Senators propose funding $500k bounty on pheasant predators

The Nebraska Pheasant Restoration Act (LB 400), sponsored by Senators Tom Brewer and Steve Erdman, would set aside $500,000 in state funding for a “nest predatory program.” If passed, the bill would allow the state to pay hunters for the carcasses of 50 thousand predators, authorizing payments for ten dollars for every listed predator trapped or killed. Wildlife biologists question the effectiveness of programs linking predator reduction to increasing the number of game birds. They cite research indicating a lack of undisturbed nesting cover limits ring-necked pheasant populations.