Lots of deer. Even more corn.
That's the six-word synopsis of Saturday's opening of the firearm deer season in Nebraska.
The state's late harvest this year means that tens of thousands of unharvested acres of corn are providing plenty of hiding places for deer, said Nebraska Game and Parks Commission conservation officer supervisors.
“It's tough for hunters,'' said Tom Zimmer of Norfolk in northeast Nebraska. “Hunter success is fair at best. They're seeing deer, but the deer are disappearing into the corn real quick.''
In central and south-central Nebraska, 108 hunters checked by conservation officers had bagged only 17 deer by mid-day, said Jerry Pecha of Kearney.
“A lot of hunters seem to be passing up certain bucks and does and waiting for that big buck,'' Pecha said.
In southwest Nebraska, fields with 60 percent to 85 percent of the corn still standing made hunting difficult, said Roger Thompson in North Platte.
“Officers are seeing some nice deer taken. One boy shot a 5x5 buck in Lincoln County,'' he said.
The most common complaint from landowners was of people hunting on private land without permission and of hunting from the road, officers said.
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444-1127, david.hendee@owh.com
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