Latest Features

By Renae Blum Wish your kids spent more time outdoors and less time in front of a screen? It’s a common concern. Rather than cutting out electronics completely, a phone can be a great tool in helping spark a child’s curiosity and interest in the outdoors. Give the three apps below a try. All are free, available on both Google Play and the Apple App Store — and can enrich your family’s experience of the outdoors. Merlin Bird ID Kids …

By Monica Macoubrie, Wildlife Education Specialist Hawks are some of the most commonly seen birds in Nebraska. Often, all you have to do to find one is look up. These raptors, or birds of prey, usually perch on fence posts, overlooking branches and sometimes, at your bird feeder — any elevated spot where they can scan the ground to look for food. While each species of hawk has its own unique characteristics, they all have several features in common, such …

By David L. Bristow, History Nebraska What’s the proper way to break ground for the new home of the Cornhuskers? With a team and a plow, of course! University officials broke ground on Memorial Stadium on April 26, 1923. An estimated thousand people showed up to hear speeches and watch Chancellor Samuel Avery ceremonially plow a furrow. There was a recent precedent for this. A year earlier, Governor Samuel McKelvie had plowed a furrow to break ground for the new …

By Grace Gaard, Aquatic Ecology Education Specialist Adventure: an unusual and exciting, sometimes hazardous experience. While rarely risky, the word “adventure” fairly sums up field-trip season for the Trout in the Classroom program across Nebraska. Although the in-field portion of the program took a hiatus during the coronavirus pandemic, this spring marked the second year since the program’s full reboot. Program offerings hit their stride during the 2022-2023 academic year, and since the pandemic, the number of participating schools have …

At-risk Species Spotlight is a monthly blog post that highlights one Nebraska animal that is at-risk of extinction, with the goal of bringing awareness to the incredible diversity of wildlife we have in the state and their conservation needs and efforts as outlined in the Nebraska Natural Legacy Project. By Olivia DaRugna, Watchable Wildlife Biologist The inconspicuous, pale-brown, buff-breasted sandpipers (Calidris subruficollis), or “buffies” as some like to call them, are one of the more than 30 shorebird species that …

1,500 Miles and Going By Elsa Forsberg I zoom in again on my computer screen, just to make sure the image is of a small shorebird called a piping plover. Two plastic bands decorate the bird’s legs like bracelets, one gray and one blue. The combination of different colored bands serves as a coded name tag waiting to be deciphered. Squinting at the blue band, I read the white engraved text. 56A. I sit back and gape at my computer …

What makes a wetland a wetland? In Nebraska, a wetland is defined by three characteristics. One, a wetland must have a prevalence of water-loving plants adapted to grow in wet conditions. Two, the soil must be developed in these wet conditions. Three, a wetland must be saturated by water at some time during the growing season. In Nebraska, there are five types of wetlands that fit these characteristics: urban, playa, riverine, saline and sandhills, yet each of these do more …

By Julie Geiser Everyone has seen a roly-poly bug. Their ability to tuck into a little ball, called conglobation, has amazed children and adults alike. But what exactly is a roly-poly bug, and what is its purpose in nature? The roly-poly bug is sometimes called woodlouse or wood shrimp, but its official name is pillbug or Armadillidium vulgare. The pillbug is an isopod; iso- means same or equal and pod means foot. Actually, the pillbug isn’t a bug at all. …

By Joel Jorgensen, Nongame Bird Program Manager Plovers are generally a group of shorebirds that typically go unseen by the average person. Mountain and piping plovers are both rare and state threatened with specific habitat requirements. Other species like the black-bellied and semipalmated plover occur briefly in our state during spring and fall migration as they travel between breeding and wintering sites. Of Nebraska’s seven species of plovers, the killdeer is the only frequently encountered member of the group and …

By Julie Geiser Camping is a great way to enjoy nature, recreate, and recharge, but while you’re at a campground there is always some etiquette to follow to make sure everyone has a good time every time. Not Too Early or Too Late Try to arrive at your campsite well before dark. This gives you time to set up camp while it’s still light out, which is much easier than trying in the dark. And when possible, don’t pack up …