long deer, antelope, turkey, elk, and bighorn sheep meat may be possessed.
-- Added a regulation that archers hunting deer, antelope, elk, or bighorn sheep are not required to wear hunter orange during the firearm seasons for antelope, elk or bighorn sheep.
-- Removed all restrictions on how long game birds or game animals may be possessed and added language that states that it is unlawful to possess more than a possession limit of game birds or game animals.
The board also:
-- Entered into an agreement with the Platte River Basin Environments (PRBE) to provide public access and conservation management on two tracts of land in the Wildcat Hills. The Carter Canyon Ranch Tract (7,870 acres) and the Montz Point Tract (1,430 acres) are owned by PRBE.
-- Amended a lease with the Bureau of Reclamation to include a mitigation tract in Webster County in which the Commission will provide public access and conservation management. The 475-acre tract will be designated as Guide Rock Diversion Wildlife Management Area (WMA).
-- Acquired a 13.31-acre tract of land at U.S. Highway 77 and Bluff Road in Lancaster County. It will be used to consolidate Commission operations and maintenance staff and replace sites that are being leased.
-- Acquired a 156-acre tract of land in Stanton County that will be an extension of Wood Duck WMA.

Changes to 2010 Fishing Regulations Approved

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Board of Commissioners approved amendments to the 2010 fishing regulations Thursday, including one that prohibits the harvest of wipers at Zorinsky Lake.
Stocking of wipers into the Omaha lake has begun, so they may prey on abundant gizzard shad. The regulation should reduce premature harvest of small wipers to allow them to eat shad and grow, so they eventually may be caught several times during their lives.
Other regulation changes are:
-- Iron Horse Trail Lake is added to the list of waters with a 21-inch minimum length limit on black bass.
-- The new walleye spawning reef habitat at Sherman Reservoir is included in the area closed to fishing from sunset to sunrise, April 1 - 20.
-- Blue Lake in Garden County is closed to access during the November firearm deer season.
-- It is unlawful to possess live baitfish at Hedgefield Lake in Lancaster County. The lake is being rehabilitated, and the goal of the regulation is to reduce introduction of undesirable fish.
-- It is unlawful to possess live baitfish at Lake Wanahoo in Saunders County. The lake is being built, and the watershed will be treated with rotenone in the fall of 2009 to eliminate existing fish. The goal of the regulation is to reduce introduction of undesirable fish.
-- The following have been added to a list of waters managed as High Use Fishing Areas: Open Fields and Waters program lakes and ponds, Big Springs City Pond, Birdwood Lake in North Platte, Friend City Lake, Hedgefield Lake, Hooper City Lake, Humphrey Pond in Ogallala, Kramer Park Lake in Bellevue, Lake Wanahoo, North Platte Interstate 80 Lake, Oxford City Lake, Papio D4, Schwer Park Pond in Papillion, Silver Creek City Lake, and Stanton Lake in Falls City.
The regulations for High Use Fishing Areas are: 21-inch minimum length limit and one-fish daily bag limit on black bass, 10-fish daily bag limit on panfish, and three-fish daily bag limit on channel catfish.
-- Regarding bait collection and dealer regulations, the maximum legal opening size of a baitfish trap throat increased from 1.5 to 2 inches.

No Bighorn Sheep Hunt Planned for 2010

LINCOLN, Neb. – The hunting of bighorn sheep in Nebraska has been suspended for 2010 as a herd tries to recover from a disease outbreak, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

No harvest of sheep will be allowed next year, the Board of Commissioners decided Thursday. Bighorns have been hunted most years since 1998, with 13 sheep taken. Two hunts are scheduled for December.

Bighorn sheep are native to Nebraska but were extirpated in the early 1900s due to habitat loss, disease and unregulated hunting. Four herds have been created by four reintroductions since 1981: the Fort Robinson and Barrel Butte herds in the Pine Ridge, and the Cedar Canyon and Hubbards Gap herds in the Wildcat Hills.

Sheep hunting has been allowed only in the Fort Robinson herd. An outbreak of Pasteurella pneumonia in the spring reduced that herd to its current estimated population of 37.

The Fort Robinson herd began in 1981 with the reintroduction of six sheep and grew to an estimated 130 by 2004. A die-off from pneumonia in 2005 cut that population in half.

The Barrel Butte herd began with the reintroduction of 49 sheep on Bighorn Wildlife Management Area in 2005. Its current population is estimated at 97.

The Hubbards Gap herd began in 2007 with the release of 51 sheep. Its current population is estimated at 82.

The Cedar Canyon herd began with the 2001 release of 22 sheep. It grew to approximately 64 sheep in 2005, but Pasteurella pneumonia cut that number in half in 2006. The current estimate is 45 sheep.

Record 66 Bull Elk Harvested in 2009

LINCOLN, Neb. – Hunters harvested a record 66 bull elk this fall, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. That compares with 57 taken in 2008.
Elk populations continue to expand in the state, and so do the number of permit applicants and permits sold.
The success rate of the 82 bull elk permit holders was 80 percent. The Hat Creek Unit had the highest success rate at 100 percent, followed by Niobrara River, 84; Bordeaux, 81; Ash Creek, 78; North Platte River, 68; Box Elder, 67; and Boyd, 0. The auction permit holder also was successful.
The bull elk season closed Oct. 25.
Forty cows were taken during the first half of the antlerless elk season, which also closed Oct 25. The second half continues Dec. 1 – 21. A record 123 cow permits have been issued, with 24 still unsold.

November Outdoor Calendar

EDITOR: This release corrects a version sent Oct. 28. It corrects entries for Nov. 2 and deletes entries for Nov. 3 and Nov. 4.
LINCOLN, Neb. – The following is a listing of Nebraska Game and Parks Commission events in November:
Nov. 1
-- Trapping season opens for muskrat and beaver.
-- Hunting/trapping season opens for raccoon, opossum, long-tailed weasel, mink, red fox, gray fox, and badger.
-- Most 2010 annual permits and stamps available for purchase at OutdoorNebraska.org.
-- Nonresident two-day small game hunting permits available (valid for hunting Nov. 25-Dec. 31, 2009).
Nov. 2
-- Fort Robinson State Park Historical Christmas Dinner ticket sales begin, 8 a.m. Mountain time, tickets cost $22, (308) 665-2900.
-- Woodcock hunting season closes.
Nov. 7
-- Dark goose hunting season opens in Panhandle Unit.
-- Beyond Becoming an Outdoors-Woman workshop on processing and preparing deer meat, Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium, 9 a.m., $20, (402) 471-6009.
Nov. 9
-- Virginia and sora rail hunting season closes.
Nov. 10
-- Deer Hunting Workshop, Hunter Education office, 4817 N. 56th St., Ste. 1, Lincoln, free, (402) 471-5662.
Nov. 13
-- Big game hunting seasons close for archery antelope, archery deer and elk Boyd Unit.
Nov. 14
-- Firearm deer hunting season opens.
Nov. 16
-- Special crow hunting season opens for Buffalo, Phelps, Harlan, Franklin, Kearney, Dawson, and Lincoln counties.
Nov. 22
-- Firearm deer hunting season closes.
-- Fort Robinson Longhorn and Buffalo Sale, Crawford Livestock Market, (308) 665-2900.
Nov. 23
-- Big game hunting seasons reopen for archery antelope, archery deer and elk Boyd Unit.
Nov. 26
-- Thanksgiving Day Buffet, Eugene T. Mahoney SP, 7:30-10 a.m. and 11 a.m.-6 p.m., adults $13.95, children $6.95, park entry permit required, (402) 944-2523, ext. 7127.

Harold · 10-29-2009, 01:59 PM

Note, calendar update added to original post!

For Bumpus.

**holdemplyer** · 10-29-2009, 02:05 PM

uh, wow, that's a healthy increase in the price of the habitat stamps.

Harold · 10-29-2009, 02:23 PM

Hopefully, no one is "mis-reading" the entry:

Quote:

In an effort to raise funds that will do such things as acquire land, support public access programs and improve habitat, the board raised the cost of an annual Nebraska Habitat Stamp by $4 to $20. It also raised the annual Nebraska Aquatic Habitat Stamp by $2.50 to $10.

From $16 to $20 and $7.50 to $10.00.

Harold F.

"Happiness is owning a LIFETIME Habitat and Aquatic Stamp!"
The opportunity is there to "beat the price increase", I believe.

10-29-2009, 01:36 PM	#1 (permalink)
Harold Harold is missing his friend, OBG. 2008 Catch and Continue Finalist Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Kearney Certified Youth Fishing Instructor NEFGA Line Recycling Volunteer Posts: 2,395 Thanks: 1,780 Thanked 717 Times in 416 Posts	Bumpus' "Bites from our NGPC" FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Commissioners Approve Low-Cost Youth Permits LINCOLN, Neb. – There has been a national trend of declining participation in hunting for years. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission took a step Thursday to attract more young big game hunters. The Board of Commissioners approved youth deer, turkey and antelope permits that cost $5 each. The board held its regular meeting at Pheasant Bonanza, northwest of Tekamah. The current prices for selected permits are, excluding agent fees: resident deer ($29), nonresident deer ($208), resident antelope ($29), nonresident antelope ($149.50), resident turkey ($23), and nonresident turkey ($90). All hunters, including youth, pay those prices. Now, youth under age 16 may purchase those permits for $5 each. Other permits were created and fees amended by the board. In an effort to raise funds that will do such things as acquire land, support public access programs and improve habitat, the board raised the cost of an annual Nebraska Habitat Stamp by $4 to $20. It also raised the annual Nebraska Aquatic Habitat Stamp by $2.50 to $10. New permits that were created include nonresident paddlefish, nonresident combination hunt/fish permit, lifetime fur harvest, nonresident elk, and nonresident landowner elk. The board also raised the cost of a lifetime habitat stamp by $80 to $400 and created agent fees of $1 (purchased through Commission) and $2 (purchased through an agent other than Commission) for most hunting, fishing and fur harvest permits. Changes to the 2010 fishing and turkey hunting regulations also were approved. Changes to turkey regulations include a spring turkey permit that may be used in either the shotgun or archery season. In the past, spring turkey hunters were required to purchase either a shotgun permit or archery permit to hunt with those respective weapons during designated seasons. The board made the following changes to other wildlife regulations: -- Suspended the bighorn sheep harvest in 2010. A pneumonia outbreak has reduced the population of the Fort Robinson herd, where sheep are hunted. -- A limited landowner applicant may be a spouse or child of the owner or leaseholder of qualifying land or a sibling sharing ownership of the qualifying land. The spouse or child need not be residing in the same household of the owner or leaseholder. -- Added landowner bull elk to the list of permit applicants who receive preference points if denied a permit and who lose all preference points if granted a permit. It also removes language that states all preference points will be lost if a person does not apply at least once for five consecutive years. -- Removed all restrictions on draw weight and draw length of archery equipment used to take deer, antelope, turkey, elk, and bighorn sheep. -- Removed all restrictions on how long deer, antelope, turkey, elk, and bighorn sheep meat may be possessed. -- Added a regulation that archers hunting deer, antelope, elk, or bighorn sheep are not required to wear hunter orange during the firearm seasons for antelope, elk or bighorn sheep. -- Removed all restrictions on how long game birds or game animals may be possessed and added language that states that it is unlawful to possess more than a possession limit of game birds or game animals. The board also: -- Entered into an agreement with the Platte River Basin Environments (PRBE) to provide public access and conservation management on two tracts of land in the Wildcat Hills. The Carter Canyon Ranch Tract (7,870 acres) and the Montz Point Tract (1,430 acres) are owned by PRBE. -- Amended a lease with the Bureau of Reclamation to include a mitigation tract in Webster County in which the Commission will provide public access and conservation management. The 475-acre tract will be designated as Guide Rock Diversion Wildlife Management Area (WMA). -- Acquired a 13.31-acre tract of land at U.S. Highway 77 and Bluff Road in Lancaster County. It will be used to consolidate Commission operations and maintenance staff and replace sites that are being leased. -- Acquired a 156-acre tract of land in Stanton County that will be an extension of Wood Duck WMA. Changes to 2010 Fishing Regulations Approved LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Board of Commissioners approved amendments to the 2010 fishing regulations Thursday, including one that prohibits the harvest of wipers at Zorinsky Lake. Stocking of wipers into the Omaha lake has begun, so they may prey on abundant gizzard shad. The regulation should reduce premature harvest of small wipers to allow them to eat shad and grow, so they eventually may be caught several times during their lives. Other regulation changes are: -- Iron Horse Trail Lake is added to the list of waters with a 21-inch minimum length limit on black bass. -- The new walleye spawning reef habitat at Sherman Reservoir is included in the area closed to fishing from sunset to sunrise, April 1 - 20. -- Blue Lake in Garden County is closed to access during the November firearm deer season. -- It is unlawful to possess live baitfish at Hedgefield Lake in Lancaster County. The lake is being rehabilitated, and the goal of the regulation is to reduce introduction of undesirable fish. -- It is unlawful to possess live baitfish at Lake Wanahoo in Saunders County. The lake is being built, and the watershed will be treated with rotenone in the fall of 2009 to eliminate existing fish. The goal of the regulation is to reduce introduction of undesirable fish. -- The following have been added to a list of waters managed as High Use Fishing Areas: Open Fields and Waters program lakes and ponds, Big Springs City Pond, Birdwood Lake in North Platte, Friend City Lake, Hedgefield Lake, Hooper City Lake, Humphrey Pond in Ogallala, Kramer Park Lake in Bellevue, Lake Wanahoo, North Platte Interstate 80 Lake, Oxford City Lake, Papio D4, Schwer Park Pond in Papillion, Silver Creek City Lake, and Stanton Lake in Falls City. The regulations for High Use Fishing Areas are: 21-inch minimum length limit and one-fish daily bag limit on black bass, 10-fish daily bag limit on panfish, and three-fish daily bag limit on channel catfish. -- Regarding bait collection and dealer regulations, the maximum legal opening size of a baitfish trap throat increased from 1.5 to 2 inches. No Bighorn Sheep Hunt Planned for 2010 LINCOLN, Neb. – The hunting of bighorn sheep in Nebraska has been suspended for 2010 as a herd tries to recover from a disease outbreak, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. No harvest of sheep will be allowed next year, the Board of Commissioners decided Thursday. Bighorns have been hunted most years since 1998, with 13 sheep taken. Two hunts are scheduled for December. Bighorn sheep are native to Nebraska but were extirpated in the early 1900s due to habitat loss, disease and unregulated hunting. Four herds have been created by four reintroductions since 1981: the Fort Robinson and Barrel Butte herds in the Pine Ridge, and the Cedar Canyon and Hubbards Gap herds in the Wildcat Hills. Sheep hunting has been allowed only in the Fort Robinson herd. An outbreak of Pasteurella pneumonia in the spring reduced that herd to its current estimated population of 37. The Fort Robinson herd began in 1981 with the reintroduction of six sheep and grew to an estimated 130 by 2004. A die-off from pneumonia in 2005 cut that population in half. The Barrel Butte herd began with the reintroduction of 49 sheep on Bighorn Wildlife Management Area in 2005. Its current population is estimated at 97. The Hubbards Gap herd began in 2007 with the release of 51 sheep. Its current population is estimated at 82. The Cedar Canyon herd began with the 2001 release of 22 sheep. It grew to approximately 64 sheep in 2005, but Pasteurella pneumonia cut that number in half in 2006. The current estimate is 45 sheep. Record 66 Bull Elk Harvested in 2009 LINCOLN, Neb. – Hunters harvested a record 66 bull elk this fall, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. That compares with 57 taken in 2008. Elk populations continue to expand in the state, and so do the number of permit applicants and permits sold. The success rate of the 82 bull elk permit holders was 80 percent. The Hat Creek Unit had the highest success rate at 100 percent, followed by Niobrara River, 84; Bordeaux, 81; Ash Creek, 78; North Platte River, 68; Box Elder, 67; and Boyd, 0. The auction permit holder also was successful. The bull elk season closed Oct. 25. Forty cows were taken during the first half of the antlerless elk season, which also closed Oct 25. The second half continues Dec. 1 – 21. A record 123 cow permits have been issued, with 24 still unsold. November Outdoor Calendar EDITOR: This release corrects a version sent Oct. 28. It corrects entries for Nov. 2 and deletes entries for Nov. 3 and Nov. 4. LINCOLN, Neb. – The following is a listing of Nebraska Game and Parks Commission events in November: Nov. 1 -- Trapping season opens for muskrat and beaver. -- Hunting/trapping season opens for raccoon, opossum, long-tailed weasel, mink, red fox, gray fox, and badger. -- Most 2010 annual permits and stamps available for purchase at OutdoorNebraska.org. -- Nonresident two-day small game hunting permits available (valid for hunting Nov. 25-Dec. 31, 2009). Nov. 2 -- Fort Robinson State Park Historical Christmas Dinner ticket sales begin, 8 a.m. Mountain time, tickets cost $22, (308) 665-2900. -- Woodcock hunting season closes. Nov. 7 -- Dark goose hunting season opens in Panhandle Unit. -- Beyond Becoming an Outdoors-Woman workshop on processing and preparing deer meat, Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium, 9 a.m., $20, (402) 471-6009. Nov. 9 -- Virginia and sora rail hunting season closes. Nov. 10 -- Deer Hunting Workshop, Hunter Education office, 4817 N. 56th St., Ste. 1, Lincoln, free, (402) 471-5662. Nov. 13 -- Big game hunting seasons close for archery antelope, archery deer and elk Boyd Unit. Nov. 14 -- Firearm deer hunting season opens. Nov. 16 -- Special crow hunting season opens for Buffalo, Phelps, Harlan, Franklin, Kearney, Dawson, and Lincoln counties. Nov. 22 -- Firearm deer hunting season closes. -- Fort Robinson Longhorn and Buffalo Sale, Crawford Livestock Market, (308) 665-2900. Nov. 23 -- Big game hunting seasons reopen for archery antelope, archery deer and elk Boyd Unit. Nov. 26 -- Thanksgiving Day Buffet, Eugene T. Mahoney SP, 7:30-10 a.m. and 11 a.m.-6 p.m., adults $13.95, children $6.95, park entry permit required, (402) 944-2523, ext. 7127. __________________ "If I had a picture, I wouldn't have given you 1,000 words..." (OBG) "Perhaps a better way of measuring wealth is by the number of unique experiences you have had..." Esther Dyson These are OUR FISHERIES! Report All Violations! .............1-800-742-SNAP

10-29-2009, 01:59 PM	#2 (permalink)
Harold Harold is missing his friend, OBG. 2008 Catch and Continue Finalist Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Kearney Certified Youth Fishing Instructor NEFGA Line Recycling Volunteer Posts: 2,395 Thanks: 1,780 Thanked 717 Times in 416 Posts	Note, calendar update added to original post! For Bumpus. __________________ "If I had a picture, I wouldn't have given you 1,000 words..." (OBG) "Perhaps a better way of measuring wealth is by the number of unique experiences you have had..." Esther Dyson These are OUR FISHERIES! Report All Violations! .............1-800-742-SNAP

10-29-2009, 02:05 PM	#3 (permalink)
holdemplyer holdemplyer is waiting on open water Director Join Date: May 2007 Location: hunting for Kenzies MA gill!!! Certified Youth Fishing Instructor NEFGA Line Recycling Volunteer Posts: 6,086 Thanks: 850 Thanked 1,388 Times in 820 Posts	uh, wow, that's a healthy increase in the price of the habitat stamps. __________________ "So I says to Mabel, I says... I'll continue this later." Waiting on the shadow to materialize.... Gone, but never forgotten.

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