Nebraska Approves Mountain Lion Hunting Season

After a five-year hiatus, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (NGPC) approved a mountain lion hunting season for 2019 at its June meeting in Ogallala, Neb. The season, which will run from Jan. 1 to Feb. 28, 2019, will provide a harvest opportunity for up to eight mountain lions, four of which can be female, in two “sub-units” within the Pine Ridge region of northwestern Nebraska. The NGPC says the season will aid in reducing population densities in the area to levels matching those of other states permitting the hunting of mountain lions.

The NGPC will make 320 permits available in each sub-unit by way of drawing. The permits will cost $15, and will be available to residents only.

If the harvest quota is not met by the season’s end, hunters with unfilled tags will be eligible for an auxiliary permit to hunt during a secondary season in March, during which the use of dogs will be permitted. The use of dogs is not permitted during the initial season, and baiting and trapping is not permitted at any time.

For more information, go to outdoornebraska.gov.