Nebraska Game and Parks wildlife administrator Alicia Hardin is calling Nebraska’s first special elk depredation season a success after the harvest of eight of the animals.
Five bulls and three cows were killed during the July 1-31 season on private land in specific parts of Lincoln, Perkins, Keith, Deuel and Garden counties.
“To me it was a success because landowners had an option of how to deal with elk coming into their fields,” Hardin said. “They didn’t have to wait for damage to occur or before the elk took up residency.”
Total participation in the special season was 179 hunters — 153 residents and 26 nonresidents — who purchased 211 permits.
No hunter filled more than one permit and one nonresident was successful in taking an elk. Permits were available to residents, nonresidents and landowners who own at least 80 acres within the hunting area. Landowners were required to hunt their own land.
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“We know those farmers are very happy they were able to get somebody out there right away, and they had plenty of people to choose from,” Hardin said.
Hardin said the eight-animal total is more than the five or six usually killed during the general elk season, another sign of success. It was about the number of elusive animals they expected to be taken.
Game and Parks staff have worked with landowners in this area for several years to lower elk herds to reduce damage to the cropland, including trampling, wallowing and consumption of crops. The small herds that live there stay through harvest, then disperse, making it difficult for hunters to take elk during the late general season.
Because permits were unlimited, hunters had time to obtain permission to hunt before buying; generally, when a limited number of permits are issued, there is a rush to obtain available permits whether one has gained access or not.
The special season is not expected to affect the general elk season given the size of the area included in the season — roughly 873-square-miles of 23,770-square-miles included in the two elk units (North Platte River and Box Elder). Small herds in the special season boundary also may have dispersed due to hunting pressure.
For more information about the season or for frequently asked questions, visit outdoornebraska.gov/depredation.
The best places to catch fish in Southeast Nebraska
Walleye
Crankbaits are a popular lure when fishing for walleye at Lake McConaughy State Recreation Area in Keith County. While the state's biggest waters are the best places to look for walleye, the commission's survey said Burchard Lake is one place anglers in the eastern part of the state might find success.
White bass
A doll fly jig tricked this white bass at Swanson Reservoir in Hitchcock County. The lake at Yankee Hill State Wildlife Management Area should be a good spot to catch white bass this year.
Wiper
Daryl Bauer, fisheries outreach program manager with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, holds a Master Angler wiper he caught at Swanson Reservoir in August 2011. While this hybrid species from white bass and striped bass prefers large bodies of water like its parent species, Branched Oak should have its share of large wipers.
Bluegill
Any body of water in Nebraska that is too big to jump across probably has some bluegill in it. According to the report, Yankee Hill, Wildwood and Willard Meyer lakes in Southeast Nebraska are good bluegill spots year after year.
Crappie
An angler releases a crappie caught on a fly in a Sarpy County private pond. Good locations in the region for crappie this year include Hedgefield Reservoir, Big Indian Reservoir, Homestead Lake and Burchard Lake.
Largemouth bass
Eli Kurrus of Gretna holds a largemouth bass caught at a pond in Cass County in June 2019. When looking for bass at least 15 inches long in Southeast Nebraska, the report suggests trying Burchard Lake, Holmes Lake, Lake Wanahoo and Oxbow Trail Reservoir.
Channel catfish
Channel catfish are the most widespread and common of the large catfish in Nebraska. This year, the commission expects good numbers of 16-inch and larger channel cats in these area lakes and reservoirs: Pawnee, Branched Oak and Big Indian. The Missouri River is also a good fishery for catfish.
Blue catfish
In Southeast Nebraska, you can find blue catfish in Pawnee and Branched Oak lakes, but if you want the really big ones, head for the Missouri River. Some of those will hit triple digits.
Flathead catfish
Richard Hagen caught this 89-pound flathead catfish — the state record — in the Missouri River in June 2020. Branched Oak Lake also has flatheads, but remember you must immediately release any that you catch there.
Northern pike
A northern pike is guided into a landing net at Elwood Reservoir in Gosper County. Lake Wanahoo near Wahoo offers some pike habitat and fishing, but all pike you catch there must be released.
Rainbow trout
While you can't pursue the Trout Slam in Southeast Nebraska, you can catch trout here. Rainbow trout are stocked across Nebraska in city ponds and state park lakes, including Lincoln's Holmes Lake.
