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Nebraska · 2026-27 season year

Nebraska Small Game Season 2026-27

Pheasant: October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027. Quail: October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027. Every date below was read from Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s own published page, linked beside it, on September 19, 2026.

This page covers the 2026-27 season year. Dates were read from the agency sources linked below, last checked September 19, 2026. Seasons change annually and agencies correct their own pages; confirm against the linked agency page before you hunt.
October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027
Pheasant
published
October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027
Quail
published
September 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027
Grouse
published
September 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027
Rabbit
published
August 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027
Squirrel
published
Statewide
Zone structure
as the agency draws it
Five seasons, one state

Nebraska small game seasons, 2026-27

“When does small game season open” is five questions wearing one coat. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission dates ring-necked pheasant, northern bobwhite quail, partridge, prairie grouse (sharp-tailed grouse and greater prairie-chicken), cottontail, jackrabbit and squirrel separately, so each species is below under the agency’s own name for it, with the zone rows exactly as the agency lists them.

Pheasant, quail and partridge

published

Pheasant, quail and partridge runs October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska pheasant, quail and partridge, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideOctober 31, 2026January 31, 2027

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Nebraska dates pheasant, quail and partridge together in one row that opens the last Saturday of October and runs through January 31 statewide, with a combined youth pheasant, quail and partridge weekend the weekend before. The same agency row is recorded under quail and, as partridge, in the other seasons.

Northern bobwhite quail are dated in the same agency row as pheasant and partridge, October 31 through January 31 statewide, and share the October youth weekend.

Opening day, the daily limit and the full season calendar are on the Nebraska pheasant season page.

Prairie grouse

published

Prairie grouse runs September 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska prairie grouse, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideSeptember 1, 2026January 31, 2027Special permit required east of U.S. 81

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Nebraska has no ruffed grouse season; its grouse row is Prairie grouse, the Commission's combined September 1 to January 31 season for the state's two prairie grouse, sharp-tailed grouse and greater prairie-chicken, the two grouse the Commission's Upland Slam names. The agency adds that a special permit is required east of U.S. 81.

Cottontail

published

Cottontail runs September 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska cottontail, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideSeptember 1, 2026February 28, 2027

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Cottontail opens September 1 and runs through the end of February statewide. The agency dates jackrabbit separately with the same window, open only west of U.S. 81.

Squirrel

published

Squirrel runs August 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska squirrel, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideAugust 1, 2026February 28, 2027

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Squirrel is Nebraska's earliest small game opener, August 1 through the end of February statewide.

Pheasant, quail and partridge: Oct. 31, 2026-Jan. 31, 2027
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source
A rooster ring-necked pheasant with a red face, iridescent green head and white neck ring striding through dry pale crop stubble
A rooster in harvested crop stubble in North Dakota. Most pheasant openers land in October and November, once the fields are cut. Photo: Courtney Celley, USFWS. “Ring-necked pheasant (54120901581)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain
The rest of the calendar

Other Nebraska small game seasons the agency names

Beyond the five main species, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission dates 4 further seasons on the same small game pages. They are reproduced here under the agency’s own names, because a hunter reading a calendar needs to know which window a licence or stamp actually covers.

Youth pheasant, quail and partridge

published

Youth pheasant, quail and partridge runs October 24, 2026 to October 25, 2026 across all zones.

Nebraska youth pheasant, quail and partridge, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideOctober 24, 2026October 25, 2026

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

A combined two day youth weekend for pheasant, quail and partridge, the weekend before the regular opener.

Pheasant, quail and partridge

published

Pheasant, quail and partridge runs October 31, 2026 to January 31, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska pheasant, quail and partridge, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideOctober 31, 2026January 31, 2027

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Partridge is dated inside the agency's combined pheasant, quail and partridge row rather than as a separate season.

Jackrabbit

published

Jackrabbit runs September 1, 2026 to February 28, 2027 across all zones.

Nebraska jackrabbit, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
West of U.S. 81September 1, 2026February 28, 2027Allowed west of U.S. 81 only

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Jackrabbit runs on the cottontail calendar but the agency limits it to the area west of U.S. 81.

Dove

published

Dove runs September 1, 2026 to October 30, 2026 across all zones.

Nebraska dove, as published by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideSeptember 1, 2026October 30, 2026Includes mourning, white-winged and Eurasian collared-doves

Dates read from Hunting Seasons, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, accessed 2026-09-19.

Dove sits on the same agency Hunting Seasons page as the small game rows, September 1 through October 30.

Rules

Nebraska small game hunting regulations

Season windows are carried here with their source and read date attached. Everything else a hunter is bound by is set by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and its regulations page is linked below.

Current Nebraska regulations

Bag and possession limits, legal methods, shooting hours, license and stamp requirements, and youth or special season rules for Nebraska are set by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, are legally binding and change annually. Its current regulations page is linked here.

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: current regulations
Close view of an eastern cottontail rabbit in green grass, ears up, dark round eye and white chin catching the light
An eastern cottontail. Rabbit is usually the last small game season to close, running into February in most of the East and Midwest. Photo: Grayson Smith, USFWS. “Eastern Cottontail Rabbit (48935527872)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain

Small game season dates in other Midwest states

Every state’s pheasant, quail, grouse, rabbit and squirrel dates are on the national small game season page.

A pair of northern bobwhite quail standing together in a carpet of purple violets, the male with a bold white throat and eye stripe, the female buff faced
A bobwhite pair. Quail seasons run from late autumn into winter across the South and Midwest; several western states date scaled, Gambel's and California quail on the same row. Photo: Steve Maslowski, USFWS. “Colinus virginianus USFWS”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters, Public domain
Nebraska pheasant seasonOpening day, the daily limit and the full Nebraska pheasant calendar, read from the same agency.Nebraska deer seasonArchery, firearms, muzzleloader and youth deer dates for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.Nebraska turkey seasonSpring and fall wild turkey windows for 2026-27, read from the same agency.Nebraska duck seasonDuck and goose season dates by zone and flyway, read from the same agency.Nebraska fall foliagePeak color and the first grouse and squirrel weeks overlap. Plan the same trip.

Nebraska small game season questions

A fox squirrel with a grey back and rust orange belly crouched on a lichen covered branch against bare winter trees and blue sky
A fox squirrel in bare winter woods in Ohio. Squirrel is the earliest small game opener in many states, from mid August or September, and runs to January or February. “Eastern Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger vulpinus) (13255025953)” by Andrew C, CC BY 2.0

This page covers the 2026-27 season year with data as of September 19, 2026. Every season window is republished from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission page linked beside it, read on September 19, 2026; windows the agency had not yet published are labelled not yet published. Bag and possession limits, legal methods, shooting hours and licence rules are set by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, whose page is the final word on the day you hunt. See also the national small game season guide.