US LAWS, STATUTES & CODES ON-LINE

A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. We allow hunting of ducks, geese, and coots on designated areas of the refuge subject to the following conditions:

1. You may access the refuge from 11/2 hours before legal sunrise to 1 hour after legal sunset along the immediate shoreline and including the high bank of the Missouri River. You may access the hunting area by water or, if by land, only within the public use area of the Island Unit and only with shotgun cased and unloaded.

2. You must remove all blinds and decoys at the conclusion of each day's hunt.

3. You must adhere to all applicable State hunting regulations.

B. Upland Game Hunting. [Reserved]

C. Big Game Hunting. We allow hunting of white-tailed deer in accordance with State regulations subject to the following condition: We require a refuge hunt permit.

D. Sport Fishing. We allow fishing on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We allow personally attended hook and line fishing and archery fishing (rough fish only) from 1/2 hour before legal sunrise to 1/2 hour after legal sunset.

2. We only allow fishing from the shoreline. We prohibit all watercraft in the Boyer Chute waterway.

3. We prohibit floating lines, limblines, trotlines, crossbows, snagging devices, nets, and spears.

4. We prohibit ice fishing.

5. We prohibit digging or netting bait, frogging, or collecting mussels.

Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge

A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. We allow hunting of waterfowl and coot in designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We close the refuge to the general public from legal sunset to legal sunrise. However, hunters may enter the designated hunting area 2 hours before legal sunrise and must be back to their vehicle in the process of leaving the refuge 2 hours after legal sunset. Official shooting hours are from 1/2 hour before legal sunrise until 1/2 hour after legal sunset for deer, coyote, and furbearer hunters; and from 1/2 hour before legal sunrise until legal sunset for all other hunters.

2. We only allow you to unleash dogs used to locate, point, and retrieve upland and small game and migratory birds on the refuge while hunting (see §26.21(b) of this chapter).

3. We open the refuge to hunting from September 1 through January 31 in accordance with State regulations.

4. We allow decoys, but hunters must remove them (see §27.93 of this chapter) at the end of each day.

5. We restrict vehicles to roads that are open to the public (see §27.31 of this chapter). We prohibit hunters taking vehicles off of approved roads to set up blinds, decoys, or to retrieve game or for any other purposes other than emergencies. We allow parking within one vehicle length of the road.

6. We prohibit publicly organized hunts unless authorized under a Special Use Permit.

7. We only allow temporary blinds and stands, and hunters must remove them (see §27.93 of this chapter) at the end of each day.

8. We only allow floating blinds on Island Lake. We prohibit all boats (including a floating device of any kind) on all other refuge lakes.

B. Upland Game Hunting. We allow hunting of cottontail rabbit, jack rabbit, furbearer, coyote, ring-necked pheasant, and prairie grouse on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. Conditions A1 through A6 apply.

2. We prohibit baiting. We allow electronic calls for coyote and furbearer hunting.

3. Coyotes and all furbearers or their parts, if left in the field, must be left out of view of the public. Otherwise hunters must remove them from the refuge and properly dispose of them.

C. Big Game Hunting. We allow hunting of white-tailed deer and mule deer on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. Conditions A1, A4, A5, A6, and A7 apply.

2. We prohibit tree stands that cause damage to the tree by penetrating into the bark and tree climbing spikes or screw-in steps that penetrate beyond the outer bark of a tree (see §32.2(i)).

D. Sport Fishing. We allow fishing on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We close the refuge to the general public from legal sunset to legal sunrise. However, anglers may enter the refuge 1 hour before legal sunrise and remain until 1 hour after legal sunset.

2. We open Island Lake to fishing year-round and open Smith and Crane Lakes to fishing seasonally from November 1 through February 15. We close all other refuge lakes.

3. We prohibit the possession or use of live or dead minnows and the possession of any fish not taken lawfully from one of the refuge lakes open to fishing.

4. We only allow boating and float tubes on Island Lake. We prohibit use of internal combustion motors for boats on Island Lake; we close all other refuge lakes to boating or float tubing.

5. We prohibit leaving temporary shelters used for fishing overnight on the refuge.

DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge

Refer to §32.34 Iowa for regulations.

Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge

A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. [Reserved]

B. Upland Game Hunting. [Reserved]

C. Big Game Hunting. [Reserved]

D. Sport Fishing. We allow fishing on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We only allow fishing on the portions of the Minnechaduza Creek and downstream from Cornell Dam along the Niobrara River that flows through the refuge.

2. We prohibit the use of limb or set lines.

North Platte National Wildlife Refuge

A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. [Reserved]

B. Upland Game Hunting. We allow hunting of squirrel, rabbit, pheasant, State-defined furbearers, and coyote on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We close the Lake Alice Unit to all public entry from October 15 through January 14.

2. Hunters must be 15 years of age or younger. A licensed hunter 19 years of age or older must accompany youth hunters. We prohibit adults accompanying youth hunters to hunt or carry firearms. The accompanying adult is responsible for ensuring that the hunter does not engage in conduct that would constitute a violation of refuge or State regulations.

3. We close the refuge to public use from legal sunset to legal sunrise. However, youth hunters and their adult guides may enter the designated hunting area 1 hour prior to legal sunrise.

4. We only allow dogs for pheasant-hunting on the refuge.

C. Big Game Hunting. We allow archery hunting of mule deer and white-tailed deer on designated areas of the refuge in accordance with State regulations subject to the following conditions:

1. We close the Lake Alice Unit to all public entry from October 15 through January 14.

2. We close the refuge to public use from legal sunset to legal sunrise. However, archery deer hunters may enter the designated hunting area 1 hour prior to legal sunrise and remain until 1 hour after legal sunset.

C. Big Game Hunting. [Reserved]

D. Sport Fishing. Sport fishing is allowed on designated areas of the refuge pursuant to State law.

Valentine National Wildlife Refuge

A. Migratory Game Bird Hunting. Hunters may hunt migratory birds on designated areas of the refuge subject to refuge specific regulations.

B. Upland Game Hunting. Hunters may hunt upland game on designated areas of the refuge subject to refuge specific regulations.

C. Big Game Hunting. Hunters may hunt big game on designated areas of the refuge subject to refuge specific regulations.

D. Sport Fishing. Anglers may fish in designated portions of the refuge subject to refuge specific regulations.