Access digital copies of guides and regulations publications from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
Issue link: http://digital.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1449393
54 B4� Wildlife Management Area Habitat Management Activities CONTINUE our partnership with Pheasants Forever to manage several WMAs in central Nebraska, and look for other potential opportunities to expand that model elsewhere NGPC/PF have maintained a partnership position based at Myrtle Hall WMA that oversees management of seven WMAs and has increased our capacity to manage NGPC lands in central Nebraska. NGPC will continue to look for additional opportunities to add capacity for public land management. B5� NGPC Land Acquisitions B6� Pheasant Releases BEGIN to identify and seek funding for four additional release sites near population centers Since 2016, the NGPC has added nine sites to the list of publicly accessible lands where pen-reared pheasants are released prior to the youth (Special Youth Hunts) and Thanksgiving weekends. This included three sites in western Nebraska (N-CORPE, Arnold Trupp WMA and Bordeaux WMA) and six sites in eastern Nebraska (Randall W. Schilling, Peru Bottoms, Arrowhead, George D. Syas, Powder Creek, and Rakes Creek WMAs). A federal aid grant secured in 2018 (that was recently extended in 2021) has helped NGPC maintain pheasant releases on additional areas - in the past, federal aid dollars could not be used for pheasant releases. ASSESS the biological and law enforcement ramifications of reducing or eliminating Captive Wildlife Permit requirements to raise and release pheasants, and minimize requirements accordingly NGPC staff compared Captive Wildlife Permit requirements/regulations between Nebraska and surrounding states. Although some potential changes were discussed, CSA owners and other gamebird breeders appear to be relatively satisfied with the current requirements/regulations. B7� Programs Affecting Genetic Potential BEGIN working with University of Nebraska-Lincoln experts to develop a research proposal to measure the genetic diversity and structure of pheasants in Nebraska and to identify their potential links with population performance, and conduct research if return-on-investment is deemed favorable relative to other information needs UNL researchers collected and analyzed tissue samples collected from wild and pen-reared pheasants across multiple states to determine whether pheasants were genetically differentiated in different part of their range. This research found no genetic differences between wild pheasants sampled in Nebraska and South Dakota and was the first study to document that Midwestern pheasants are derived from two ancestral lineages: northern Eurasia (Colchicus) and eastern China (Torquatus). The proportion of birds descending from the torquatus lineage was roughly three times higher in the wild compared to pen-reared pheasants and it remains unknown as to why this trend exists. ASSESS the current state of knowledge concerning potential impacts of pen-raised pheasant releases on the genetics of wild populations The UNL pheasant genetics study did not provide any evidence that captive releases had influenced the genetic structure of wild populations (i.e., no inbreeding effects). B8� Statutes and Regulations Affecting Hunting CONTINUE research on potential indirect negative effects of hunting and hunting regulations on pheasant populations, and use results to propose regulation and/or policy changes if necessary Pheasant and hunter use research conducted by UNL greatly improved our understanding of how pheasants respond to hunting pressure, how hunters perceive the landscape, and what factors drive hunter satisfaction. Collectively, this information has been utilized in various OFW planning/budgeting processes but did not lead to any proposed changes to existing regulations or policies.