NEBRASKAland Articles

By Olivia DaRugna Bats are usually in the spotlight only around Halloween and during Bat Appreciation Week. However, we are going to break the norm, because August is a great time to observe the world’s only true flying mammal.  So, before homework and school sports start back up, get outside in the early evening to look up at the sky for glimpses of these evening aerial acro-bats — pun intended — as they quickly dive and turn to catch their …

Work Improves a Unique Fishery in the Sandhills Story and photos by Eric Fowler Joel Klammer repeatedly casts a woolly bugger fly toward rock structures in Long Pine Creek and lets it drift through the deep holes below them. He thinks he sees a fish attempting to bite on one drift, but after 20 minutes, he decides his first choice of flies wasn’t going to cut it on this section of the creek on Pine Glen Wildlife Management Area. So, …

By Jeff Kurrus Some of us like to shoot guns. We look forward to the activity, save money for it, and we definitely don’t see dollar signs disappearing every time a cartridge is ejected. Yet there are others who pay attention to the rising cost of ammo prices, sweating each time a bullet leaves the barrel. If you fit in the latter group, pay attention to these tips when getting your scopes locked in for hunting season. Sighting in a …

By Eric Fowler Coulda, coulda, shoulda. Our lives can be full of them. The story of one of mine began in 1999, the first time I visited Niobrara State Park. From the hilltop overlooking the Niobrara River, I could see a rooftop poking out of the trees in the riverbottom. I was told it was the picnic shelter in the old park, the one that opened in 1935 and was closed when the park moved to its current location in …

One Man’s Lifetime of Fishing By Gerry Steinauer, Botanist Paul Allen’s rugged, weather-worn appearance has been earned from decades of running cattle on the Niobrara River breaks of Boyd County. In line with his cowboy persona, his manner is down-home and friendly, his laugh is hearty, and he slides easily into storytelling. Yet, there are contradictions to the cowboy stereotype: His past includes stints as an elementary school teacher and Peace Corps volunteer; in a land of beer and whiskey …

By David L. Bristow, History Nebraska Neligh Mill, in the northeastern Nebraska town of Neligh, is a place where the past doesn’t feel all that long ago — as if the mill workers have gone for coffee and will be back shortly. The 19th century machinery is still in place, and longtime site supervisor Harv Ofe can tell you how it all worked. Yellowed notices and posters adorn the walls, and penciled graffiti shows the math of long-ago transactions and …

July is a great time to view burrowing owls near prairie dog colonies. By Olivia DaRugna Burrowing owls, as their name suggests, nest in underground burrows that were excavated by semi-fossorial animals, such as ground squirrels, prairie dogs and badgers. Not surprisingly, burrowing owls often inhabit black-tailed prairie dog colonies during the breeding season in Nebraska. After laying eggs, the parents incubate the eggs for about a month, and young birds remain near the nesting burrow for at least another …

Summit Lake State Recreation Area Story and photos by Jenny Nguyen-Wheatley Set down camp on lush, green lawns and manicured campsites. Drop a line from a picture-worthy fishing pier, or slowly work your way across a no-wake lake inside a boat. Then at the end of the day, sit back with a drink to watch the golden light sink below the glistening lake at your feet — it’s like you’ve arrived in paradise without having to hop onto a plane. …

By Monica Macoubrie, Wildlife Education Specialist With a nearly hairless, scaly tail, a mouth full of teeth, the ability to “play dead” and its overall I-don’t-give-a-dang attitude, the opossum might be one of the most unique mammals to be waddling around Nebraska. I guarantee by the time you are done reading this article, you will, at the very least, have a little more respect and love for this remarkable marsupial. Opossums are Marsupials The Virginia oppossum is a marsupial. When …

By Eric Fowler The flames dance. The coals glow. The wood crackles and pops. The combination of these elements is mesmerizing. It is therapy. Sit there alone and stare into a campfire’s depths, and you can’t help but relax as the warmth melts your worries away. Sit around a fire with friends or family, and you can rehash old times, solve the world’s problems and make future plans. In Boy Scouts, it was the perfect setting for telling ghost stories. …