Hunting News

New harvest records set for deer, elk, pronghorn

New harvest records set for deer, elk, pronghorn

By Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

Big game hunters had a record year in Nebraska in 2016 with all-time high harvest marks set for mule deer bucks, cow elk and total elk.

Deer – A total of 58,126 deer were harvested in 2016, including 11,184 mule deer.

The whitetail harvest totaled 46,942 deer, including 27,241 bucks. The mule deer buck harvest increased 4 percent to 9,257, breaking the previous record set in 2009. Record mule deer buck harvest occurred in the Frenchman, Plains, Platte and Upper Platte units.

Total elk harvest of 200 also set a record in 2016, primarily due to cow elk harvest of 112. Bull elk harvest was 88, down from 105 in 2015, but included the largest bull ever taken in Nebraska.

Total pronghorn harvest was 926, including 781 adult bucks. Buck harvest over the past seven years is the highest on record.

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