Why It Matters: Over the past couple of years, the mountain lion population in Nebraska has increased and is healthy. With the increase in population, Nebraska has been working on increasing opportunities for hunters to hit the field and hunt mountain lions. Since 2023, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (NGPC) has approved two new mountain lion hunting units, increasing the total number of units to three. NGPC is now considering increasing the total number of mountain lions that can be harvested in the Niobrara Unit. Management decisions, like increasing total harvest limit, help to maintain a healthy mountain lion population that is balanced with habitat and other game and non-game species. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) supports science-based management decisions for sustainable harvest and increased hunting opportunities.
Highlights:
- Before 2023, Nebraska only offered mountain lion hunting in the Pine Ridge Unit.
- In November of 2023, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission opened the Niobrara Unit, and in 2024, they opened the Wildcat Hills Unit.
- Nebraska Game and Parks Commissioners are considering Regulation 3281, which would increase the number of mountain lions that can be harvested in the Niobrara Unit.
In recent years, some states have taken aim at mountain lion hunting and have attempted to completely outlaw the hunting of mountain lions. Nebraska has done the opposite and opened two new mountain lion hunting units. Prior to the new hunting units opening, the Pine Ridge Unit was the only unit where mountain lion hunters had an opportunity to harvest these elusive predators. In 2023 the Niobrara Unit was opened, and in 2024, the NGPC approved the opening of the Wildcat Hills Unit. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commissioners’ science-based decision has allowed for a sustainable harvest, while also maintaining a healthy mountain lion population, while also providing more hunters with the opportunity to hunt mountain lions.
With increasing and healthy population, NGPC is considering Regulation 3281, which will increase the total number of mountain lions that can be harvested in the Niobrara Unit. Currently, the total number of mountain lions that can be harvest in the Niobrara unit is four, with a sub-limit of two females. The proposed regulation will increase it to six, with a sublimit of three females. Increasing the total number of mountain lions that can be harvested increases the opportunities for more hunters to hit the field. Science-based management decisions, like increasing the total harvest number, helps to maintain a healthy mountain lion population that is balanced with the habitat available and other game and non-game species.
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation will continue to support legislative and regulatory initiatives that provide increased hunting opportunities to leverage sportsmen and women’s capacity for providing wildlife management that benefits both livestock and game and non-game wildlife species.
