[Reprinted from original]

Nebraska’s River otter pilot season ended Jan. 11 after the trapping of 75 otters.

The season opened on Nov. 1, 2021 with a season close trigger of 75 or an end date of Feb. 28.

Once the season trigger is hit the season closes three days later.

Otters in Nebraska must be harvested through trapping and reported to a Nebraska Game and Parks Commission office within 24 hours of the harvest. The harvester then has two business days to have the otter tagged.

Before setting traps each day, trappers must call Game and Parks to ensure that the season close trigger has not been met.

Otters accidentally harvested after the season close must be released or turned over to Game and Parks.

In 1904, river otters were thought to be extinct in the state and were not seen again until 1977.

River otters were listed on the endangered species list in Nebraska in 1986. Game and Parks began reintroducing the species following the listing.

In January 2020, otters were delisted by Game and Parks Commission after biologists confirmed that the population was secure.

November 2021 marked the first river otter trapping season in the state.