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Drone Rules for Valentine National Wildlife Refuge
Valentine, Nebraska (NE)
• United States
39679 Pony Lake Rd, Valentine, NE 69201, USA
Lat: 42.4866 • Lng: -100.52
Rules Edit History: Valentine National Wildlife Refuge
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Mapped shape change
Old outline is gray. New outline is blue.
May 30, 2026 7:52 AM
Approved
• Added USFWS drone prohibition for Valentine NWR with Nebraska Sandhills grassland, long-billed curlew nest desertion, and offline pre-download requirement context.
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Approved
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Your proposed edit detailing the drone prohibition at Valentine National Wildlife Refuge has been approved. This aligns with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regulations prohibiting drone operations within the refuge. The added context enhances understanding of the area's drone flight considerations. The outline has been updated to accurately represent the restricted area.
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| Field | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Flight status | Unknown | NoFly |
| Summary | — | USFWS prohibits drones on Valentine NWR. The 72,000-acre Nebraska Sandhills refuge protects one of the largest remaining interior grassland bird communities, including the long-billed curlew and Sprague's pipit. |
| Mapped shapes | — | 7383b7c0-3a51-43c1-988d-2e9f796adcd7 |
Before
After
## Drone Rules - Valentine NWR, Nebraska **Drones are prohibited** under USFWS Director's Order 210. ### Airspace / Site Context - 71,516 acres of lakes, marshes, and Sandhills prairie; the Sandhills grassland ecosystem is one of North America's most intact temperate grasslands - Long-billed curlew and Sprague's pipit (candidate species) nest in the upland grasslands; drone overflights during incubation cause nest desertion - Valentine Municipal (VTN) Class G; no controlled airspace within the refuge ### Key Rules - Nesting season buffer (May-July): USFWS requests 600-ft lateral buffer from known curlew nesting territories - Extremely remote; no cell service in most of the refuge -- download B4UFLY offline before departing Valentine - USFWS Special Use Permit required; grassland bird research permits require USFWS Mountain-Prairie Region approval ### Source - USFWS Valentine: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/valentine
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+ ## Drone Rules - Valentine NWR, Nebraska + + **Drones are prohibited** under USFWS Director's Order 210. + + ### Airspace / Site Context + - 71,516 acres of lakes, marshes, and Sandhills prairie; the Sandhills grassland ecosystem is one of North America's most intact temperate grasslands + - Long-billed curlew and Sprague's pipit (candidate species) nest in the upland grasslands; drone overflights during incubation cause nest desertion + - Valentine Municipal (VTN) Class G; no controlled airspace within the refuge + + ### Key Rules + - Nesting season buffer (May-July): USFWS requests 600-ft lateral buffer from known curlew nesting territories + - Extremely remote; no cell service in most of the refuge -- download B4UFLY offline before departing Valentine + - USFWS Special Use Permit required; grassland bird research permits require USFWS Mountain-Prairie Region approval + + ### Source + - USFWS Valentine: https://www.fws.gov/refuge/valentine +