Duck hunters once more should select between two each day bag limits once they register for his or her Harvest Data Program quantity this yr.
Nebraska and South Dakota are getting into the fourth yr of a “two-tier” program for the common duck season.
Tier I is a conventional six-duck bag restrict with species and intercourse restrictions. Tier II is a three-duck bag restrict with no species or intercourse restrictions.
HIP registration started Aug. 1. Throughout the registration course of, hunters might be requested in the event that they plan to hunt geese. In the event that they do, they are going to be prompted to pick out a tier. Hunters might be certain to that bag restrict for all the season.
The laws won’t apply to goose limits or in the course of the early teal season, which have their very own bag limits.
All hunters aged 16 and older, together with residents, nonresidents, lifetime allow holders, veterans and senior allow holders, are required to register for HIP in the event that they plan to hunt migratory sport birds in Nebraska between Sept. 1, 2024, and July 31, 2025.
Residents beneath the age of 16 are exempt from the HIP requirement provided that they select the Tier I bag restrict. All hunters should register for HIP if choosing Tier II. All nonresidents, no matter age, should register for HIP for both tier.
Hunters who select the Tier II possibility might be offered a journal, the place they may file info on looking exercise and harvest. The journal might be submitted to the Nebraska Recreation and Parks Fee on the finish of the looking season.
As well as, postage-paid envelopes might be offered to a subset of Tier II hunters with the expectation {that a} wing from every duck harvested be returned to Recreation and Parks. This course of is essential for biologists to estimate harvest. Duck harvest and species composition then might be in comparison with hunters utilizing the Tier I possibility. If sufficient wings should not acquired to guage the harvest by Tier II hunters, this system might be unlikely to proceed previous the experimental part.
Beginning Aug. 1, hunters should register for HIP by means of their allow system buyer profile at GoOutdoorsNE.com. Registered hunters are assigned a quantity they need to carry with them whereas looking. Be taught extra at OutdoorNebraska.gov.
HIP, which is required by federal regulation of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, helps wildlife managers estimate the variety of migratory sport birds harvested annually. Migratory birds embody doves, geese, geese, snipe, rail, coots and woodcock.
After this season, the two-tier program might be reexamined to find out whether or not it affected waterfowl hunter numbers and duck populations. In April, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service granted Nebraska and South Dakota an extra experimental yr whereas a last report is being accomplished. The experimental part will finish on the conclusion of the 2025-2026 duck season.
