Rabbit Hunting

Opening Dates and Application Periods

Season Dates
Cottontail: Sept. 1-Feb. 29
Daily Bag Limit: 7
Possession Bag Limit: 28

Jackrabbit: Sept. 1-Feb. 29
Daily Bag Limit: 4
Possession Bag Limit: 16

Open Area:
Cottontail: Statewide
Jackrabbit: W of U.S. Highway 81

Legal Methods of Take:

• Shotgun
• Rifle or pistol
• Bow and Arrow
• Crossbow
• Trapping

Shooting Hours:
30 minutes before sunrise to sunset

Requirements:

Description:
The cottontail rabbit is important as a game animal across its entire range. In the United States, deer are the only game more pursued by hunters than the rabbit or hare. In Nebraska more pheasants, quail and doves are harvested each year than cottontails, which may indicate that rabbits are an under utilized resource. Since the mid-1980s an average of 150,000 cottontails have been taken by approximately 26,000 hunters each year.