As is the case elsewhere in the Great Plains, Nebraska’s pronghorn licenses are very reasonable. Resident fees are $28 for a tag and $13 for a habitat stamp. Non-residents also need the $13 habitat stamp, and a non-resident archery tag will set them back $133.

KANSAS
The Sunflower State’s pronghorn population continues to grow steadily, according to biologist Matt Peek. However, Kansas still supports the lowest number of antelope in all the Great Plains.

“Our population has been slowly increasing over the past several years,” Peek said. “We estimate there are approximately 2,000 pronghorns in the state.”

Whether that growth will continue this year seems questionable, given a fairly harsh winter (by Kansas standards) in the pronghorn range. “Winter conditions were significantly worse than usual,” Peek offered, “particularly in the northern part of the pronghorn range, where several feet of snow fell in a short period of time and remained for weeks.”

The effects of the storm could prove to be mixed. KDWP biologist Matt Peek feared on the one hand that Kansas does would be in worse-than-usual physical condition coming out of winter, but hoped on the other that the precipitation would make for better-than-usual plant growth for nutrition and cover.

According to Peek, the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks had not documented any significant big-game mortality as a result, but that the effect on 2007 fawn production is still unknown. The effects of the storm could prove to be mixed. Peek feared on the one hand that does would be in worse-than-usual physical condition coming out of winter, but hoped on the other that the precipitation would make for better-than-usual plant growth for nutrition and cover. “That should offset most negatives associated with that storm,” he concluded.

At first glance, many hunters would likely tell you that the area in the northwest part of the state known as the Kansas badlands is the most likely home to the best pronghorn numbers in the state.

Nope.

You actually have to stay south of Interstate 70 to find land open to hunting. There are three firearms units open -- they are the same as deer management units Nos. 2, 17 and 18. The single archery unit actually comprises those three firearms units.

Archery tags are unlimited, and this is only the second season that non-resident hunting will be open. General resident tags are $40 each, and landowner tenant tags are $20 each. The non-resident bow tags sell for $200 each, plus there is a $5 application fee for all tags.

Last year, pronghorn hunters in Kansas harvested a total of only 138 antelope out of 370 permits issued -- 25 by bowhunters, 26 by muzzleloader hunters and 87 by modern firearms hunters.

If you look on the KDWP Web site, www.kdwp.state.ks.us, you’ll find the all-time best pronghorns taken in the Sunflower State by bowhunters and by gun hunters. Of the 20 animals listed -- 10 each for bows and firearms -- only two didn’t come from Sherman, Thomas or Wallace counties. These three are in the northern part of the area open to pronghorn hunting in Kansas, and all are part of firearms management hunt No. 2.

One trophy came from Logan County in 1990, and another from Hamilton County in 1988. And in case you wondered whether the drought Hams mentioned in Nebraska had affected Kansas, only three of the trophy pronghorns on the two lists have been taken since 2000.

Although not finalized as this story was written, you should expect the 2007 Kansas antelope seasons to run about like this: Sept. 22-30 and Oct. 13-31 for archery; Oct. 1-8 for muzzleloaders; and Oct. 5-8 for modern firearms. The gun tags are available to residents only under a lottery system, and those have been awarded by now. Archery tags will be available through the next-to-last day of that season.