Sandhills Voice

 When three families of geese arrived early Thursday morning there was already a bunch of seven turkeys on the scene. Two goose families walked walked up the lane and got chased by the male turkeys which were bullies doing their best to get them away.   The turks just were nonstop in chasing mom and pop and the little ones. When a pair with five young arrived via the horse pen and through the fence, they were completely harassed and driven away past the hay bales. There was seed on the scene that the turkeys perceived was only theirs. WRONG. The geese pairs were totally harassed. Now they stay away. How sad.

May 16, 2024. Grant County News 139(42): 1, 6. Edits are included here. There are and have been very some significant projects combined that required lots of attention and effort to remove unwanted invasive cedar trees from thousands of acres of northern Cherry County prairie and riverine woodlands. Now, instead of dense tree growth, there is an open vegetive conditions for birds and flora, recreational opportunities and even grass for cattle to graze. A primary tract where work initially began was the 7668 acre tract of publicly owned property south of the Niobrara River and west of the Snake River as managed by the Board of Educational Lands and Funds. This large tract was created when the sections of land – typically sections 16 and 36 - within the newly created Samuel R. McKelvie Division of the Nebraska National Forest was being established so the federal property would not have disparate tracts. The trade was officially authorized by governmental edict on April 19, 1917, accordin...

  EPA Approves Plan to Mitigate Snake River Damage in Northern Nebraska   Contact Information: Benjamin Washburn, 816-518-4154, washburn.ben@epa.gov   LENEXA, KAN. (MARCH 27, 2024) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved a work plan submitted to the Agency by Richard Minor of Gordon, Nebraska, and Cherry County, Nebraska, to mitigate damage to the Snake River resulting from an unauthorized drainage ditch excavated from Minor’s property to the river in 2020. According to EPA, discharges from the ditch into the river caused extensive environmental harm and violated the federal Clean Water Act. “The Snake River is a critical aquatic resource,” said David Cozad, director of EPA Region 7’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. “EPA is encouraged that Mr. Minor and Cherry County are taking steps to minimize further impacts to the Snake River and downstream property owners.” According to EPA, in April 2020, Minor and Cherry County personnel excavat...

These update points were graciously provided by Matt Sprenger, refuge manager: public comment period closed on March 30 We are currently finalizing responses to public comments Final draft EA will be submitted to our Regional Office in May Hope for a decision on the Environmental Assessment in June The refuge could potentially be open to wildlife observation, interpretation and environmental education by summer 2024

  Dear Fort Niobrara NWR, Thank you for the opportunity to provide written commentary regarding the Compatibility Determination and Environmental Assessment of Seier National Wildlife Refuge for Environmental Education, Interpretation, Wildlife Observation, and Photography and for Haying and Grazing.  I am the Executive Director for Audubon of Kansas (AOK). AOK owns and manages property for wildlife in Kansas and in Nebraska. Our largest sanctuary is a 5000-acre ranch northeast of Bassett, NE, and about 1 hour from Seier NWR. As Executive Director, I understand the challenges associated with preserving habitat for wildlife while also providing opportunities to connect with nature. Before becoming the Executive Director three years ago, I was an Associate Professor at The Ohio State University at Lima with a PhD in Biology from Kansas State University. For over 20 years, I have been studying Greater Prairie-Chickens, with some of those years overlapping...