LINCOLN, Neb. – Nebraska’s firearm deer season is Nov. 16-24, giving individuals an opportunity to share a hunt with family or friends.

“We should have another great firearm deer season in Nebraska,” said Luke Meduna, big game program manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. “With plenty of permits available and excellent deer numbers, there are great hunting opportunities for all ages. Go out with your friends and family and stay safe.”

The Commission has the following reminders for deer hunters:

-- Permits still are available for several deer management units. Buy them at OutdoorNebraska.gov.

-- Cash donations to the Hunters Helping the Hungry program are encouraged so it can continue to feed Nebraskans in need by providing them with venison donated by deer hunters. To make a cash donation, visit Outdoornebraska.gov/hhh.

-- Ahead of the harvest, hunters should locate a check station near their location. Firearm deer hunters and archers harvesting deer during the November firearm season must deliver their deer to a check station no later than 1 p.m. on the day following the close of the season. To find a list and map of check stations visit Outdoornebraska.gov/deer.

-- Lymph node samples to be tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD) will be collected from select harvested mule deer at check stations in the Pine Ridge and Plains management units, and from whitetails in the Missouri, Loup East, Calamus East and Elkhorn units. Learn more about CWD at OutdoorNebraska.gov/cwd.

-- Nebraskans who want to donate or receive harvested deer can participate in the Deer Exchange, which is designed to accommodate the additional harvest of deer. It brings together hunters who have a surplus of deer with recipients willing to accept the deer meat. To join, visit OutdoorNebraska.gov/deerexchangeprogram.

-- Hunters should keep safety the top priority in the field by always keeping their rifle muzzle pointed in a safe direction, with safety on, and finger off the trigger, until they are ready to fire. They also should identify their target and what lies beyond it before firing. In addition, all deer hunters are required to wear 400 square inches of blaze orange on their head, chest and back during the November firearm season, regardless if they are hunting with a firearm or archery tackle.

-- Hunters also are reminded that permission is required to hunt on private land. Those who have permission to hunt should show the landowner and land respect.

-- The 2019-2020 Public Access Atlas identifies and consolidates the nearly 1 million acres of publicly accessible lands that benefit Nebraska’s hunters, trappers and anglers. Printed copies are available where permits are sold; it also is available online at OutdoorNebraska.org/PublicAccessAtlas.

-- The season also is an opportunity to take a new or lapsed hunter afield as part of the Take ‘Em Hunting challenge. For more information, visit OutdoorNebraska.org/TakeEmHunting.

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LINCOLN, Neb. – Samples to be tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD) will be collected at check stations in northeast, central and northwest Nebraska during the November firearm deer hunting season.

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission staff will collect lymph nodes from select harvested deer during the Nov. 16-24 season from the Pine Ridge, Plains, Missouri, Elkhorn, Loup East and Calamus East units. Additionally, Game and Parks will accept voluntary samples from any hunter who harvests an elk in 2019.

The goal of this sampling effort is to assess the spread and prevalence of CWD through periodic testing in each region of the state, which will help biologists determine the spread and occurrence of the disease. Game and Parks rotates sampling of management units around the state, sampling each every 3-5 years.

Other hunters outside of the sampling area may have their deer tested for CWD, for a fee, by the Nebraska Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Lincoln.

Although present in Colorado and Wyoming for several decades, CWD was first discovered in Nebraska in 2000 in Kimball County. Since 1997, Game and Parks staff have tested nearly 52,000 deer and found 630 that tested positive. CWD has been found in 42 Nebraska counties, but no population declines attributable to the disease have yet been detected.

CWD is prion disease that attacks the brain of infected deer and elk, eventually causing emaciation, erratic behavior, neurological irregularities and ultimately death. While CWD has not been shown to infect humans, hunters should exercise caution when handling and processing deer, consider testing their deer if taken from a known CWD area and avoid consuming animals that test positive or look sick. Livestock and other animals outside the deer family do not appear susceptible to CWD.

Hunters can help prevent the spread of CWD by using proper carcass disposal methods. CWD prions, the infectious proteins that transmit the disease, can remain viable for months or even years in the soil. Hunters can find recommendations on handling and processing of deer and elk at cwd-info.org/recommendations-for-hunters.

Learn more about CWD in Nebraska at OutdoorNebraska.org/cwd.

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