LINCOLN, Neb. – The 2017 Southwest Nebraska Stubble Access Guide, which details more than 24,000 acres open to public hunting and trapping access, is now available.
Published annually as an addendum to the Public Access Atlas, which provides maps of all land open to public hunting and trapping access in Nebraska, the Stubble Access Guide provides maps of wheat and milo stubble fields recently enrolled in the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Open Fields and Waters Program.
Tall, undisturbed stubble has been shown to provide multiple wildlife benefits to pheasants, quail and other wildlife from the end of summer through winter. Although pheasants spend a considerable amount of time in stubble fields, these fields are typically underutilized by hunters.
This year, upland hunters will have access to over 24,000 acres of tall stubble, mostly in the western part of the state where small grains are more prevalent. This is a 56 percent increase from the approximately 15,000 acres enrolled in the program in 2016. Increasing public hunting access to private lands supporting pheasants is a priority identified in the Commission’s Berggren Plan – a five-year initiative aimed at improving pheasant hunting in Nebraska.
The 2017 Stubble Access Guide is available at all Nebraska Game and Parks offices and vendors and online at OutdoorNebraska.gov/publicaccessatlas.
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