Nebraska Wildlife Federation

Right here at home…. North America’s first “Quiet Trail” designation is our own national Niobrara River.

Niobrara River in Nebraska, with rare 'Quiet Trail' designation, beckons tourists - UPI.com After the January thaw, the Niobrara National Scenic River in Nebraska is reopening with the designation as the first "Quiet Trail" in North America.

The annual meeting of the Nebraska Wildlife Federation is scheduled to take place by Zoom on Monday July 1st at 6:00PM CST. Current members can attend by completing the form at the link below. Please complete this form by noon CST Friday June 28th. A link to the Zoom session will be sent to the provided email address. The purpose of the meeting is to select the next president of the Nebraska Wildlife Federation.

Nebraska Wildlife Federation Annual Meeting Invitation Hello current NEWF members: Please use this form to participate in the annual meeting to be held by Zoom on Monday July 1st at 6:00PM CST. Members completing the form will receive further information and a Zoom link invitation to the event. Please complete this form by noon CST Friday June 28th. The...

Omaha receives $2 million federal grant for bike/walk trail through UNMC campus (Omaha World-Herald, June 1, 2024)

Hey ya’ll the Nebraska Wildlife Federation has been the voice of wildlife and wild places in Nebraska for over 50 years. With your help we will never stop! Today is the last full day to have your donation receive a portion the matching funds available. Please consider helping NeWF continue this important work! 😁

Support Nebraska Wildlife Federation at Give to Lincoln Day Help us with our giving day event!

It is that special time of year again. Each May every gift made on Give to Lincoln Day builds off another to make a BIG difference for local nonprofits. You have until noon on May 30th to help the Nebraska Wildlife Federation keep it wild in Nebraska!!

Support Nebraska Wildlife Federation at Give to Lincoln Day Help us with our giving day event!

The Niobrara River is such a treasure, and it right here in Nebraska! The wildlife diversity is just as diverse as the flora and fauna. A truly magical place.

Join us in celebrating World Biodiversity Day! The hosts astounding biodiversity because it is the meeting point of six different ecosystems: 3 forests (Northern Boreal, Eastern Deciduous, and Western Coniferous) and 3 prairies (Sandhills, Mixed grass, and Tallgrass)! As a result, we have species, like the Smith Falls Aspen which are hybrid trees and are found only at the Niobrara River.

Reminder… the May 23 banquet and fundraiser has been canceled. 😞 We are still working to refund all ticket buyers. If you would like for us to keep your ticket purchase as a donation, please contact us to let us know. We very much appreciate your ongoing support for wildlife in Nebraska! Thank you for understanding and we hope to see you at next year’s event!!

Regrettably, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the May 23 banquet and fundraiser due to circumstances beyond our control. We are working now to refund all ticket buyers. If you would like for us to keep your ticket purchase as a donation, please contact us to let us know. We very much appreciate your ongoing support and patience. Thank you for understanding and we hope to see you at next year’s event!!

More information about our spring fundraising banquet below! We have been protecting wildlife and wild places in Nebraska for over 50 years. Help us continue the important work we do. We would love to see some new faces on May 23!!

Save the Date!!..

The Nebraska Wildlife Federation will be hosting or 1st Annual Fundraiser and Membership Banquet on May 23rd in the Peter Kiewit Lodge at Mahoney State Park!...Details to come!!!

A special thanks to the "Val Tavern" for graciously hosting the Finance Committee meeting tonight! The Broasted Chicken was awesome!

Hey all!...Come check out our new and improved website!.

Nebraskawildlife.org

Come check us out!... Event Announcements to come!

Nebraska Wildlife Federation We promote the conservation of all Nebraska’s wildlife and their essential habitat as well as our unique natural landscapes.

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas Day and a blessed New Year!

Move along, move along, nothing to see here. 👀

It's officially cool/cold outside and that means herps (reptiles & amphibians) are into brumation mode! Brumation is similar to hibernation- a tactic some mammals use to survive the winter. Instead of being inactive all winter like some ground squirrels, and woodchucks many herps hunker down, but if there is an unusually warm day you may see turtles and snakes basking or moving around to a better brumation spot.

If you see this, don't disturb them, they have limited energy levels during this time. Just give a passing nod, or a wave, and let them be on their way.

📸: thepiper351 (Flickr)

Certify Your Habitat to Help Wildlife! - Certified Wildlife Habitat 50th Anniversary One Time Fall Promotion! 10% off when you certify and purchase a sign until October 31st. Enter FALL10 at checkout.

Many people have been calling and writing to ask our stance on the mountain lion who is working his way through Omaha right now. We did give an interview yesterday, but what aired didn’t provide the full context of the message we’d like to get out. We’d like the opportunity to give you our thoughts and provide you, our supporters, with some context. First, it is important to note that NWR does not ever condone the killing of mountain lions that pose no threat to humans. We do believe there are non-lethal methods for dealing with large carnivores in urban settings that have been proven to work throughout the United States. We will always promote living in harmony with native wildlife and humane solutions to conflicts. We’d also like you to note that although we are native wildlife experts, by permit, we are not allowed to rehabilitate mountain lions in Nebraska.

There is some context though that should be shared and some that may help you understand the broader picture: Nebraska is a state with land that is more than 97% privately-owned. We have very little public land here, and the public land we have is relatively small in terms of territory. That means that when a mountain lion is trapped and relocated onto the small tracts of public land we have, it can quickly and easily move off that land and likely will, due to potential territorial conflicts with other mountain lions and/or the need to return to familiar territory. Once the lion moves, it may have to cross busy roadways or more populated areas or come into conflict with private landowners in that region. That can be extremely disorienting and dangerous for the mountain lion and also create legal liability for the agency that moves the mountain lion.

Although we do not agree with all parts of the mountain lion policy in Nebraska, we do understand the extremely difficult balancing act that state and local agencies have to perform when dealing with mountain lions in populated areas, to promote healthy wildlife populations, and address public concerns.

This mountain lion is behaving “perfectly” right now. He is avoiding humans, travelling at night, and has not hurt anyone or caused any damage. He is moving slowly and cautiously to avoid conflict and keep himself safe. That is why no one has seen him directly and he’s only being observed on security cameras. He is likely moving along waterways, trying to find his own territory in a safe place. What we know about mountain lion behavior tells us that he will not stay in the Omaha metro if he’s allowed to move on in his own time.

So – if you don’t want harm to come to Omaha’s current camera-famous mountain lion, or any mountain lions in our state, what should you do? For this mountain lion, please do not seek him out, track him, or force a human confrontation with him. The best thing we can all do is allow him time and peace to quietly move on. (If you have concerns about pet or human safety while he’s in the neighborhood, check out these tips from the Mountain Lion Foundation - https://mountainlion.org/stay-safe/ )

In the long-term, educate yourselves and your friends about the importance of mountain lions and other apex predators to healthy ecosystems. Learn how to coexist with wildlife and demand government policies that protect habitat, create corridors for species that need to travel between habitat areas, and protect our native wildlife. When you have control of land, small or large, create habitat and plant natives and avoid the use of pesticides and non-native plantings when possible. Food webs are intricate and depend on healthy plants and animals at all levels, from insects to mountain lions, and every one of you can make a difference that impacts our natural world.

We love Nebraska and all of the hardworking conservationists and biologists at the NGPC and other agencies and organizations who care about the futures of our native wild species and work to protect them. We need more habitat and public policies that protect wildlife - and change begins with you.

Thank you to those who have supported our work through the Give to Lincoln campaign! Today is the last day… With your help we will continue advocating for legislative and administrative processes at the state and federal level that positively affect the natural resources in Nebraska.

Give to Lincoln Day

For 50 years we have worked to protect wildlife and wild places. With your help, we will never stop! nebraskawildlife.org/get-involved/donate/

Happy Mother’s Day to all Moms!!

All gifts given during the Give to Lincoln event are matched up to $500,000. Nebraska wildlife appreciate your generosity!! nebraskawildlife.org/get-involved/donate/

Openings are still available for Sharp-tailed Grouse tours at the Hutton Niobrara Ranch Wildlife Sanctuary near Bassett, Nebraska. Book yours today!

Grouse Tours No birdwatcher should miss seeing this yearly ritual unfold as males fight among themselves and display to females.  Lodging is also available. 

For all of you who have been following the story of the two adult armadillos we received this winter (both with rodenticide poisoning), we have a new twist! The female armadillo gave birth yesterday to 4 babies, effectively tripling our Wildlife Center's armadillo population! We knew this was likely for our female armadillo - nine-banded armadillos mate in the late summer but implantation of the single embryo is delayed until sometime in the late winter. Once implanted, the 4-month gestation begins and eventually results in a litter of four IDENTICAL babies. That's right - all 4 babies result from a single fertilized egg, making them identical quadruplets! Both of our adult armadillos are doing well, but are still undergoing treatment for their rodenticide toxicity. Their poisoning cases were severe and the impacts of rodenticide on both of them are ongoing. We have high hopes that the female will continue to take care of all 4 babies as they grow. You can be assured that our dedicated staff will be keeping a close eye on our armored friends over the coming months!

Article is about Johnson County, Iowa, not Johnson County, Nebraska.

Mountain lion shot and killed in Johnson County The cat was seldom seen by humans and didn’t cause safety or livestock problems, according to the Iowa DNR.

Don’t like that they were found this far north. But, isn’t he just the cutest little guy you’ve ever seen!

Look what we took in this weekend! We got our first-ever 9-banded armadillo on Saturday from south central Nebraska. What to hear something even crazier? We got our second-ever armadillo yesterday! The first is suffering from an infection and rodenticide poisoning. The second is pending a full examination. Both however, were ill-equipped to handle the extreme cold in Nebraska right now and were desperately in need of help! Armadillos are primarily insectivores, so we had to quickly place an order for more specialized food (larger insects and zoo diet) to keep them fed properly. They have been venturing into southern Nebraska for the past few decades, but normally are denizens of warmer areas to the south due to their diet and lack of proper winter attire. We suspect that they will continue to become more prevalent in Nebraska in the future, but for now, we're admittedly still a little shocked at getting TWO in just a few days. Stay tuned - we'll share a fun video later today and keep you posted on their rehab journeys!

Best wishes for the Holidays, and for health and happiness throughout the coming year!

Some more of the neat items that will be in our silent auction at the gala on Friday. If you can’t make it person you can place bids by calling Mike Coe at (402)641-5945. Bids are due by Thursday at 6pm.

We are excited to invite you to our 2022 “Nebraska Wildlife Federation the Next 50 Years” fundraiser at the Kiewit Lodge, Mahoney State Park! Your attendance at this year’s event will help support our ongoing work to “protect wild things and wild places” in Nebraska!

Date: Friday, October 28th, 5 pm to 9 pm.
Location: Kiewit Lodge at Mahoney State Park, Ashland, NE 68003. Park permit needed for entry.

Tickets: $50.00 or $45 in advance! You can purchase tickets in advance by calling/texting 402-641-5945.

If you knew Dick Turpin, or like turkey hunting, you don’t want to miss this! Call-in bids due Thursday.