NEBRASKAland
September 1974 50 cents
NEBRASKAland
VOL. 52 / NO. 9 / SEPTEMBER 1974 Published monthly by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Fifty cents per copy. Subscription rates $5 for one year, $9 for two years. Send subscription orders to NEBRASKAland, Box 30370, Lincoln, Nebraska 68503. commission Chairman: Gerald R. (Bud) Campbell, Ravenna South-central District, (308) 452-3800 Vice Chairman: James W. McNair, Imperial Southwest District, (308) 882-4425 Second Vice Chairman: Jack D. Obbink, Lincoln Southeast District, (402) 488-3862 Arthur D. Brown, Omaha Douglas-Sarpy District, (402) 553-9625 Kenneth W. Zimmerman, Loup City North-central District, (308) 745-1694 Don O. Bridge, Norfolk Northeast District, (402) 371-1473 William G. Lindeken, Chadron Northwest District, (308) 432-3755 Director: Willard R. Barbee Assistant Director: William J. Bailey, Jr. Assistant Director: Dale R. Bree staff Editor: Lowell Johnson Editorial Assistants: Jon Farrar, Ken Bouc, Faye Musi I Photography: Greg Beaumont, Bob Grier, Steve O'Hare Layout Design: Michele Angle Farrar Illustration: Duane Westerholt Advertising: Cliff Griffin Circulation: Juanita Stefkovich Copyright Nebraska Game and Parks Commission 1974. All rights reserved. Postmaster: if undeliverable, send notice by form 3579 to Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Box 30370, Lincoln, Nebraska 68503. Second class postage paid at Lincoln, Nebraska Travel articles financially supported by Department of Economic Development Ronald J. Mertens, Deputy Director John Rosenow, Travel and Tourism Director Contents FEATURES ERRORS COME BEFORE ARROWS ADVENTURE ON THE TRAIL 8 A FALCONER 14 PLANTING FOR WILDLIFE 18 POCKETS OF WILDERNESS 35 THE MEXICAN CONNECTION 36 PRAIRIE LIFE/BARKING DOG 38 NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA/SHARP-TAILED GROUSE 42 DEPARTMENTS SPEAK UP 4 TRADING POST 49 COVER: Hunting antelope with a bow can mean much time spent watching the terrain —for antelope, then for a way to approach them when found (Story on page 6). Photo by Bob Grier. OPPOSITE: Common to southeast Nebraska, the common tree frog is a master of camouflage. Spending most of their time in bushes and trees near water, they are inconspicuous trappers of any insects unfortunate enough to fly or crawl within reach. Photo by Jon Farrar.
Speak up
All the AnimalsSir / We in the Audubon Society feel that the wildlife of the State of Nebraska belongs to all the people; that they are an important part of the balance of nature, since all creatures have a place in our natural environment; and that every species should be managed for the good of every citizen in the state. We further believe that no special-interest group has the right to deprive the general public of exposure to a particular species through overcontrol, unregulated hunting or eradication.
At this time, we call on the State to enact legislation that would bring all wild life in the State under the management of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and that would also provide for the funding of the project. We desire that all wildlife of this State be managed to ensure the continuation of every species within the carrying capacity of the land and in harmony with man.
For wildlife to remain for the benefit of sportsmen, naturalists, and the general public, we must now turn to the professionals of our State Agency —the game biologists and game-management person nel. We feel that the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is most responsible and responsive to us in caring for our most important wildlife heritage.
Bruce Kennedy, president Wachiska Audubon Society Lincoln, Nebr. Art CollectorSir / Yesterday's mail brought our first issue of Nebraska Afield & Afloat and it has been read with interest by the entire family. It is indeed a welcome addition to our monthly mails.
Of special interest to me was the article on the retirement of Mr. C. G. "Bud" Pritchard. I have collected, saved and used every one of his prints that have appeared in NEBRASKAland Magazine since we started to subscribe in 1958. It has always been my desire to own one of his original prints and I am wondering if there is any way of obtaining one. I am interested in a 5 x 7" size of pheasant, quail, wood duck or deer. My children have decoupaged several of his prints that have appeared in the magazine, and they have turned out beautifully.
Any information will be greatly appreciated.
Mrs. Betty Hamernik Columbus, Nebr.As part of the artwork that Bud has done for the Game and Parks Commission over the years, we are unable to sell individual items as they are state property. However, we do have two portfolios of his wildlife paintings for sale, each containing five prints, and these are available for $5 per set. As Mr. Pritchard is now retired, you could negotiate with him for originals. His address is 6501 Sumner St., Lincoln, Nebr. 68506. (Editor)
House HuntersSir / My husband and I are restoring a fine, old home in Brownville and are interested in locating persons who know something of its history.
It is known as Cogswell House, and was built near the end of the Civil War by Anthony Cogswell. At the turn of the century, it was purchased by the Hannaford family and was subsequently known by that name.
This is the house reputed to have been on the underground railroad. The south parlor has a trapdoor, leading to an under ground room, and on the bank of the river the mouth of a cave is still visible. The house is located next to what was once known as Maley Park.
We are interested in any information about the Cogswell family; Anthony Cogswell's occupation, descendants, etc. We are also interested in copies of any photo graphs taken prior to 1900 of either the interior or exterior. Perhaps through your magazine, which goes to many persons with roots in 19th Century Nebraska, we can find answers to some of the questions which puzzle us.
Mrs. Carl Rohman 1312 Fall Creek Rd. Lincoln, Nebr. 68510 Possum ParentSir / I've saved nearly every copy of NEBRASKAland we've gotten, which is quite a few. In checking all that I have, could find no articles on opossums. Perhaps you have done one and I've missed it.
What sparked my interest is two orphan opossum babies that I became a "mother" to when our hay-mowing machine killed the mother and five other young. The two babies had very little hair, eyes closed but were willing to eat and have been living with us for nearly one month. Now they are fat, hairy creatures with black beady eyes, adept feet, and teeth developing. They now eat raw hamburger and fruit in addition to their milk and cereal. They are very interesting, affectionate critters and after filling up on food, they love to crawl up and down our arms, finally nestling in a warm hand to
The magazine has not as yet done a fauna on the opossum, but this "critter" is scheduled to be done in June or July of 1975. By that time you may be an authority yourself, but we do schedule these rather far in advance, and that is when their time comes. Until then, we'll practice playing 'possum, which I believe is a game somewhat like horseshoes. (Editor)
NEBRASKAland Magazine invites all readers to submit their comments, suggestions, and gripes to Speak Up. Each month the magazine will publish as many letters as space permits. Pictures are welcome. NEBRASKAland reserves the right to edit and condense letters. — Editor.
Aside from ridicule and a penchant for mistakes, antelope hunting seemed a simple sport. But, it took a lot of luck, learning and a good haystack to score
ERRORS COME BEFORE ARROWS
Photograph by Bruce TroesterSO YOU'RE GOING to get an antelope with a bow and arrow, huh? chuckled a somewhat (dumbfounded rancher. He, being a consider ably more sensible person than me, viewed such antics as pursuing the fleet-footed pronghorn across the open plains of western Nebraska as pure mania, possibly bordering on insanity, but that's what my wife thinks, too. At any rate, after a few hearty laughs and an invitation to come in out of the sun, he politely informed me that if such was my daft fettish, I was more than welcome to traipse over his ranch and wear out all the boot leather I pleased. I graciously thanked my host, for permission to hunt and for his concern about my footgear, and headed for the hills.
Such occurrences and greetings are more than commonplace for the archery antelope hunter. He is the lowly; the subject of much derision; the merest minority. For a while there, I was really getting paranoid because the ranchers I met had quit telling ele phant, moron and ethnic jokes; instead, it was "Hey, did ya hear the one about the archery antelope hunter?" With time, though, I know I earned their respect and admiration, for I underwent a Cinderella transformation from a lowly "Hey you" to a regal "Hey, Buddy".
My first experience with the antelope actually began on a trip to northwest Nebraska where I was going to hunt. The morning sun was just breaking when I spotted the tell-tale white patch of an antelope on the side of a hill nearly half a mile away. Putting a 30-power spotting scope on the pronghorn informed me he was equipped with a very respectable set of high, arching horns. I pulled the car out of sight be hind a small knoll and hiked out into the pasture to see if there was going to be an avenue of approach, such as a deep draw or weedy fencerow. Glassing the hillside where a few seconds before he had stood proved fruitless, for he was nowhere to be seen. I was meandering through that sandhills pasture listen ing to a meadowlark filling the morning air with his jubilant song, my adled mind filled with bewilder ment as to where that buck could have disappeared, when a slight movement to the east caught my eye. There he was, coming up from behind a slight knoll less than 100 yards distant. At first all I could see was the gentle arch of the tips of his horns; then appeared his regal head; then the double throat patches. Finally he stood in stately fashion within full view. The morning sun had just broken free of the eastern horizon — a fiery ball of yellow sent its brilliant hues dashing across a clear morning sky. He stood as a true prince of the prairie —his body erect and ready, his head and neck held high, his senses alert, his horns arching gracefully skyward, his long shadow stretching out across the gently rolling shortgrass prairie which lay sparkling with an even blanket of frost.
His accute vision must have detected my presence, but his inherent curiosity convinced him to investigate. At any rate, he was standing there in the early morning light less than 60 yards distant and there I was with neither bow nor camera. Such was the beginning of my comedy of errors! And a far from short comedy.
The year of '73 wasn't my first season of archery antelope hunting, for I'd had the opportunity to hunt the year before, as well. My very first effort that year came so desperately close to being successful that I immediately decided that this antelope hunting by bow was as easy as slopping hogs. I'd spotted a small herd of eight critters better than a half-mile away moving across a rolling hay meadow. Getting the car out of sight, I started hiking through the meadow, making use of small draws and knolls as well has haystacks, to give me concealment. They were mov ing my way as I moved toward them, and my game plan was to try to get behind a haystack and hope they would pass by close (Continued on page 45)
Adventure on the Trail
The rugged scenery of Nebraska's Pine Ridge is the background for western excitement and adventure
THE SUN HAD just broken over the eastern horizon as mem bers of the household sprang to life. The sound of eggs and bacon frying, and the smell of rich coffee brewing became alarm clocks, stirring those forgetful few who tried to oversleep.
The chattering of youngsters noisily dressing mingled with the dog's bark ing, and the horses' nervous prancing in the corral punctuated the other sounds with their excited hooves. To day was the beginning of the trail ride.
Everyone, boys, dogs and horses alike, knew what that meant.
To ranching families in Nebraska, the trail ride and the annual calf branding are two events akin to the city dweller's once-a-year vacation to the country. For youngsters, and those who still remember when the first "Tin Lizzy" almost replaced the family work horse, the trail ride is an exciting link to an earlier time in the Old West.
For the Lon Lemmon family of rural Crawford, the anticipation and excitement were really beginning to build. Bruce, 7, face shining from the morning's mandatory session with the washcloth, was the last to be seated in the stove-warmed kitchen. Mark, 13, and Rocky, 11, had already start ed wolfing down the eggs and pan cakes.
Out in the barn, saddles, saddle bags and all the other necessary equipment had been gathered and sorted the night before. Broken reins and worn latigo straps had been mended, and raincoats, folded or rolled, were already stuffed into leather saddlebags.
With breakfast quickly finished, the three boys were turned loose on last minute chores. Rocky made sure the two dogs would have enough to eat, and young Bruce fed and watered his pen full of guinea pigs. One of the dogs, a golden retriever pup given the boys for Christmas by their grand father, got a good-natured scolding
Mark's horse Tonto loses his footing and drops several
yards into a wash, wedged in by the narrow gully walls
from Lon's wife, Carolyn, for devour ing a bag of cookies baked for trail side snacks.
Mark and Lon set to saddling the horses. Stirrups had to be lengthened to match a growing youngster's legs, and a necessary but missing halter rope was quickly fashioned by experienced hands. The work went fast, and it wasn't long before everyone was mounted and ready to ride.
With young Bruce on a gray named Joker, and Rocky on a spirited horse called Tommy, the small caravan of riders rounded the last ranch build ing and dropped down to follow the meandering course of Squaw Creek.
The creek bottom was alive with the vibrant greens of growing plants and trees. An earlier shower had left diamond-like beads of water on every leaf, and the damp pine needles and decomposing mat of last year's leaves filled the air with a pleasant musky scent.
Bruce was new to riding, so Carolyn rode near, correcting mistakes and providing helpful instructions as the fallen limbs of aging ash trees, and the steep banks and creek crossings, presented new learning situations to the young rider. Mark and Rocky, scouts for this modern-day expedition, moved to the lead with the enthusiasm of young cowpunchers.
The rain-dampened earth made for nearly silent travel. The creeking of leather and the occasional whinney of horses mixed with the squawks of startled bluejays and the cooing of morning doves. Dropping out of sight of the buildings and roads was like turning time back to the days of early mountain men, exploring anew the vast tracts of wild frontier.
Moving out of the creek bottom, Lon led the way up a thickly forested ridge that had to be crossed before lunch, which was planned on West Ash Creek. Everyone had to bob and weave to avoid overhanging branches, and several stops were required to retrieve hats brushed off by troublesome limbs.
Bruce, leaning back in the saddle when he should have leaned forward, found how easy it is to dismount under trying conditions when he liter ally dove off Joker after being caught in the sweeping branches. Fortunately, the ground was soft. Like many other true-to-life cowboys, he muttered a few unkind words about his mount as he stood up and brushed off the pine needles. Joker seemed to take the admonishment to heart and stood quietly as Bruce remounted.
The going soon got even rougher. Everyone dismounted and led the horses through a maze of young pine. Once, a dead end forced Lon to turn around and seek an alternate route. Finally reaching a small clearing, everybody remounted and moved off single file.
The line of riders was almost across the head of a small canyon when Mark's horse, Tonto, lost his footing and dropped several yards into the wash, landing on his back, upside down and wedged in by the narrow gully walls. Mark, luckily, had been able to jump clear of the falling horse. Lon, called back by Mark's shouts, saw what had happened and quickly dropped into the gully to help the horse get back on his feet. The soft walls had cushioned Tonto's fall, but also prevented the horse's hooves from taking hold. After removing the saddle and straining hard on the halter, Lon was able to right the horse in the narrow gully.
Getting the horse out wasn't quite as easy as getting in, or at least not as fast, and Lon had no choice but to lead the horse deeper into the canyon bottom. After several unsuccessful tries and about 20 minutes of looking, Lon and Tonto made it back to the anxious onlookers.
The remaining distance to camp on East Ash Creek was uneventful com pared to the morning's excitement. Carolyn found several morel mush rooms along West Ash where the family
Exercise and excitement of the day take their toll. When
evening comes, it is toss-up whether to eat or rest first
stopped briefly to eat sack lunchs. Visions of mushroom-covered steaks for supper initiated a full-scale mushroom hunt, which netted nearly two dozen morels; enough to fill a cowboy hat.
Riding from West to East Ash took about two hours. The stretch of rug gedly beautiful cliffs and open mead ows was a treat after the hardships and difficult terrain of the morning. The sun finally broke through the rainy mists that hung low, touching the highest crag tops. The warm after noon light gave color and depth to the impressive scenery.
Ash Creek is well known as a good area to look for Indian artifacts, and camp was barely set up before the boys ran off to look for arrowheads and explore. Lon had driven a pickup with supplies and hay for the horses to the campsite earlier, and a four man, walled tent was quickly set up because of threatening storm clouds moving in overhead. A shallow pit was dug and lined with rocks, and while Lon watered and fed the horses, Carolyn started supper over the open fire of cottonwood coals. Bruce hadn't gone off as far as Rocky and Mark, and he returned first, only to fall asleep watching the embers glow ing in the fire pit.
Fried steaks and mushrooms made up for the day's hardships, and mugs of steaming hot chocolate went down quickly in the cool evening air. One by one, the boys snuggled up close to the fire as Lon told of a time when horseback was the only means of transportation for former Lemmon youngsters.
Stories of Lon and his sister, riding bareback to school, and of the contrary horses that threw him when they had a mind to, drifted with the blue cottonwood smoke. Lon had probably told these things to his sons before, and would do so again. It was easy to sense the satisfaction in the western way of life that had molded his early childhood. He spoke with pride of his father still saddling his horse each day, and of the period between 1945 and 1949 when his dad did not own a car.
Carolyn casually mentioned that to day was her birthday, and the boys complained of not knowing so they could have packed a cake to bring along. Laughing at the thought of a birthday cake packed in a saddlebag was easy for everyone.
The boys had left the glow of the campfire for warm sleeping bags, leaving Lon and Carolyn alone to reflect on the day's events over the last of the steaming chocolate. In the background, the sounds of the horses and the popping of hot coals seemed a perfect background for such a memorable expedition.
Sunrise came quickly for the family. Breakfast with eggs and bacon, pancakes and hot chocolate, enabled the boys to be off exploring again. Carolyn rode to her great-grandparents' homestead, revealed only by a line of rocks that once were a cabin foundation and a small stand of blooming lilacs; seeming out of place among the tall prairie grass and ash trees. A broken marker over the grave of a great aunt spoke of early hard ships along East Ash Creek.
It was nearly noon before the camp was folded up, the horses fed and several buckets of water from the creek splashed into the fire pit. For Lon, Carolyn, Rocky, Mark and Bruce, the ride home would complete a two day adventure that each would remember after trips in the family car would be long forgotten. Rocky, on his spirited horse, Tommy, Mark and Tonto's fall, and Bruce with his new found horsemanship; each would remember something of this trail ride; something to pass along to future generations of Lemmons when sitting by other campfires, watching iridescent smoke rising from the flames.
A FALCONER
Formerly secretive about their sport, devotees realize they may need public help to prevent "protective" restrictions
Photographs by Jack CurranAS A YOUNG BOY on a walk with my grandfather to the horse barn, I was excited and proud to be next to this fine old man and listen to his tales and personal duels with the "old crows" of the area. As grandpa stopped to peer upward, I was anxious to get to the horse barn to ride grandpa's plow horse, "Old Joe." Strong, weathered hands pointed my eyes skyward to a pair of circling dots high above us.
"What's that, grandpa?" I asked.
"Those, Jody Boy, are spatsy hawks. They're flying around looking for something to eat."
I quickly reminded my grandpa that the chicken coop was a half-mile away and there was no food here.
"They don't eat chickens, youngin'. They been help ing me for years by catching grasshoppers, mice and spat sies (sparrows) around here."
As grandpa's words passed into silence, one of the dots dropped like a stone and apparently caught a field mouse in the nearby field. I was breathless. I had never seen anything so thrilling in my wise old age of six years. As I stood spellbound, the other circling dot emerged as a "spatsy hawk" to join its mate and fly over the hill.
"Come on," grandpa called. "Old Joe's hungry and the plowing has got to be done."
As I rode high on "Old Joe's" back that day, I never stopped wishing that those sickle-shaped dots would appear overhead once more.
My, grandma's feather bed did not subside my insomnia that night, and the previous visions of those wonderful little hawks were recounted over and over again. My mind was made up. I must have a "spatsy hawk" of my own. But how would I catch one? The question was not answered that night, for sleep was the trapper and not I.
More than 20 years have passed, and I have blessed and cursed that Kentucky summer morning many times. The boyhood dream has come true, but the long path that ensued was paid in hard study, observations, wishes and many sleepless nights. Like my grandparents' marriage, much of the excitement is gone now, but the love, admiration and respect continues to grow for these creatures and the sport that employs them; falconry.
Falconry, unlike horse racing, is the true "Sport of Kings", and in medieval days ransoms were paid for certain species of falcons. There are many terms to describe falconry —an art, hobby, sport or pastime. In my mind, and in those of all who are true friends of the discipline, it is a way of life. No other type of hunting asks so much and renders so little. One's lifestyle, family, education and profession must be adjusted to its practice, or failure is inevitable. I know of no one who has not made these sacrifices and been successful in the sport.
Individuals who keep these birds in cages or back yards to impress their neighbors or supplement their egos by claiming an unusual hobby, only depreciate this beautiful sport. True falconers don't buy, beg or steal hawks. They obtain them legally by sometimes travel
ing hundreds, even thousands of miles for the mere chance to take or capture that "bird of the year".
If the falconer does obtain his bird, his job has only begun. The bird's shelter and food must be carefully obtained and selected, for no commercial diet or equipment is suitable to maintain proper health in these mar velous creatures. The hours that are spent in training and taming these birds are extreme. An estimate of 200 hours of training and maintenance per head of wild game taken is not unusual, and, in my experience, conservative. All of this is chanced each time the bird is released to "do its thing". Unlike television portrayals, they are neither pets nor thankful for your unsolicited attentions. They may be shot at anytime by some idiot who thinks they are flying targets, or, as all living things, succumb to injury, disease or longevity.
The problems of the falconer are legion, for not only does he combat loss and death of his birds, he must deal with the nemesis of misunderstanding and a polluted environment.
Falconry has been under fire for some time by various protectionist groups who know little about falconry or falcons. Most of their assertions are extreme and many border on the absurd. Both groups seek the same goal — to perpetuate the species. However, one group wishes to stifle those who would stand to lose more than any week end falcon-observer.
As in any argument, each side has valid points. The protectionist is correct in being outraged when a falcon er or non-falconer knowingly disobeys the law and obtains birds for personal or profitable gain. Their assertion is that such acts are cause for outlawing the sport and all it has to offer. This type of logic has as much rationale as making the use of automobiles unlawful because some drivers disobey traffic laws. In regard to falconry, we have the knowledge and rules to perpetuate the species and our sport. The only alternative left to all is to use our know ledge and obey the laws prescribed by our state and fed eral wildlife agencies.
In terms of environmental pollution, the American peregrine falcon (F. P. Anatum) has been the only raptor which has suffered a drastic decline in numbers in the United States. It is now extinct east of the Mississippi River, and has been since 1964.
This population crash has been shown to be caused by high levels of chlorinated hydrocarbons, i.e. DDT, ingested by the peregrine, causing reproductive failure. The other species of falcons indigenous to North America have not shown the same decline, due to their proclivity to be less dependent on preying on birds which are insectivorous, thus avoiding the harmful chemicals. Attempts have been made to breed peregrines and other species of raptors in the last 10 years with limited success. However, there have been major breakthroughs in the last few years, and Cornell University plans reintroduction of peregrines at now deserted eyries by 1980.
These personal reflections of ethics and opinion
Despite the myriad problems and difficulties that face anyone who is involved in the sport, I and many others iike me will continue to do all they can to insure the over all welfare of the birds and the sport. To those readers who disagree with my views, I state that when it can be shown that I do disservice to the welfare of a species by utilizing it for sporting purposes, I will no longer pursue this avocation.
Despite the lost hawks, disappointment and other difficulties that are incessant, I would choose no other. As I reflect once more on that boyhood dream of long ago, I can only say, "Thank you, grandpa, for pointing my eyes to the skies."
Planting for Wildlife
HABITAT IS THE place where a plant or animal species naturally lives. For a nesting cardinal it may be a tangled hedge of honeysuckle in someone's backyard; for a covey of quail it may be a patch of lespedeza along a creek bottom. Habitat must meet all of an animal's life requirements —food, cover and water. For most species of wildlife, one type of cover is not enough; there must be vegetation that provides escape routes from predators, nesting sites, winter protection, and cover that meets small but important needs such as a visible display perch for songbirds. Good meadowlark habitat, for example, would be in complete without a tall weed or post from which the male could announce his territory. Without the appropriate habitat, there would be no wildlife.
Before colonization of North America, the entire continent was wildlife habitat. During the last 200 years we have witnessed the destruction of much of it. The eastern forests were cleared and the cougar and wild turkey are gone. The prairie was plowed and the bison, elk and grizzly bear disappeared. Marshes were drained and the waterfowl no longer came in vast flocks to rear their broods. During the last 50 years, we've witnessed the second generation of habitat deterioration. A mushrooming human population and resulting intensification of agriculture have rung the death knell for hedgerows that once offered winter cover for a covey of quail; for grassy draws that hid nesting pheasants; for homestead woodlots that were the homes of fox squirrels, nest ing herons or migrating warblers.
Bemoaning the loss of our wild lands and the animals they foster will not bring them back. Preserving what is left and re-establishing what we can, will. No one proposes seeding all the cornfields to native grasses or dredging new marshes, but total utilization of the land that is available for wildlife habitat will help those species prosper that are compatible with to day's culture.
All animal life, directly or indirectly, owes its existence to plants. The natural corollary, then, is that the manipulation of plants can be used to increase wildlife populations. To attract wild creatures to our land we must first establish the types of plants that make suitable habitat.
Farmers and ranchers can approach this on a large scale. For example, by carefully monitoring the grazing rates on their land, they can insure optimum livestock range and at the same time preserve habitat that is suitable for nesting quail or sharp-tailed grouse. By planting or maintaining an exist ing shelterbelt, the landowner not only can buffer his wheat from damaging winds and his road from recurring snow drifts, but can provide a place where a whitetail doe can drop her June fawn, and his son can hunt cottontails.
The urban dweller can do much the same thing on a smaller scale. He may not have the opportunity to create anything as extensive as deer habitat, but his plantings can draw a host of smaller animals and desirable insects. With careful consideration, the home owner can select commercial plants that will attractively landscape his lot and provide beauty, food and shelter for his family as well as urban wildlife.
The pleasure of having wildlife living nearby is an intangible value; one that cannot be measured in dollars and cents. The enjoyment of recognizing a particular grosbeak that comes to your city feeder for sunflower seeds, or a family of raccoons that habitually visits your farm pond, will never be known to those who believe fence-to-fence bluegrass or corn is good habitat. Aldo Leopold was talking about this value of being close to nature when he said: "There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot." Leopold was one who could not. In today's hectic, mechanized world, there are few of us who do not share Leopold's desire for the comfort and satisfaction that a frequent touch with wildlife brings.
The best plan to draw wildlife close to where you live is one that is detailed enough to be useful but simple enough to be practical. The most elaborate planting plan is useless if you never follow through. The first step in developing a plan is to define your goals; to decide exactly what animals you want on your land and find out what plants those animals need to live. For example, if you want to encourage bobwhite quail to fre quent your farm, you'll need to provide good winter cover such as brushy thickets, nesting cover of undisturbed grassy areas, and a food source, possibly weedy patches or food plots. A good source of information on the food preferences of most North American animals is American Wildlife and Plants—A Guide to Wildlife and Food Habits, available in paperback for under $3.
Significant plantings can be made at a minimum cost if a person is will ing to do a bit of looking. Native wildlife does best with native plants, so it seems logical to utilize local plant sources whenever possible. Native bur oak, for example, is better adapt ed to Nebraska soils and climates than exotic pin oaks, and, if you contact landowners with seedlings on their land, most will permit the digging of plants. Many wildflowers are hardy perennials and are every bit as showy as commercial varieties. These, too, are free if you're willing to look a bit and talk to landowners. Unlike many commercial flowers that are sterile and produce no seeds, wildflowers are prolific producers of homegrown bird food.
Keep in mind that variety is the key to making attractive wildlife plant ings. A two-acre plot with nothing but black walnut may attract squirrels, but a two-acre plot with nut trees, bushy shrubs and weedy or grassy ground cover will support a greater variety of wildlife the year around. Presented on the following pages are some suggestions for plantings that will not only attract wildlife to your land but will offer it protection and beauty as well.
Providing Rural Habitat
IF WILDLIFE prospers in Nebraska, it will be because of the state's farmers and ranchers. Unlike some of the western states that have over half of their land under public ownership, less than two percent of our state is public. Habitat is perhaps the most significant factor effecting wildlife populations, and in Nebraska the private landowner has virtually complete control over the quality and quantity of habitat.
If a farmer or rancher is to make a go of his business, his first priority must be crop or livestock production. Wildlife must necessarily take a back seat; but small, seemingly insignificant management changes can mean the difference between a state of border-to-border corn and cows, and a thriving agriculture industry that coexists with and supports an abundance and variety of wild animals. By attentively managing the uncultivated plants that already grow on the land, and by adding others, this Utopian marriage of agriculture and wildlife can be realized.
The requirements of food and shelter are universal for wild animals, whether they be quail, rabbit or deer. Their needs are filled in a nearly end less variety of ways depending upon species of animal, place, season and other factors. One plant may provide food for a dozen or more species of animals in a year's time. Seeds of the common ragweed, for example, have been identified as a regular component in the food of more than 50 species of birds. Seeds of the wild sunflower are used about as commonly, and commercially grown sunflower seeds are eaten readily by such winter residents as cardinals and juncos.
Another requirement of wildlife, that of shelter or cover, is also filled in many ways by plants. Among upland game birds, the general cover types required for maintaining populations include nesting cover, broodrearing cover and roosting cover. Various combinations of plant species may be more attractive to ground nesting birds in filling a particular requirement.
A major problem with habitat is that many people do not recognize existing habitat when they see it; think of ditches, fencerows, brushy draws, abandoned farmsteads and "weed" patches that have been "cleaned up" in the past few years. It would probably be a safe bet that the ditches were choked with smartweed, foxtail, plum, ragweed and many other plants important to wildlife as food and/or cover. The fencerows had stands of fireweed, sunflower and ragweed again important wildlife plants. Those brushy draws with willow, plum, dog wood, chokecherry, ragweed, fire weed and others could have been the difference between keeping a covey of quail on the farm during the winter or its leaving for better cover. They may have provided a whitetail doe and her twins with important browse. Whatever wildlife was in the area most made some use of the plants found in those draws before they were cleared. The abandoned farmstead with its grassy yard, rows of cedars and dense stand of fireweed in the old corral was surely "home" to cottontails and a covey of quail or flock of pheasants. What person in Nebraska has not noticed the association of "weed patches" and pheasants or quail. The point of all this is that many times we already have wildlife plants and should attempt to use them before trying to plant new ones in new areas.
Wildlife plants, like all plants, can be classified in many ways. One of the most useful ways is to think of them as being in one of three groups: woody plants (trees and shrubs), her baceous plants (grasses, forbs and legumes) and aquatic plants (marsh and water plants).
Let's consider the trees and shrubs first, and what can be done with plants already established. If there is a wood lot, brushy draw, pasture with scattered trees or creek bottom on your land, you have important wildlife plants already. It is often hard to make major changes in woody cover, but some minor management can result in major benefits to wildlife.
Perhaps you have an old woodlot on your land. This may be a stand of second growth timber with oak, walnut, ash or others making up the major trees. Before doing anything, you must decide what it is you want to accomplish. Do you want to improve your area for deer, quail, songbirds or some other species? As an example, let's use quail as the wildlife we want to benefit. In this case the goal is to create openings and "edge" in the woodlot. This can be done by thinning and pruning, which will add to the value of your timber while at the same time improving wildlife habitat. Use the cuttings to build brush piles. The ground cover may be choked with many years of litter and undergrowth. If so, you may want to consider burning to rejuvenate the growth of ground cover in the woodlot. If you use fire for this purpose, you should make proper arrangements for controlling the blaze, and burn early in the spring. Plow or disc around the area to be burned to create a firebreak and have enough help available to put out the fire if it should get away from you. Uncontrolled or untimely burns can severely alter the composition of a plant community and limit wildlife's chances to make it through the winter or find adequate nesting cover. Normally, prescribed burning is needed only once every four or five years, or less if the area is grazed.
If you have a pasture with scattered hedge or cedar trees, you can make good use of the trees by cutting them off about four feet above the ground and leaving the top lay around the tall stump. This creates a living brush pile, good for many species of birds and animals. If your wooded area has been grazed in the past, just the exclusion of livestock is very likely to improve it for wildlife. When the natural course of succession needs to be sped up, interplanting may be the answer.
If you don't have woody plants on your land now, some plantings even if small, are in order. Mixed plantings of trees and shrubs supply both food and cover for wildlife. A well man aged woodland provides benefits to wildlife whether it was planted for shelterbelt purposes, for production of commercial products, or for land scape-improvement purposes. A single tree planted in a yard or in a field will trigger a domino effect when shade tolerant shrubs, vines and forbs de velop a community association with this tree. This creation of plant variety in turn allows life support for wildlife.
Many of the tree and shrub species recommended in charts on these pages are native or at least common in some areas of the state. Since Nebraska wildlife utilizes over 2,000 plant species for food and cover, the trees and shrubs recommended should be considered as enhancement to our existing plant communities. We must remember that trees and shrubs not only furnish food for wildlife directly as fruit, foliage, buds and twigs, but also support insect life valuable as food for other wildlife.
All wildlife needs some protection during the winter. For the greatest benefit, wildlife plantings should be at least one acre in size. Belt and windbreak plantings should have at least 10 rows of trees and shrubs to provide adequate winter protection.
Large plantings should be designed with shrubs on the outside (especially north) rows. Dense shrubs such as chokecherry and cotoneaster are best to hold snow to the outside of the
Improvements
that Benefit
the Farmer
and Wildlife
The idyllic scene on the preceding
page may seem unattainable to most rural
landowners. True, it's not something that
you can have overnight or without a little
work, but the rewards to wildlife and the
conservation of land more than justify
the efforts. An aerial view of that same
farm is presented in the map below. On
the pages that follow is a close-up look at
how plantings in specific situations can
benefit the landowner as well as wildlife
All wildlife needs protection during the
winter months. For the greatest benefit to
wildlife, plantings to provide that cover
should be at least one acre in size. A belt or
windbreak planting is one way that the land
owner can do this and at the same time reap
some economic harvest for his efforts.
Ideally, belt plantings have 10 rows of
trees and shrubs, but if space does not permit, narrower belts can be used. Dense
shrubs should be planted on the outside to
prevent snow from piling in the center of
the belt where wildlife will be seeking
protection. Coniferous trees, like redcedar
or pines, should be planted in the center of
the belt to provide a canopy under which
birds and small mammals can retreat during
extended periods of severe winter weather
If hardwoods, like some of the oaks or
walnut, are included in the belt planting,
landowners can realize handsome profits for
their effort. For example, a quarter-mile
windbreak, planted about 35 to 40 years
ago with two rows of black walnut spaced at
12-foot intervals, would be worth more than
$25,000 at today's prices. The demand for
all hardwood lumber will certainly continue
its climb, and planting today is like putting
money in a retirement fund. And, while your
money is literally growing, you can enjoy
the protection and beauty of trees.
Some landowners may want to include
several rows of Christmas tree species, like
Scotch pine, in their row plantings. Under
optimum conditions, these can be cut in five
to six years and offered at December markets
planting. Wild plum, although less effective in holding snow, will provide excellent protective cover for wildlife. Redcedar is an excellent medium-size conifer for wildlife. Ever green trees such as redcedar should be placed close to the center of the belt or block.
If you wish to realize a monetary return on this investment, we encourage you to include species such as Scotch pine, black walnut, oak and hickory. Your Extension Forester can provide information about growing trees for commercial purposes.
One or two-row plantings of trees and shrubs can provide wildlife benefits as hedgerows along field borders and as field dividers. Wildlife species need to travel between food sources, water and different cover types. Trees and shrubs planted as travel lanes to offer cover along those routes can also provide sources of additional food, loafing cover, winter cover, den sites for squirrel and nest sites for birds.
Odd areas are sites not adapted for production of regular agricultural crops. These may be isolated corners, poor soil sites, gullies, streambanksor building sites. Areas such as these on farms and ranches are a practical place to provide homes for wildlife. Your imagination may be used in the design of such plantings. In many cases, the odd areas on your land already are used by wildlife, and adding trees and shrubs will enhance them.
On sites where you wish to add trees or shrubs that need shade, wind protection or winter protection, we suggest that you establish a pioneer planting of willows and poplars before planting less hardy trees and shrubs.
All plantings should be kept reason ably free of weeds and grass for several years. Slow-growing trees must be cultivated even longer. Selective herbicides can be used to control weeds without damage to your plants. Orchard and forest species require special attention such as pruning and thinning, in addition to cultivation. It is essential that livestock be excluded from all trees and shrub plantings.
When a mechanical planter is to be used for larger plantings, the site should be prepared the previous fall. Plowing and discing is the usual
DECIDUOUS TREES SPECIES Bur Oak Red and White Oak Black Walnut Shagbark Hickory Black Cherry Hackberry Green Ash Northern Catalpa American Linden Cottonwood Golden Willow Russian Mulberry Russian Olive Osage Orange Sycamore Amur Maple Crab Apple HEIGHT (feet) 50-70 60-80 40-60 40-70 20-50 50-70 50-60 40-50 40-60 75-100 30-60 15-20 15-25 20-40 60-80 15-20 10-30 GROWTH REQUIREMENTS Dry or moist sites Dry or moist sites Rich, moist sites Most sites Most sites Most sites Dry or moist sites Most sites, especially lowland Most sites Most sites, especially lowland Moist, wet sites Most sites Well drained or dry Hardland Most sites, especially moist Most sites Most sites, sun to partial shade preferred ZONE Statewide East only Statewide East only Southeast Statewide Statewide East only East only Statewide Statewide East & Central Statewide Southeast Statewide Statewide East only PLANTING USE Urban, understory, belt, block, thicket Urban, understory, belt, block —excellent fall color Urban, understory, belt, block, thicket —Thomas variety for large nuts Understory, belt, block, thicket Urban, understory, belt, block, thicket —edible fruit Urban, belt, block, thicket Urban, belt, block, thicket seed bearing varieties best Belt, block, thicket Urban, belt, block, thicket Belt, block, thicket Thicket —especially pond and stream Understory, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Urban, belt, block, thicket Travel lanes, thicket Urban, belt, block, thicket Urban, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Urban and thicket—Radiant and Manchurian best varieties CONIFEROUS TREI SPECIES ES HEIGHT (feet) GROWTH REQUIREMENTS ZONE PLANTING USE Eastern Red Cedar 30-50 Dry or moist, sunny Statewide Travel lane, belt, block, thicket —attractive to overwintering birds Rocky Mountain Juniper 20-30 Dry and sunny Statewide Urban, thicket —many commercial varieties Austrian Pine 50-60 Most sites Statewide Urban, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Ponderosa Pine 40-60 Dry sites Statewide Travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Scotch Pine 40-60 Most sites Statewide Urban, belt, block, thicket-more open and ornamental than other pines White Pine 40-60 Moist sites East only Urban, thicket —protect from south winds Blue Spruce 30-50 Moist sites Statewide Urban, thicket Norway Spruce 40-60 Moist sites East only Urban, thicket Concolor Fir 40-60 Moist sites East only Urban, thicketmethod on hardland sites. In sandy grassland locations, a four-foot strip may be plowed for each row. (Some tree planters have furrow openers for use in planting trees and shrubs in grassland). Sites used the preceding year for crop production may be planted without advance preparation. Hand planting is often the best method for small projects —for underplanting or for plantings not in rows.
When working with herbaceous cover (plants that die back every year) we again find that leaving existing plants is the best approach. As with woody plants, new plants can be added later. Chances are that if some thing does need to be done to improve herbaceous cover, it is simply a matter of disturbing the plants to set succession back. Discing or burning are probably the best methods of accomplishing this but in certain cases grazing or mowing may be best. This "setting back" process should be needed no more often than every four or five years. The benefits to plants is seen as increased seed production, increased plant variety and removal of large accumulations of litter.
When you're thinking about man aging your herbaceous cover, concentrate on these small plots. Roadside cover is valuable for wildlife, especially in areas of the state devoted to row-crop production. Wherever you have land unneeded for agricultural production, there is a potential for areas of wj Id life cover. If we are going to produce food and have wildlife too, we'll have to abandon our traditional attitudes that prescribe "clean" field borders and "neat" fencerows.
To establish new ground cover for wildlife, a mixture of grasses and legumes is best. Variety is the key to wildlife abundance. Included in the group of grasses and legumes are what is commonly called weeds. Early succession plants such as foxtail, cheatgrass, ragweed, sunflower and smartweed are essential ingredients of a prime wildlife community. Weed patches are considered essential for productive wildlife management be cause they provide diversity within the community.
Tall herbaceous plants are valuable for roosting, loafing, escape and winter cover. Some nesting and brood ing will occur if the stand is not too dense. Approximately 30 percent of your wildlife area may be managed as tall grass with legumes included for variety. In the eastern part of Nebraska, Indiangrass, big bluestem, the wheatgrasses, switchgrass, alfalfa and sweet clover are recommended herbaceous cover. Switchgrass, tall wheatgrass, prairie sandreed, the bluestems, alfalfa, sweet clover and hairy vetch are good choices in the west.
Medium-height mixtures are especially valuable for nesting cover. Ap proximately 30 percent of your "spare" land may be utilized for this type of cover. If a variety of plants exist, insect life will be abundant and will provide essential food for young wildlife. Good legumes for most sites in the state are alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil and red clover. Mid grasses like the wheatgrasses, little bluestem and side oats grama are good native choices when selected with the specific site in mind.
Short height mixtures provide the open space required by both birds and mammals. Often, birds land in short vegetation to loaf and then move into taller vegetation to feed or roost. Some birds, such as the bobwhite quail, often nest in this type of vegetation. Approximately 15 percent of your wildlife land should be managed as low cover.
In preparing a seedbed for her baceous seedings, use the same agricultural methods you would to establish a pasture. In weed-free stubble of small grain or sorghum, the seed may be planted without seedbed preparation. If possible, allow a residue of old plant material to remain on the surface of the soil as protection for new grass and legume seedings. A special grass drill is recommended for seeding, especially when native grasses with fluffy seed are included in the mixture. These grass drills can be rented from Natural Resource Districts, the Soil Conservation Service or private contractors.
When soil is disturbed, the first new growth is annual grasses and weeds. These pioneer plants are furnished by nature to heal and cover the soil. As Photograph by Jon Farrar plant succession continues, the annual plants are replaced by perennial grasses and legumes. As time goes on, the perennial herbaceous plants may be replaced by shrubs and trees. Since most wildlife in Nebraska is depend ent on early successional stages of plant life, it may be necessary to set back succession. If invading trees and shrubs become a problem, careful, prescribed burning or spot application of herbicides may be necessary. Prescribed burning will also reduce the density of perennial grasses and allow regrowth of annual plants. If your area is small, unwanted trees can be removed by hand. On larger areas, mowing can be used to reduce invading growth of tree seedlings. You may choose to allow some clumps of native trees or shrubs to grow within your grassland habitat to provide additional wildlife variety. A few large cottonwoods within a field of native grass might be chosen as home by hawks, owls and squirrels. Low-grow ing trees, such as Russian olive, with dense branches are used for nesting by numerous species of songbirds.
When grazing or haying for production of domestic livestock is essential, regulation of plant harvest is most important to the life of your prairie. Grazing rates should be set to allow removal of not more than one-half of the total volume of plants. This rule of-thumb will provide for increased plant growth and higher efficiency in utilization of snow and rain. Deferred or rotation grazing should be scheduled to allow sufficient cover for nest ing and winter protection by wildlife.
For specific recommendation on the use of native grasses and legumes for wildlife plantings in Nebraska, write the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and request a copy of Grasses and Legumes for Wildlife or call and request on-site counseling.
The third group of wildlife plants are those found in or around water. Aquatic plants are of two general types: submergent and emergent. Submergent plants provide food for wild life directly by the production of foliage and seeds, and indirectly by supporting invertebrate animals which in turn are eaten by waterfowl and other water animals. The shortage of adequate submergent plants may be caused by many factors: less than optimum bottom-soil conditions, excessive
Emergent plants are those that are rooted underwater but send aerial parts above the surface. These plants, typified by cattail and rushes, can be a problem when they form into dense stands. Mechanical removal of part of them will be especially beneficial to waterfowl by creating open water holes and breaks in shoreline growth. Some emergent plants are required by wildlife for cover and food, so they should be protected from continual grazing, mowing or other damage.
Each planting site will be different — affected by specific soils, topography, rainfall, temperatures and winds. Every landowner will have different ideas about how much of his land should be devoted to wildlife production, and individual tastes in plant selection and arrangement will vary. The material presented in this short treatment only scratches the surface of managing habitat for wildlife but the concepts and principles are the same whether dealing with an entire section or a spare corner created by a pivot irrigation system. Additional advice can be obtained from your local offices of the Soil Conservation Service, Extension Foresters, County Agents, Natural Resource Districts and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Commercial nurserymen can also provide valuable advice.
Once you've preserved that exist ing patch of wildlife cover or planted new areas, you'll want your neighbors to know that you're not just negligent in mowing. A good way to tell them is by joining the Acres for Wildlife program and displaying a free sign denoting the area as a "cover plot". For more information on this program contact your local Game and Parks Commission office.
SHRUBS SPECIES Chokecherry Skunkbush Sumac Gray Dogwood American Elderberry American Plum Peking Cotoneaster HEIGHT (feet) 10-15 3-6 8-10 4-8 6-12 GROWTH REQUIREMENTS Dry or moist, sun to partial shade Most sites, sun to partial shade Moist, sun to partial shade Moist, all light conditions 6-8 Amur Honeysuckle Winterberry Euonymus Eastern Wahoo Bush Saskatoon Serviceberry Juniper; Pfitzer & Hetzi Arrow-wood Viburnum Bush Willows Dwarf Apple Dwarf Cherry Gooseberry Currant 8-12 12-15 6-10 6-12 4-5 6-8 6-15 6-10 Most sites, sun to partial shade Most sites, sun to partial shade Most sites, sun to partial shade ZONE Statewide Statewide East only Statewide Statewide PLANTING USE Understory, belt, block, thicket —edible fruit Travel lane, belt, block, thicket Understory, thicket —Red osier and Red stem for urban plantings Urban, understory, thicket edible fruit Understory, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Statewide Most sites, sun to partial shade Moist, all light conditions Most sites, shade Most sites, sun to partial shade Moist, all light conditions Wet, sun to partial shade All but Sandhills East only East only Statewide Statewide Statewide Well drained, sunny 3-10 3-6 3-6 Button bush Raspberry & Blackberry Staghom Sumac Common Snowberry Silver Buffaloberry Autumn Olive 5-8 3-6 10-15 2-5 10-15 10-15 Most sites, sunny Most sites, partial shade to shade Most sites, partial shade to shade Moist or wet, sun to partial shade Most sites, partial shade to shade Dry, sun to partial shade Most sites, sun to partial shade Dry, sunny Most sites, sun to partial shade Statewide Urban, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Urban, thicket Urban, understory, thicket Belt, block, thicket Urban, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket Urban (also Nanny berry and Wayfaring Tree) Statewide Statewide Statewide Statewide East only Statewide Statewide Statewide Statewide Eastern 2/3 Urban, thicket Urban, thicket Urban, thicket (especially Nanking) Urban, understory —com mercial varieties for urban Urban, understory —com mercial varieties for urban Thicket Urban, understory— com mercial varieties for urban Urban, thicket —brilliant fall color Thicket —excellent winter bird food Urban, belt, block, thicket Urban, travel lanes, belt, block, thicket VINES SPECIES HEIGHT (feet) GROWTH REQUIREMENTS ZONE PLANTING USE Wild Grape *** Most sites, sun to partial shade Statewide Urban, understory— commercial varieties for urban American Bittersweet *** Most sites, sun to partial shade Generally East Urban, understory Virginia Creeper *** Most sites, all light conditions Statewide Urban, understory — excellent fall color Trumpet Creeper *** Most sites, sun to partial shade Statewide Urban —showy spring blossoms
Providing Urban Habitat
A NATIONAL PARK is a fine place to see wildlife; so is the Nebraska countryside, espe cially if you happen to live there. Most of us, though, live in urban areas and can only visit such places on a summer vacation or a weekend drive. The daily diet of motorcycle reverberations fails to satisfy our appetite for more natural set tings, and most of us would welcome a bit of "wilderness" around our city homes. If you're a frustrated Thoreau, read on and we'll look at some of the ways you can create your own Walden Pond right in your backyard.
Let's say you own an average city lot, 60 by 140 feet. Your house covers about 1,200 square feet, so you've got about 7,200 square feet to plant on. Right now you've got a few flower beds, some ornamental junipers in front of the house, a couple of trees, and lots of bluegrass. You've decided that your goal is to have a variety of songbirds visiting your feeders in the winter and maybe even some birds nesting in the spring. It would be nice to see a few butterflies around, and an occasional hummingbird flittering about in your flower bed. A family of fox squirrels would be welcome every where but in the bird feeder, and cottontails if they didn't develop a craving for the lettuce in your garden.
To keep wildlife on your land, you'll need to meet all of their life require ments—food, water and shelter. If your neighbor two doors down the street has a thriving border of honey suckle or juniper, you might not need to provide nesting cover for birds; only food and water. More than likely, though, you'll want to have a variety of plants that meet all of their needs.
It's going to take time —probably five years at least—to turn your back yard into a miniature wildlife sanctuary, so don't let another season pass without starting. Fall plantings are just as successful as spring plantings, so whatever time of the year it is, you're only a few months away from the time to start. At first it seems like it will take forever, but remember that the 50-foot Austrian pines in your neighbor's backyard had to start as small trees too.
The first step is to put your plan on paper; nothing elaborate, but a well thought-out landscape scheme. Consider all the activities that you use your lawn for and then plan around and for them. If you play croquet or badminton, you'll want to leave an open area. Since your yard is small you'll want every plant to work for you. Tall shrubs and trees can be used as screens to cover a neighbor's unsightly garage or TV antenna, while at the same time they create a wooded effect and provide wildlife habitat.
If you have a large lot, or if you're not going to have open expanses of grass, you can use larger trees around your lot borders. Keep their mature size in mind when you plant. Coniferous trees will provide a better year around screen than deciduous trees that drop their leaves in the fall. Most conifers cover a lot of ground space, though, so if you want a useable lawn under your trees for a picnic bench or gooseberry patch, you may decide on deciduous trees anyway. If you have flower beds or a garden, you'll probably want your trees on the north side of the lot so that they don't shade those plots. In the schematic plan presented here, we've used both coniferous and deciduous trees across the back property line. The deciduous trees are clumped in the corners so that the meshwork of trunks and main branches will form a fairly dense screen, even in the winter. Clusters of large trees, planted several feet apart, are visually more pleasing than evenly spaced trees, and add to the feeling of a deep woods.
If your backyard is small, you can substitute smaller trees for borderline
plantings and create a miniature of the
plan suggested here. Large or small,
these borderline plantings will form
the backbone of your wildlife plantings, providing shelter, nesting and
loafing sites, escape cover from the
neighborhood tabby, and, if the plant
ings include nut trees, a mast crop for
resident squirrels. They will also be
the backdrop against which all your
other plantings are displayed.
The real key to successfully attract ing songbirds to your home is the careful selection of shrubbery. To effectively display the shrubs, you'll probably want to plant them in clusters or "sweeps" just in front of the curtain of tall trees. The resulting stairstep effect is the most attractive to the eye and the most beneficial to wildlife.
The array of shrubbery sold in a well-stocked nursery is nearly end less. Every year new hybrids and varieties are developed and offered for sale, but only a handful provide good wildlife food and cover. An oversimplified but generally reliable rule of thumb, is to select old-fashioned, long-standing favorites. Those types most like native species are best; the species that you're hoping to at tract evolved with these plants. Then, too, many of the new varieties are
The plants you use near the house will probably be decided upon by esthetic and comfort considerations more than their attractiveness to wildlife, but even here compromises are possible. For example, if you have a patio on the south side of the house, you'll probably want it shaded in the summer so that you can "cook out" in comfort. You'll also want to keep sunlight from hitting the patio doors and heating the house in the summer. In the winter, though, you would appreciate those same warming rays. The obvious choice is a small deciduous tree. Make it a clump of redbuds and you'll meet all your needs and have the branches filled with chickadees all winter long. The same principle of multiple use can be applied in most situations. If you need a floral cover for your slatted patio roof, use bitter sweet; the birds will love it. The important thing is to sit down with paper and pencil, decide what you want your plants to do for you, and then make your selections with the needs of wildlife in mind.
If you've got an unsightly dog kennel or a neighbor's camper that you want to visually screen, consider using a "wall" trellis as well as trees and shrubs. Redwood or cedar are the best choices of building material because painting will be impossible once it is vine-covered. Think big when you're building. A wall of intertwining vines can be one of the strongest elements in your landscaping scheme. Grapes, trumpet creeper or bittersweet would be attractive and draw birds when the fruit is fresh and again when times are tough in the winter. Clematis or wisteria would add splashes of color that would draw butterflies and humming birds. A mixture of several vining plants would be a unique planting and would extend the blossoming and fruiting over a longer period of time. Just for a novelty you might want to try some vining natives like virgin's bower or wild cucumber. For year-round foliage, the ivys and holly would be good choices.
Almost every homeowner will want flower beds. Taste in flower selection varies from individual to individ ual, but keep in mind that if you want blossoms that are attractive to butter flies and hummingbirds and flower heads that will produce seeds for birds, you should avoid the sterile hybrids. Old-fashioned "peasant" flowers like marigolds, bachelor buttons or holly hocks are hardy, require little pamper ing and make showy pools of color. Hybrid roses and the new "double" varieties of flowers are about as interesting to a butterfly as a concrete side walk.
If your taste leans toward wildflowers, butterfly weed, gayfeathers, New England aster, prairie coneflower, poppymallow and the goldenrods are excellent choices. To transplant these natives, locate and mark them during their blooming period, ask permission from the landowner to dig, then return after the first killing frost with your spade. The roots receive less of a shock if you can take a good amount of soil. Small plants transplant most successfully.
Regardless of the flowers you plant —wild or domestic —try to make the beds as natural as possible. Avoid evenly spaced, straight rows. Informal plantings in clusters, like a crescent sweep in front of a group of shrubs, are visually the most pleasing.
The landscaping plan presented here is only an idealized model. Every yard lays differently and landscaping tastes are personal. What we've suggested here is just one approach for making a city lot attractive to its own er and to urban wildlife. If you want to devote part of your yard to plant ings, simply appropriate parts of the plan suggested here. The important thing is to start now!
This publication is made available through funding supplied by the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, project W-17-D and by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Extra copies can be obtained from the Nebraska Game and Parks Com mission, Box 30370, Lincoln, Nebr. 68503 Prepared by Resource Services Division jon Farrar, Editor The diagram below suggests just one of many ways that a typical city lot could be attractively landscaped and at the same time provide good wildlife habitat To use this plan, turn to the plant charts presented on the preceding pages, find the appropriate group, select a species suited to your site and when the time comes, plant it at proper location Model Urban Planting
POCKETS OF WILDERNESS
AN AGE-OLD naturalist told us: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." (Gen. 1:28) It was many years ago that man began to conquer the life community on planet earth; man has worked endless hours in order to gain control of this life. As commanders-in-charge, we have authority to use and enjoy the products of this earth, but with this authority, man also is responsible for the wise use of our natural resources.
Within this sacred trust lives a world of nature —wild communities that are the remnants of the old landscape—too complex to fully under stand and immeasurable in value. Wildlife communities are both plant and animal. Each plant or animal has its place in the community of nature, all dependent on each other as the squirrel is dependent on the tree. Nature heals the scars of earth with new vegetation. She rewards man with beauty, wonder and enjoyment. With a wild environment is associated both pure air and clean water.
Pioneers once considered the wilderness an enemy, but today we find nature more attractive as we grow weary of soot, mud and rubbish. We are developing an outdoor conscience; a conscience that recognizes the value of remaining natural areas. We are beginning to accept our responsibility to live in harmony with nature, for continued exploitations will lead to extinctions of both resource and man. Man is now altering his environment with alarming speed. We have selected a relatively few plant and animal species to occupy the land within this state. Corn and cattle now have priority over their once dominant wild cousins. This must be so in order that we may live in comfort, and in accord with the standards of our human society.
Where can we find the natural areas that remain? These are a variety of wild communities —a tract of river forest, a wooded stream, a roadside clump of wild plum and sumac or a once eroded gully or hillside now filled with a salad bowl of vegetation.
We can see a naturalized wilder ness in some man-made plantings. The farmstead windbreaks, the hedge rows, or even the shrubbery in the cover of the city yard are of some value to our wild birds and animal life. Even the dandelion, the pest of modern lawns or the sunflower, a pest of our cultivated fields, play a valuable role in the life of a wild community. They contribute food and shelter to insects, birds and mammals. They also contribute beauty to a wild community. All these are examples of our remaining habitats for wild plants and animals; our remaining glimpse of the past.
What about those plants not chosen to occupy our broad fields, and those animals not chosen to share our barns? The wild cousins continue to survive even though man has for gotten them in his master plan. Their survival continues only because they are adapted to Nebraska earth. They also have an immense capacity to reproduce. Even so, man's plan of action has forced our wild cousins to give up many places, diminished both in species and in number. In this state, over 1,700 varieties of plant life carpet the landscape. From this large plant kingdom, just a relatively few varieties are cultivated for food and fiber. A limited number of plant varieties, such as the juniper and dogwood, have been selected from the wild to beautify our man made works of wood, steel and stone. Nebraska is home for approximately 100 wild mammal species and subspecies, ranging from large deer to the small shrew. Only the domesticated cow, pig and lamb are carefully nourished in volume for the dinner table. Our wild bird life numbers in the millions, from a variety of 300 species and sub-species. Only the domesticated chicken, turkey, duck and goose receive our careful attention. In the vast insect world, over 95% are considered as beneficial to our modern environment, yet we think of all bugs as pests.
A few birds and mammals have been condemned because they prefer flesh as food —just as man values beef, pork and poultry. But many plants and insects have fallen from favor of man. Those insects we condemn as pests savor the taste of our tender, domesticated plant and animal species. The plant villains known as noxious weeds number less than 20. Yet, over 200 varieties are classed as weedy invaders, including many native flowers such as goldenrod, yucca and catnip. A new plant or insect renegade seems to spring out of the wild each time a new herbicide or pesticide strikes down a wildlife cousin. As we attack a specific weed or insect which we don't like, we may well destroy plants or insects that are not harmful; in fact, they may be extremely vital to the life community. Too often our wilderness, natural areas or "open spaces" are referred to as wasteland or as unproductive land. The "wasteland" of today may well be the "diamond" of tomorrow.
How then do we provide a place for our remaining wildlife? We cannot wait for government agencies, nature clubs or more able individuals to do their share plus our share of the job. Both young and old must rise to the challenge.
Residents of farm, ranch, city or village; hunters, fishermen, campers; those who travel the country roads for pleasure; hikers —everyone who has an appreciation of nature —must join the effort to preserve the remain ing natural communities, for as one naturalist said, "wilderness is a re source that can shrink but not grow."
The Mexican Connection
An international treaty elevated the status of the lowly crow, but his character and availability remain unaltered
FROM OUTWARD APPEARANCES, the crow is a critter that nobody could love. Its song frays rather than soothes the nerves, and its appearance suggests demonic qualities rather than the angelic virtues associated with most other birds.
The crow's palatability is such that entire generations of humans come and go without producing more than one or two individuals willing to try them on a platter. And certainly, no one could take up the crow's cause because they have become scarce, as residents in the area of a rookery or winter roost will testify that there are stili more than plenty of crows around to suit their fancy.
Then why does this apparently unloved bird suddenly enjoy immunity from the dynamite, nest shooting and other aspects of the small but intense vendetta it has endured for years? And why is the crow now im mune from hunters for roughly two-thirds of the year?
The answer is that the crow is finally getting a break largely because of its relatives. Crow seasons enacted in Nebraska and most other states last year were the result of a treaty with Mexico to cover a whole list of birds truly in need of protection.
These included eagies, hawks, herons, storks, flamingos, loons, pelicans, owls and ospreys. Also among those to be protected was a variety of Mexican crow that has been on the decline. What put the everyday, run-of-the-mill, common crow in such elite company was the fact that the treaty dealt with entire families of birds, not just single species. In the case of the Mexican crow, this was the Corvidae family, which includes ravens, magpies, jays, and the crow. All these have somewhat shaky reputations and bad habits.
In the case of crows, the treaty did not cut off the hunting of them entirely, and it did leave provisions for handling depredations by troublesome concentrations of the birds. In essence, the treaty has simply made some of the more questionable tactics illegal. These include shooting them from aircraft, shooting during the nesting season, dynamiting, or methods other than firearms, bow and arrow or falconry.
This leaves crow hunting, as a sport, largely unaltered. During a 124-day season allowed by the treaty and the U.S. Department of Interior, shotgunners can still try to call, decoy or otherwise con the shifty bandits into scattergun range. And during that same season, riflemen are still free to test the accuracy of their long range varment guns on crows that sit still long enough to give them a shot.
Because of the treaty, the Interior Department has set up federal guidelines for crow hunting. The states then set their individual seasons within these guidelines, much the same way waterfowl regulations are set. In Nebraska, for example, the 1974 season will open December 1, with closing date to be established at the August meeting of the Game Commission.
Some crow hunters and farmers may not agree with any sort of restriction on crow shooting, in light of the bird's reputation and habits. Crows are accused of all sorts of depredations, and most of the charges are at least partially justified. Some say they pull up young corn plants, kill baby quail, destroy ripening fruit and grain, eat young songbirds and bunnies, and damage trees and shelterbelts when they gather in large concentrations.
In some parts of the country, duck hunters feel obligated to trim the crow population because they have been known to destroy up to 25 percent of the duck eggs in a given area. In fact, more than one wild life biologist has been heard to say: "If you see a crow flying by, he's either on his way to commit some sort of depredation, or he's just returning from one."
When the regulations were announced in July of 1973, the director of Interior's Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, Spencer Smith, said: "We recognize that crow and magpie depredations are widespread and that they can and do commit serious depredations at times .. .and that they may also concentrate so as to constitute a nuisance or health hazard."
On the other side of the coin, the crow performs at least a couple of worthwhile services. Most obvious is the cleanup of dead animals, such as road kills and isolated field mortalities. They also consume prodigious quantities of insects, at times.
To those who must assign values of good or evil to everything, the crow would probably come out labeled a villain. Even the few shelters offered him by the treaty and federal regulations might seem unwarranted. On the other hand, many people, including some sport hunters, probably feel that crows should not be hunted at all, since they cannot be eaten or otherwise utilized.
But, a reasonable assessment of the situation would probably support the crow-hunting regulations as they now stand. In the first place, the common crow was never in any danger of extinction even in the days of unrestricted hunting, dynamiting of rookeries or roost ing areas, or similar practices. Therefore, a 124-day season should not put any undue pressure on them. If anything endangers the crow population in the future, it will probably be pollution, loss of habitat or some other form of environmental degradation that our society seems to tolerate and encourage in the name of progress. It certainly won't be hunting.
Crow populations should not blossom out of control under the new regulations, either. Ample provision within the federal guidelines allow the states to take swift, independent action in cases of depredations or extreme concentrations.
Hopefully, the 124-day season should keep crow numbers at a tolerable level, and provide crow hunters with reasonable shooting. There is no reason to continue the crusade against crows as a "mean" or "evil" bird. Nor is there any justification to grant them complete protection, as some would do. Crows are neither moral nor immoral, good nor bad. They are simply crows, doing the things that come naturally to crows. This makes them pests that must be controlled, and makes them challenging, wily, and often an exasperating quarry for some hunters.
So, why shouldn't we use something that keeps the crow population in check and provides recreation for many people at the same time? The crow season we now have should accomplish just that.
Prairie Life Barking Squirrel
THE VILLAGE OF these animals covd. about 4 acres of ground on a gradual decent of a hill and Contains great numbers of holes on top of which those little animals Set erect and make a Whisteling noise and whin allarmed Step into their hole." With those words, William Clark made the first written account of the prairie dog on September 7, 1804 in Boyd County, Nebraska.
It is possible that Spanish explorers encountered these "barking squirrels" as early as 1541, and the French explorers Louis and Francois Verendrye named them petit chien, or little dog, when they first saw them in 1742 in what would become Montana and the Dakotas. But it was on the Lewis and Clark expedition from the Mississippi River to the Pacific coast that the prairie dog was first described and a specimen collected.
Collecting those first specimens proved to be one of the major tasks of the expedition. An enlisted man collected the first one with a rifle shot and it subsequently "was cooked for the Capts dinner." Further attempts to gather specimens with the gun failed and the men resorted to digging the animals out of their burrows. After digging for six feet and finding no hint of a bottom to the tunnels they gave up that tack and started hauling barrels of water up from the river. All members of the expedition, excepting those left to guard the boats, were thus engaged in carrying water for the better part of a day. Though they persisted until nightfall, they succeeded in capturing only one of the perverse rodents.
It seems curious that an animal so common and numerous as the prairie dog should prove so difficult to capture. The prairie dog's original home was a wide belt of mixed-grass prairie extending from the foothills of the Rockies into eastern Nebraska and Kansas, and from southern Canada in to Mexico.
The prairie dog's gregarious nature made the decline of the species in evitable. It is this same communal lifestyle that makes the prairie dog one of the most interesting members of the prairie environment. Few grass land mammals are colonial; the bison being an obvious exception. Unlike the bison, which were constantly on the move, prairie dogs were unique in that they were not only colonial but sedentary as well. They could survive only in large, permanent societies, an arrangement not far removed from our own. And like human societies, the survival of the prairie dog hinged on the town's complex social structure and the ability of each member to live within its rules. The unraveling of prairie dog customs has been one of the most interesting chapters in the journals of animal behavior.
Each prairie dog town is an autonomous unit; that is, all of prairie dog's life requirements are met within its perimeters. Some dog towns cover only a few acres, others once measured 1 50 miles from side to side. John King, an authority on prairie dog behavior, has described two geographical and social units that exist within each town, regardless of its size.
Large towns are generally divided into several subunits that King calls "wards". A ward is a part of town separated from other sections by natural features of the environment such as ridges, intermittent streams or blow outs. Individual prairie dogs seldom travel from ward to ward even though they may be only a few yards apart. So exclusive is this unit that almost all matings occur within the wards and they thus become distinct breed ing units. When danger threatens, though, prairie dogs in different wards exchange warning barks to the benefit of all individuals in the town.
Within each ward are social groups called "coteries" that may consist of as many as 40 individuals in the spring when young dogs are just venturing from the burrows, or may number as few as two after a severe winter. According to King's observations, the coterie is the basic social unit in the town and is characterized by frequent, friendly social contacts within the coterie and hostile social contacts with members of different coteries. Animals within the coterie have free movement of all the burrows in it and are frequently seen grooming, kissing and playing with other members of it. Aggressive behavior is seldom seen among its members.
While the number of prairie dogs within any given coterie may vary significantly, the social composition is fairly rigid. A typical coterie consists of one dominant male, two or more adult females, yearling animals and young of the year. Occasionally there will be two adult males present, in which case one is always the undisputed lord over the other. The number of females in the coterie depends on the number that survive the winter, and the number of young depends on litter size and number of reproducing females. As the number of prairie dogs within each coterie expands, excess animals move to the edge of the town. Eventually sections may split off, establishing new coteries.
The advantages of this rather rigid social system are manifest. The defense of a coterie by its members prevents overpopulation and results in an equitabledistribution of prairie dogs within a town, an arrangement that equalizes demands on the food supply. It also is a deterrent to the spread of disease. The forced migration of individuals from crowded coteries insures their mating with animals of different blood lines and results in genetic variability.
The importance of the social system to the survival of the prairie dog was well described by David Costello in his book The Prairie World:
"This town was complete with prairie dogs, burrowing owls, rattle snakes and cottontails. The 'poison experts' got in their licks and killed all but about a dozen prairie dogs. Now, I realize that the coterie system had beer destroyed, that the widely distributed remaining prairie dogs were probably unfamiliar with each other, and that they were uncooperative because of the long distances between them. Also, they were too few in number-the thousand eyes that formerly located enemies were reduced below the critical minimum for warning of enemies. In the second summer after the poisoning, wheat grasses, pigweeds and other tall plants grew faster than the prairie dogs could clip them down for good visibility. At last, only one prairie dog remained. I saw it sitting lonesomely on its mound in the late summer...I suspect that a coyote or golden eagle ended its existence."
A town is more than just a place where prairie dogs live. It is a hunting ground for predators like the eagle, coyote or ferret, and ready-made homes for an assortment of other animals like burrowing owls, spotted liz ards or the bullsnakes that come to crop the resident mice. The principle predators of the prairie dog, though, Photographs by Jon Farrar are badgers, coyotes, rough-legged hawks and eagles. Since prairie dogs are significantly larger than the smaller rodents —like the jumping mice, prairie vole or kangaroo rat —they have little to fear from the legion of predatory birds.
Formerly the mostdangerous enemy of the prairie dog was the black-footed ferret. These large, weasel-like predators are now among the rarest of North American animals. Never abundant, the ferret nearly passed into extinction as massive poisoning programs systematically eliminated its primary food source.
The number of prairie dogs taken by
rattlesnakes, once believed to be large,
is now considered insignificant. Only
38
NEBRASKAland
SEPTEMBER 1974
39
the largest snakes would be capable
of taking a prairie dog, and then only
during the short time period when
young prairie dogs were small and
helpless.
Interesting tales about the relation ships between the prairie dog and the rattlesnake grew up during the 1800s, though. One observer wrote: "A curious thing about the snake and the dog is that each is mortally afraid of the other. The dog is afraid of being eaten by the snake, and the snake is afraid of being entombed by the dog. If the mother of young dogs, on a return to the home hole, finds that a snake has intruded, she at once sets up a peculiar cry or bark to which all the citizens of the town at once respond. They gather about the hole, and in a moment all are at work filling it up. There is no chance for an escape of the invader. He is sealed up in his tomb."
In an attempt to determine the true relationship between the rattlesnake and prairie dogs, several researchers have actually tethered live snakes near the openings of the burrows. One reported that the dogs were curious about the snake and fed within a foot of it. The prairie dogs never used their alarm bark near the snake, and when it was released, one pup followed it and pawed at its tail. Since most snakes are still in hibernation when the prairie dogs are having their young, it is doubtful that they are much of a factor in limiting dog populations.
Unlike their reaction to snakes, prairie dogs show great fear of predacious birds. The fact that the prairie dog's eye is specially adapted to perceive aerial enemies and rather poor ly equipped to spot those that approach at ground level testifies to the effectiveness of hawks and eagles as prairie dog predators. There is even a specific vocalization to warn of the approach of a bird of prey.
In all, there are 10 different calls recognized in the language of the prairie dog: warning bark, hawk warning, defense bark, muffled bark, territorial call, disputing churr, chuckle, fear scream, fighting snarl and tooth chattering.
The warning bark is the most common call in the prairie dog town. This series of yips is the primary alerting call and tells other dogs to sit up and see what is about. Intrusion by a human, a blowing piece of paper or even a horned lark is enough to elicit this call. Unlike the little boy who cried wolf, the warning bark seemingly can not be overdone, as some dogs will give it for as long as two hours after the threat has passed.
The hawk warning, a more intense version of the warning bark, is reserved almost exclusively for birds of prey. Prairie dogs hearing the hawk bark do not sit up and look for danger, but accept their comrade's warning and immediately head for cover.
Defense barks are heard most commonly when a female crosses into a neighboring coterie and is attacked by its resident male. The defensive call holds off the aggressive male and summons the male of her coterie to come to her aid. The muffled bark is similar but is given by a female in defense of her nesting territory.
The territorial call is perhaps the most spectacular as it is accompanied
The disputing churr, chuckle, fear scream, fighting snarl and tooth chattering calls are used in disputes with other prairie dogs, when attacked by other animals, or when being handled by man.
Communication among prairie dogs is by no means restricted to vocalization, though. Touch, smell and sight are also important.
Tactile stimulation is an important means of recognition between prairie dogs of the same coterie. The "kiss" is the most common form of tactile communication and is exchanged whenever two individuals meet with in their territory. With mouths open and teeth showing, the two individuals make contact, sometimes only the gentlest touch, other times rather long kisses lasting 10 seconds or more. Frequently it is followed by a groom ing session or by the two dogs lying side by side. When one prairie dog kisses another it is actually saying: "I live in this coterie too; no need to fight."
Mutual grooming is another important way in which members of one coterie maintain group strength and lower aggression. During grooming sessions, lasting anywhere from 2 minutes to 10, one prairie dog nibbles and paws at the other. The one being groomed actively seeks this attention, crawling and rolling under the other's muzzle so as to expose all parts of his body.
Smell is probably the least developed sense in prairie dogs. Occasionally, during territorial disputes, animals from different coteries have been observed to alternate in smelling the anal glands of their opponents. This "smelling and being smelled" session may last as long as 15 minutes and sometimes precedes actual combat. Usually, though, it is a harmless
way of settling disagreements over territorial boundaries.
The sense of vision is well developed in most prairie animals and the prairie dog is no exception. If members of a coterie are to exclude others from their grounds, they must be immediately able to determine who belongs and who doesn't. This identification of intruders must be done be fore allowing approach close enough for touch or smell to be of much help. Generally, it is not the actual recognition of an animal but its behavior that makes identification possible. A trespassing prairie dog, for example, would be identified on sight because its behavior would indicate that it was ready to either flee, bark or meet the impending rush. A member of the same coterie, with nothing to fear, would meet such a challenge with a submissive crouch, tail wag or preparation for the kiss.
Our knowledge of the little animals that William Clark noted in his journal "Set erect and make a Whisteling noise" has grown tremendously. Papers on the biology and ecology of the prairie are abundant. But, while the volumes have increased, the prairie dogs have dwindled to few. Today, they are largely a curiosity for tourists to toss peanuts to, a target for some varment hunter, or, until recently, a job for a tax-supported poisoner. Those few who do lament the passing of the 1 00-mile-wide towns do so with a cupboard full of bread from the wheat fields that now cover the prairie dog's short-grass plains.
NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA... SHARP-TAILED GROUSE
Art by Tom KronenTHE GROUSE FAMILY (Tetraonidae) is represented in Nebraska by two species, the sharp-tailed grouse and its closest relative, the greater prairie chicken. The sharptail is a single species with three subspecies: the northern, the prairie and the Columbian. The prairie sharptail is the one found in Nebraska, and goes by the scientific name Pediocetes phasianellus jamesi.
The general appearance of the sharptail is brownish-gray with black, buff and white markings. Closer exam ination reveals the breast is white with dark gray V-shaped markings on the upper part. The back is brown with white, black and buff spotting. The wings are gray with white and buff markings on the "shoulders;" the front vanes of the primaries are marked with white spots and bars and the feather shaft is dark gray to black. The tail is wedge-shaped with the center two tail feathers about two inches longer than those on the sides. The upper portion of the tail is the same color as the back, while the sides and bottom are white. Typical of all grouse, the legs are feathered to the feet.
In general appearance, both male and female are the same. However, the sexes can be distinguished by color pattern on the head feathers, and to a lesser degree on the two central tail feathers. The female head feathers are dark with buff colored crossbars. The tail feather pattern is the same. Males exhibit a dark, wide stripe longitudinally on the head feathers, and generally a longitudinal, light stripe down the middle of the tail feathers. The male also has a more pronounced yellow "eyebrow" patch.
The sharptail is slightly smaller in size than the prairie chicken, weigh 42 ing 1 % to 2 pounds. Males are slightly heavier than females.
Because of poor records and confusion between the identification of prairie chickens and sharptails, it is difficult to say what the sharptail's range was in Nebraska prior to the coming of the white man. It probably was throughout the grassland areas of the state prior to settlement. Its present range is somewhat smaller in that it is confined to the Sand Hills in the North-central portion of the state. This area covers approximately 20,000 square miles, with sharptails more predominant in the western and north ern portions.
Sharptails begin gathering on display grounds for courtship activities in late February and March. The activity reaches a peak about mid to late April. Courtship activity continues until late May or early June, and birds can be found in the general vicinity of the display grounds year-round.
Time of nesting will vary with latitude and weather. In Nebraska, nest ing usually begins about the end of April. As might be expected of a ground-nesting bird of the grasslands, the best nesting sites are where there has been light to moderate grazing. Thick clumps of grass and shrubs on north and east slopes are preferred. At the time of nesting, there is little or no new growth and it is last year's residual vegetation that provides nest ing cover. The average clutch size is 12, with a range from 7 to 17; incubation period is 21-23 days. The eggs are protectively camouflaged in olive, dark buff or brown with dark brown speckling.
Although nesting success information is not plentiful, it appears that generally 50 to 60 percent of the hens bring off broods. Nebraska sharptail broods for the past 18 years have averaged 7.1 young per brood. This has varied from a low of 5.9 in 1962 to a high of 8.7 in 1958.
The downy young are grayish yellow with black and buff markings above and pale, greenish-yellow be low. The chicks are precocial and roam around the nest feeding soon after hatching. In about 10 days they are capable of weak flight, and by four weeks of age they are well feathered and proficient flyers. By mid-Sep tember or early October, the young are physically like adults.
Sharptails do not depend upon cultivated crops during any part of the year, although they will use such food if it is available. In a study done on the Valentine Refuge, clover is by far the most important late spring and summer food, while wild rose is the most importantfall food. During spring when greens appear, the birds' diet consists mainly of new plant growth. During the summer, the diet is composed of fleshy fruits, insects, flowers and greens, while the fall diet appears to be mainly weed seeds, fruits, waste grain and greens. In the winter the diet is mainly buds (cottonwood, willow and birch are favorites), rose hips and juniper berries. Probably wild rose is the single most important food source, because at one time or another during the year, the flowers, fruits, buds, seeds and leaves will be eaten.
In juvenile birds, insects constitute 90 percent of the diet up to about 3 weeks of age. This then drops to less than 10 percent at 12 weeks of age.
While predation is not a limiting factor for sharptails, they will be taken by flesh-eating animals. The taking of an adult sharptail by a raptor is uncommon. Foxes and coyotes will occasionally get an adult bird, while skunks, badgers, raccoons, bull snakes, crows and ground squirrels destroy some nests. However, the main point to remember in fighting predation is to improve the habitat and not attempt to eliminate the predator.
The sharp-tailed grouse was present in the area now known as Nebraska for thousands of years. Thus it seems that man is the only factor that could completely eliminate the sharptail. We must make ourselves and others realize that to destroy the sharptail or any other species is to destroy a bit of ourselves.
ERRORS COME BEFORE ARROWS
(Continued from page 6)enough for a shot. Well, sure enough, in they came, straight for me. I got down behind the stack, arranging the hay so as to provide total concealment and yet allow me room enough to shoot. The morning air was still and finally I could hear them prancing about on the other side of the stack. They were going to pass by close enough so that even if I couldn't hit one with an arrow, I could stick out a foot and trip one. I was sitting there with an arrow half drawn, contemplating on what a nice guy I was, and clever, and lucky, too, to have things work out so well, when I heard a passing car honking from a nearby county road. He'd honked to get a couple of heifers out of his way and he accomplished that. He sent them flying alright, and my unsuspecting antelope right along with them. I never got even a glimpse of them, but I counted hoofbeats as they ran off.
The next day found me in a pasture of the Oglala National Grasslands north and west of Crawford. I had spotted a band of a dozen or more antelope and watched them vanish from view behind a hill. Up on following, I found them bedded down in a wide valley that for the most part was covered with tall grasses. Getting into the valley unseen was the easy part; after that, 300 yards of sharp rocks and prickly cactus awaited me. Nearly every inch had to be made either on hands and knees or by belly crawling, all accompanied by much wincing and silent suffering. Covering my self with camouflage netting for added concealment, I crawled to within 50 yards of the nearest doe. That was still toward the outer limits of my range, so I decided to play a waiting game. If they got up and started moving away, I decided to take a desperation shot. If they came closer, I'd wait for the best opportunity. Fate was with me, for it wasn't long before they began milling around, casually grazing and gradually closing the distance. Finally they were less than 30 yards away, and although they had seen me, they weren't alarmed due to the netting that broke my outline. When my odds were as good as they were going to get, I raised up with arrow nocked and bow ready. But the tide turned against me, for in my haste when I drew back, the arrow fell from the rest, drowning my hopes in a sudden, over whelming tide of futility.
Such was my first introduction to the sport of antelope hunting with a bow. Close calls and near misses-attempts that failed in the last second with a quick frown from Lady Luck.
Actually, an animal as well adapted to its environment as the pronghorn neither
Make reservations with one of these
Nebraska Lodging Association members
AINSWORTH
REMINGTON ARMS MOTEL.
xk Mile East on U.S. 20 402-387-2220
ALBION
DUNES MOTEL. Hwy. Jet. 39, 14 & 91 402-395-2105
ALLIANCE
WEST WAY, Best Eastern, U.S. 385 Wes 308-762-4040
McCARROL'S MOTEL. Hwy. 2 & 385 East 308-762-3680
RAINBOW LODGE. Hwys. 2, 385 West 308-762-4980
FRONTIER MOTEL, Hwys. 2, 385 West 308-762-1320
ALMA
WESTERN HOLIDAY. Best Western
210 Hwys. 183 & 383 308-928-2155
ARAPAHOE
McCOY MOTEL, West on Hwy. 6 & 34 308-962-8945
AUBURN
PALMER HOUSE MOTEL, U.S. 73 & 75 South 402-274-3193
B & B MOTEL, 517 J St 402-274-3143
AURORA
KEN'S, Best Western. U.S. 34 West 402-694-3141
BAYARD
LA POSADA MOTEL, U.S. 26 308-5861375
BEATRICE
HOLIDAY HOUSE MOTEL, U.S. 77 North 402-223-4070
BELLEVUE
BELLEVUE RAMADA INN,
Hwy. 370 at Hillcrest Drive 402-292-3800
BENKELMAN
CIRCLE B MOTOR LODGE, U.S. Hwy. 34 & 61 308-423-2922
BLAIR
BLAIR HOUSE MOTEL, U.S. 30 West 402-426-4555
BLOOMFIELD
FOUR SEASONS MOTEL, Hwy. 84, Rt. 3 402-373-2441
BRIDGEPORT
DELUX MOTEL, Hwys. 385 4 26 308-2620290
BROKEN BOW
WILLIAM PENN LODGE, East Hwys. 2-92-70 308-872-2412
BURWELL
RODEO MOTEL, Hwys. 11 4 91 308-346-4408
CENTRAL CITY
CRAWFORD MOTEL, Hwy. 30 East 308-946-3051
CHADRON
GRAND MOTEL. Friendship Inn
West Hwy. 20 4 385 308-432-5595
ROUNDUP MOTEL, xh Mile East on U.S. 20 308-432-5591
LOG CABIN MOTEL, East U.S. 20 308-432-5597
WESTERNER MOTEL, W. Hwy. 20 308-432-5577
CHAPPELL
EL RANCHO MOTEL, East Hwy. 30 308-874-2852
EMPIRE MOTEL, U.S. 30 East 308-874-2805
COLUMBUS
COUNTRY CLUB INN, Jet. U.S. 30 4 81 402-564-2886
ROSEBUD MOTEL, U.S. 30 East 402-564-3256
COZAD
COZAD MOTEL, Hwy. 30 West 308-784-2059
EVENING STAR COURT, Hwy. 30 West 308-784-3360
CIRCLE "S" MOTEL, 1-80 Exit 308-784-2290
CRAWFORD
HILLTOP MOTEL, So. Hwy. 20 4 2 308-665-1144
TOWNLINE MOTEL, Hwys. 2 4 20 308-665-1450
CRETE
STAR MOTEL, East Hwy. 33 402-826-3344
CURTIS
HI LINE MOTEL, 323 Center St 402-367-4340
FALLS CITY
CHECK-IN MOTEL. North Hwy. 73 402-245-2800
STEPHENSON MOTOR HOTEL, 1800 Stone St. 402-245-2448
FREMONT
LAKE SUNSET MOTEL, 2 Mi. West on Hwy. 30 402-721-7860
MODERN AIRE, Best Western, East on Hwy. 30 402-721-2713
RANCH MOTEL, West Hwy. 30 402-721-9348
GERING
CIRCLE S LODGE, Hwy. 92 East 308-436-2157
GORDON
HILLS MOTEL, Jet. Hwys. 20 4 27 308-282-1795
HACIENDA MOTEL, W. Hwy. 20 308-282-1400
GOTHENBURG
TODDLE INN MOTEL, 1-80 4 Hwy. 47 308-537-3638
WESTERN MOTOR INN, 1-80 4 Hwy. 47 308-537-3622
GRAND ISLAND
4-PLEX MOTEL, 1808 West 2nd 308-382-6750
GRAND ISLAND TRAVELODGE, U.S. 30 Downtown 308-384-1000
HOLIDAY INN (I 80). Jet. 1-80 4 U.S. 281 308-384-7770
HOLIDAY INN (Mid Town), 2503 Locust 308-384-1330
ISLAND INN, Best Western, 2311 So. Locust 308-382-1815
VALENTINE MOTEL,
1 blk. So. on Hwys 34 4 2 on S. Locust 308-384-1740
HASTINGS
NEW CLARKE MOTOR HOTEL CO.,
223 N. Hastings 402-462-5161
REDONDA MOTEL, East Hwy. 6. 402-462-2404
HEBRON
BLUE TOP MOTEL, U.S. 81 402-768-6524
HENDERSON
WAYFARER II MOTEL, Best Western
1-80 Interchange 402-723-5856
HOLDREGE
PLAINS MOTEL, U.S. 6 4 34 West Edge 308-995-8646
HUMPHREY
MIDWAY MOTEL, Jet. Hwy. 81 4 91 402-923-3711
IMPERIAL
MRS. HAPS MOTEL, U.S. 6 North 308-882-4429
KEARNEY
CANNON MOTEL, West on Hwy. 30 308-234-2771
HOLIDAY INN, 301 So. Second Ave 308-237-3141
SHADY LANE MOTEL, \xh Mi. Weston Hwy. 30 308-237-5161
TEL-STAR MOTOR INN, Best Western,
1 Mi. North 1-80 Exit 308-237-5185
WESTERN INN, Best Western,
IMi. North 1-80 Exit 308-237-3153
WESTERN MOTEL, Friendship Inn, U.S. 30 East 308-234-2408
KIMBALL
SLUMBER J LODGE, West Hwy. 30 308-235-3666
1-80 INN, I 80 4 U.S. 71 308-235-4616
PLAINS MOTEL, Hwy. 30 308-235-4666
LEMOYNE
FRENCH'S PARADISE, by Lake McConaughy 308-355-2102
LEXINGTON
GREEN VALLEY MOTEL, West Hwy. 30 308-324-7996
HOLLINGSWORTH MOTEL, Friendship Inn
East Hwy. 30 308-324-2388
LEE'S MOTEL, East Hwy. 30 308-324-4603
MOTEL ROYAL, Best Western
Hwy. 283 4 1-80 Exit 308-324 5601
TODDLE INN MOTEL, I 80 4 Hwy. 283 308-324-5595
LINCOLN
ARMSTRONG MOTEL. 7303 West "0" St 402-435-6685
BUFFALO MOTEL, Friendship Inn, 347 No. 48th 402-466-1931
CARRIAGE HOUSE MOTEL, Best Eastern
4500 Comhusker Hwy., U.S. 6 4 77 N.E 402-464-3127
COLONIAL INN, 5600 Cornhusker Hwy 402-434-5971
CONGRESS iNN, 2001 West "0" St 402-477-4488
FAIRVIEW MOTEL, 1400 Cornhusker Hwy 402-432-8041
GREAT PLAINS MOTEL.
U.S. 34 4 City 6 4 2732 "0" St 402-432-3253
HOLIDAY INN, Airport 402-475-4971:
LINCOLN HILTON, 9th 4 P,
Scheduled to Open Summer 1974 402-475-4011
RADISSON CORNHUSKER, 301 S. 13th St 402-432-4471
SENATE INN, Friendship Inn
2801 West "0" St 402-475-4921
SHARON MOTEL, U.S. 77 402-475-2691 [
SHERATON INN, N.W., 12 Bond St 402-475-9541
SLEEPY HOLLOW, Best Western
East U.S. 34 4 City Route U.S. 6 402-464-3166
STARLITE MOTEL, 5200 Cornhusker Hwy 402-466-1902
VILLAGER MOTEL 4 CONVENTION CENTER
5200 "0" St 402-464-9111
WEST "0" MOTEL, 1402 West "0" St. 402-432-5127
LOUP CITY
COLONY INN, Hwys. 92-5810 308-745-0164
McCOOK
CEDAR MOTEL, Best Eastern, U.S. 6 4 34 East 308-3451896
CHIEF MOTEL. Friendship Inn,
U.S. 6, 34, 83 West 308-345-3700
NIOBRARA
RIVERSIDE MOTEL, Hwy. 12 East 402-857-3773
NORFOLK
BUCK-A-ROO MOTEL, Hwy. U.S. 81 402-371-1240
FLAMINGO MOTEL, U.S. 81 So 402-371-3220
HOLIDAY INN, U.S. 278 4 81 402-371-4430
SEY CREST, Hwy. 275 East, City Rt 402 371-2750
NORTH PLATTE
CEDAR LODGE MOTEL, U.S. 30 West 308-532-9710
CIRCLE C SOUTH MOTOR INN,
1211 S. Dewey St. 308-5320130
EL RANCHO SUPERIOR MOTEL, West Hwy. 30 308-5320490
HOLIDAY INN, Jet. U.S. 83 4 1-80 308-532-9090
PARK MOTEL, 1302 N. Jeffers 308-532-6834
PLAINS MOTEL, East Hwy. 30 308-532-1777
RAMBLER COURT, Friendship Inn, West Hwy. 30 308-532-9290
RANCH MOTEL, 508 Rodeo Road 308-532-5786
SANDS MOTOR INN. 1-80 4 Hwy. 83 308-532-0151
TRIANGLE MOTEL, West Hwy. 30 308-532-6654
UPTOWN MOTEL, East U.S. 30 308-532-4775
OGALLALA
ELMS MOTEL, U.S. 30 West 308-284-3404
HOLIDAY INN, 201 Chuckwagon Road 308-284-3625
LAKEWAY LODGEWAY.
North of Hwy. 30 on Hwy. 26 308-284-4004
LAZY K MOTEL, U.S. 30 East 308-284-4085
PARADISE-FRIENDSHIP INN, East Hwy. 30 308-284-3684
VALLEY MOTEL, Hwy. 61 No. U.S. 26 308-284-3676
OMAHA
AIRFIELD PLAZA INN, Abbot Dr. 4 Locust St. 402-342-5100
BEN FRANKLIN MOTEL, Friendship Inn,
1-80 4 Hwy. 50 402-333-2900
CASTLE MOTOR HOTEL, 632 So. 16th 402-341-8750
COMMODORE MOTOR INN, 24th 4 Dodge 402-342-7755
CONANT HOTEL, 1913 Farnam 402-3411313
CONTINENTAL TOWER MOTOR HOTEL,
2121 Douglas 402-346-4920
HOWARD JOHNSON'S MOTOR LODGE,
1-80 4 72nd 402-333-7373
IMPERIAL '400', Friendship Inn, 2211 Douglas 402-345-9565
NEW PAXTON HOTEL, 14th 4 Farnam 402-346-3330
NEW TOWER HOTEL COURTS,
78th 4 Dodge St. on U.S. 6 402-393-5500
OMAHA AIRPORT INN, 1 Mi. off I 80 4 29 402-348-0222
OMAHA HILTON, 1616 Dodge 402-346-7600
PROM TOWN HOUSE, Best Western
7000 Dodge St 402-556-5161
RADISSON BIACKSTONE HOTEL, 36th 4 Farnam 402-348-0111
RAMADA-OMAHA-WEST, i 680 4 Pacific 402-397-8000
O'NEILL
TOWN HOUSE. Best Western,
U.S. 20 4 275 East
ORD
HILLCREST MOTEL, Hwy. 11W
OSHKOSH
S 4 S MOTEL, Jet. 26 4 27
SHADY REST MOTEL, 140 Main
RANDOLPH
CEDAR MOTEL, Hwy. 20
SCHUYLER
VALLEY COURT MOTEL, U.S. 30 West
SCOTTSBLUFF
CAPRI, Friendship Inn, 24 and Ave. 1
CAVALIER MOTEL, Hwy. 71
COACH HOUSE MOTEL, Hwy. 26 W
LAMPLIGHTER MOTEL, 606 E. 27th
PARK MOTEL, Friendship Inn, 209 W. 27th
QUALITY INN, Hwy. 26
RAMADA INN, 1901-21stAve
SANDS MOTEL, 814 W. 27th St
THE TOWN HOUSE, 1509-1st Ave., Downtown
TRAIL MOTEL, 602 E. Overland Dr
WESTWARD HO, City Route 26
SEWARD
DALE'S MOTEL, Hwys. 2 4 34
EAST HILL MOTEL, 131 Hwy. 34 East
SIDNEY
EL PALOMINO, Friendship Inn,
2220 Illinois St
FT. SIDNEY MOTOR HOTEL,
935 - 9th Ave
SIDNEY MOTOR LODGE, U.S. 30 West
SOUTH SIOUX CITY
PARK PLAZA, Friendship Inn
U.S. 77 S. 4 City Rt. 7 U.S. 20 West
ST. PAUL
BEL AIR MOTEL, U.S. 281-92-11
SUTHERLAND
PARK MOTEL, 1-80 Exit
SYRACUSE
MUSTANG MOTEL, xh Mi. So. of Hwy. 2 on 50
TECUMSEH
BLUE CREST MOTEL, 10th 4 Clay
THEDFORD
ARROWHEAD LODGE, West Jet. of Hwy. 2 4 83
VALENTINE
RAINE, Friendship Inn, U.S. 20 West
TRADE WINDS, Best Western
IMi. East on U.S. 20 4 83
VALENTINE MOTEL 4 CAMPGROUND
East Edge of Town on U.S. 20 4 83
WAKEFIELD
TNT. MOTEL, Hwys. 35 4 9
WAYNE
THE ELM MOTEL, 311 E. 7th St
WEST POINT
SANDMAN MOTEL, 534 S. Lincoln St. 4
U.S. 275-32-9
WYMORE
BENDA MOTEL, 605 S. 14th
YORK
BUZZ'S, Friendship Inn,
5 Mi. No. of I 80 on U.S. 814 34
CAMELOT INN, 1-80 4 U.S. 81
DOWNTOWN MOTEL,
3 Mi. North of 1-80 on Hwy. 81
PALMER INN, Hwy. 81
STAEHR MOTEL, North Hwy. 81
402-336-1640
308-728-3267
308-772-3350
308-772-4115
402-337-0500
402352-3326
308-635-2057
308-635-3176
308-6323123
308-632-7108
308-632-6176
308-635-3751
308-635-3111
308-6326191
308-632-8624
308-632-4187
308-632-6114
402-643-3685
402-643-3711
308-254-5566
308-254-5863
308-254-4581
402-494-2021
308-754-4466
308-386-4384
402-269-2181
402-335-2270
308-645-2246
402-3762030
402-376-1600
402-376-2450
402287-2262
402-375-1770
402-3722491
402-645-3801
402-362-3335
402 362-6611
402-3625523
402-3625585
402-362-4804
needs nor depends much upon the auspices of Lady Luck for survival. In par ticular, they have two well-known talents that are extremely useful in their environment of wide-open prairie and gently rolling hills —their acute vision and most impressive speed afoot. I had to learn the hard way about another of their senses that is largely overlooked.
I had spotted a large herd of nearly 30 head lying out in the open. A quick glance told me that if I played my cards right I'd be able to sneak through a deep ravine and come up on them well within bow range. The stalk was easy; no brush or cactus in the road, no long crawls on hands and knees. Within a few minutes I was very carefully poking my head up to locate the nearest one. It was a doe lying half asleep less than 30 yards away. A sure thing, I thought to myself; the meat would soon be hanging in the cooler. They hadn't seen me, so I carefully backed down out of sight to nock an arrow and get a better position. Bringing the bow to full draw, I eased up again with full expectations of sending my feathered shaft flying true to its assigned destination.
To my astonishment and utter disappointment, not one antelope remained. Looking around, I spotted their white rumps disappearing over a far hillside. They hadn't spotted me, but I had com pletely ignored the wind, and it had carried them my scent which was more than enough to send their carcasses a-flying. Another error and another lesson learned. They not only have an acute pair of eyes and a fast set of legs; they also have a very ample sense of smell.
The rifleman not only has a great advantage in range and accuracy, but he is also able to lie flat on the ground, relatively out of sight, to make his shot. The bowman must raise up at least to his knees to shoot accurately, thus exposing himself. The rifleman also has one other advantage, and that is a high muzzle velocity. Even if the archer makes a success ful stalk and an accurate shot, there is still no guarantee of hitting the pronghorn, for more than just a few bucks have escaped by dodging an arrow.
I was hunting north of Harrison and spotted a nice buck bedded down under a fairly abrupt knoll. The wind was in my favor and that knoll afforded me more than sufficient cover for an easy stalk. By the time I reached the top of the hill, the buck was up and grazing leisurely; his band of several does 100 yards off. Although he stood at close to 70 yards, the opportunity was as prime as it was going to get. Raising up to draw, the buck spotted me but didn't spook. I aimed carefully and let fly. The arrow sailed true, heading for the center of his chest, but just at the last instant the buck leaped ahead leaving the arrow harmlessly behind, quiver ing in the soft earth. I'd made a successful stalk, an accurate shot, and came up with one dull arrow.
Despite the long hikes, sore feet, prickly cactus, jagged rocks and the overall futility of my efforts, each hunt shines like a bright star in my sky of memories. But none shines as bright as my adventure with a most outstanding buck.
His domain was a quiet hay meadow, nestled within the picturesque Pine Ridge country. The long shadows of late after noon were stretching across the slightly rolling meadow when I first saw him. He was perched atop a rise, his harem of does grazing peacefully below in a shallow swale. From atop that knoll, he could see for several hundred yards in any direction. He could eye the approach of a challenging buck or the hopeless stalk of a bow hunter. Standing stately as a majestic prince atop that knoll he was totally unapproachable.
A quick chat with the landowner informed me that they, like most antelope, held to a fixed pattern of daily activities. Their pattern was to come out of the hills to the south in late afternoon, graze, bed down for the night, and then return to the hills by mid morning. This pattern, although far from inflexible, allowed me a tactic of hunting them.
A certain haystack situated near the center of the hayfield seemed to be a favorite of the goats, for they often went right up to that stack. Arranging the stack so as to form a blind was a simple matter and one which I felt sure would enhance my chances. Unfortunately, it was far simpler to construct the blind than to get an antelope close enough for a shot. The very first evening I waited in the blind, the herd buck came out of the hills accompanied by two does. They were grazing away peacefully, gradually closing the distance, when that supersensitive buck threw his head in the air and went flying away with his does to the other side of the meadow. Whether he'd caught my scent or just detected something not quite right with that haystack, I can't say.
So it went for quite a spell. Wherever I was, they made it a point not to be. It seemed I was caught up in a never-ending game of hide and seek. Many times I lay hidden in the grass or atop a haystack with that buck just out of range. Glassing him through binoculars, I could only gaze at him with admiring and covetous eyes watching him keep tabs on his harem of does, nibble a blade of grass, or just stride in stately fashion across his familiar meadow. How often I found him lying just out of bow range, with me longing for a rifle. In all the time I'd been hunting that buck, I'd yet to give flight to my first arrow. My long sequence of lessons in futility came to an end on the bright, clear morning of October 22, 1973.
The first light of dawn found me peer ing through a weedy fencerow at the herd
46 NEBRASKAland SEPTEMBER 1974 47
HONOR CITY OF THE MONTH
A town of color and interest for many reasons, Red Cloud
has become famous through the writings of Nebraska author
ess Willa Gather, who used many people and places from that,
her home town. Now an active and prosperous community of
forgotten, and residents are
proud of their pioneer heritage and historic importance —as
they are of their progress. It is, also, the geographical center of
the continental United States.
RED CLOUD
your,independent
Insurance/ agent
SERVES YOU FIRST
fcssf
This message brought to you by the
Nebraska Association of
Independent Insurance Agents
French's Paradise
Modern Motel & Apart
ments—Air conditioned
- Cafe - Boats - Bait
Tackle Shop — Good
ishing — Guides — Li
nses - Public Ramp
Visit Us Seven Miles
West, One South of
North End of Dam. Right
on the Shoreline of Lake
McConaughy.
LEMOYNE, NEBRASKA 69146
Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd French
Phone: Area Code 308, 355-2102
THE PINES
Rooms and Cabins
Adjacent to the Finest
Trout Stream in Nebraska.
Ph: (402) 273-4483
Long Pine, Nebraska 69217
FREE RECREATION
BROCHURE
Covers the area south
of the Platte River
in Nebraska from
Aurora to the
Colorado border.
INFORMATION ON:
Fishing, hunting,
camping, picnicking,
museums, historical
sites and others.
fc^S3
Massacre Canyon Monument
WRITE:
South Platte United Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 147
Arapahoe, Nebraska 68922
FORT KEARNEY MUSEUM
TAXIDERMY STUDIO
TO KEARNEY
Nl I FORT K
ORT KEARNEY
MUSEUM
Specializing in birds,
animals, game heads,
fish.
Licensed Professional Taxidermists.
Only latest museum methods used.
Phone: (308) 236-8951.
KEARNEY, NEBRASKA
buck grazing leisurely in the middle of the meadow. Neighboring buttes stood like silent sentinels, enshrouding the quiet meadow in their shadows. The buck was far from alone that morning, for nearly 30 head were also munching the frosted tops of the alfalfa. Browsing along in their leisurely way, they were gradually coming nearer and nearer to a haystack on the far eastern edge of the meadow. The evening before I'd scouted the goats and found them loafing right next to that same stack and it looked like there was going to be a repeat performance this morning. I knew if I could get to that stack unnoticed, there was a mighty good chance I'd get a shot at that herd buck.
Making good use of the weedy fence row, I began the long crawl for the stack. It was 150 yards off, but to an overanxious archer it seemed a good deal farther. The stalk through the frosted weeds was relatively easy and soon I was perched atop the stack. Peeking over the edge I spotted the buck a scant SO yards away and closing. His band of does was less than 40 yards off, and he was coming to join them. The stalk was successful, for they were completely unaware of my presence. Easing back down out of sight behind the top row oi bales I readied my bow, checked my armguard, and nocked an arrow.
Everything was in a solid state of readiness with the exception of a very shaky hunter. With utmost care I again eased over the edge for a peek. I couldn't be lieve my eyes, for less than 40 yards off stood my buck. There were does nearly directly under me, but it was a shot at the buck that I longed for. The does were casually ambling around the end of the stack where they wouldn't be able to see me and alert the buck. Finally the buck was a mere 30 yards off, grazing with head down, still completely unaware, but there was a doe behind him and she was stand ing alert. If she spotted me, she would spook the whole herd. If I waited, the buck would follow the rest of his harem and disappear around the end of the stack. It was now or never! With care and caution I raised up, shaky hands drew back the feathered shaft and released. The flight held true and shortly I heard the dull thud of a razor-sharp broadhead striking home. The buck jolted, sprinted a few hundred yards, and soon laid down for the last time.
Thus ended my comedy of errors. I'd bagged a most admirable buck — a most enviable trophy for any archer. By rights that's as good a buck as any bowman has a right to even hope for, but I recall seeing a buck out in the lower forty with a set of horns reaching so high that the geese had to fly around 'em. Well, almost. At any rate, you can bet your last pan of sour dough that I'll be giving chase come this fall. That is if the boys in white coats haven't caught up with me by then.
Trading Post
Acceptance of advertising implies nc endorsement of products or services. Classified Ads: 20 cents a word, minimum order $4.00. November 1974 closing date, September 8. Send classified ads to: Trading Post, NEBRASKA land, 2200 N. 33rd St., Lincoln, Nebraska 68503, P.O. Box 30370. DOGS A.K.C. Brittanies whelped April 27, 1974. Well marked pups from good hunting stock. Duane Thomas Box 118. Ansley, Nebraska 68814. Phone ENGLISH pointers. Excellent gun dogs. Pups, dogs, and stud service. M. D. Mathews, M.D., St. Paul', Nebraska 68873. FDSB English Setters. Puppies and started dogs. r„rm midpd guaranteed hunters. Kenneth Bantam, sSordI Nebra^ka_68977. Phone (308) 868-3288. FOT sale- Brittany Spaniel puppies. From regisr tered stock Whelped 29 May 74. Call 842-2755 or write Eldon or Kirby Marsh, Brunswick, Nebraska 68720. FOR sale: German Shorthaired Pointers. National Field Champion Bloodlines. Don Sallenbach^ M.D., Gibbon, Nebrasjcajgjja^one (308) 468-5822. GERMAN Shorthaired Pointers six and ten months old. Black Labrador females seven and eleven months old. Irish Setters. All A.K.C $35 each. Roland Everett, _/AtkmsoiiI_ Nebraska 68713. HUNTING DOGS: German shorthairs, English Dointers springer spaniels, Weimaraners English, frTsh and Gordon setters, Chesapeakes, Labradors and golden retrievers. Registered pups all ages $75 each Robert StevensoiTJ__j__d_s, Nebraska b8966. QUALITY trainerTluid partially trained hunting does ready for the 1974 hunting season Limited number oTEnglish setters pointers and brittanies. Darrell Yentes, 1118 McMil an Street, Holdre Nebraska 68949. Phone (308) 995-8o70 after 5.30 p.m. MISCELLANEOUS "A" FRAMF cabin 1184 square feet: $1950. ma tion manual and materia AFRICANS-3 inches up. $l3 worms $5/1,000. 25* extra beyond 3rd zona. Clit s Worm Hatchery, Lawrence ATTENTION grouse hunters Grouse safari in the Sand Hills. C. W. Gumb, Burwell, Nebraska 68823. Phone (308) 346-417L BROWNINGS, Pre-64 Winchesters, over 500 new and used guns. Buy, sell, trade. Wnte, stop or call. Phone (402) 729-2888, Bedlan s Sports, Fair- bury, Nebraska 68352. CENTRAL Ontario—Choice 640 acre spcgain's paradise still available-320.00 plus $6 50 taxes yearly. Maps, pictures, $2 00^ Refundable)'In formation Bureau, Norval 70, Ontario, Canada. DUCK HUNTERS—Learn how to make your own, high quality, solid plastic duck and goose decoys We're the originators of the famous do-it-yourself decov making* system. Send 50* first order) for beautifully illustrated catalog. De- coys Unlimited, Clinton, Iowa 52732. FREE catalog of dog accessories and hunting equip- ment. Write Bill Boatman & Co., 241H Maple Street, Bainbridge, Ohio 45612. GOVERNMENT Lands Digest. A Monthly review of government Real Estate offerings throughout the USA Free subscription information! Digest, Box 25561-PT, Seattle, Washington 98125. HUNTERS: Accommodations for 8 or less. $25 per day each includes 3 large meals, rooms, and grounds to hunt on. We will keep dogs, clean-dress and freeze birds at no extra charge. 41_ miles south of Tilden on Highway 45. Mr. Harold Wolske, Tilden, Nebraska 68781. Phone (402) 368-5966. INSTANT shade. We can put in a 12 foot to 15 foot shade tree for $50.00. Evergreen quantity available for wind breaks. Baker & Tomisicek, Wahoo, Nebraska 68066. Phone (402) 443-9914 Wahoo or (402) 623-1 711 Ithaca. LAKE McConaughy, MacKenzie Subdivision. Lots for sale on south side. Owner will finance. Box 224, Brule, Nebraska 69127. METAL Detectors: Who knows detectors better than the people who perfected them? Try a Garrett. Free literature. Spartan Shop, 335 North Williams, Fremont, Nebraska 68025. Phone (402) 721-9438. PHEASANT and quail hunting. Nice housekeeping cabins across from hunting area. Season opens November 2. Country-Lakeview, Alexandria, Ne braska. Phone: (402) 749-4016. PREPARE for driver's test. 100 questions and an swers based on the latest Nebraska driver's manual. $1.75. W. Keenan, Box 295, Fairbury, Nebraska 68352. SUEDE leather, sheepskin vests and coats, leather coats and jackets drycleaned, reoiled, and hand finished by Dupont "Valclene" drycleaning. Write for mailing instructions. Fur and Leather Cleaning, Box 427, Bloomfield, Nebraska 68718. TREASURE detectors—a family entertainment for fun or profit. Send $1 for price list. Deductible. Opportunities, 7659 South 42 Street, Omaha, Ne braska 68147. WANTED—Nebraska trappers to join the Nebraska Fur Harvesters' Association, an organization of Nebraska trappers. For information contact Bob Church, Box 957, Fremont, Nebraska 68025. TAXIDERMY BIG Bear Taxidermy, Rt. 2, Mitchell, Nebraska 69357. We specialize in all big game from Alaska to Nebraska, also birds and fish. Hair on and hair off tanning. 41_ miles west of Scottsbluff on High way 26. Phone (308) 635-3013. CREATIVE Taxidermy. Modern methods and life like workmanship on all fish and game since 1935, also tanning, rugs, and deerskin products. Joe Voges, Naturecrafts and Gift Shop. 925 4th Corso, Nebraska City, Nebraska 68410. Phone (402) 873 5491. KARL Schwarz Master Taxidermists. Mounting of game heads - birds - fish - animals - fur rugs robes - tanning buckskin. Since 1910. 424 South 13th Street, Dept. A., Omaha, Nebraska 68102. PROFESSIONAL taxidermy. Quality material used. Specialize in life-like appearance. House of Birds, 1323 North Tenth, Beatrice, Nebraska 68310. Phone (402) 228-3596. TAXIDERMY work—big-game heads, fish-and-bird mounting; rug making, hide tanning, 36 years experience. Visitors welcome. Floyd Houser, Sutherland, Nebraska 69165. Phone (308) 386-4780.
By popular demand...
NEBRASKAland
CALENDAR
OF COLOR
IS RACK!
With all of the old favorite
features and a few new
twists, too. Be sure to
watch for it on your local
newsstand later this year,
or you can order it by
mail. Calendars will be
available for mailing Sep-
tember 1
$2 each (Nebraska residents add
2V2% sales tax; 31/2% for
Omaha and Lincoln)
Enclosed is $
for
calendars. I have included
sales tax, if appropriate.
Name
Street.
City.
State.
Zip.
Send order to:
NEBRASKAland
P.O. Box 27342
Omaha, NE 68127
Give a neighbor
this test
on September 28
NATIVE WILDLIFE COLOR PRINTS
For your home or off ire... ideal
for gifts too!
1. Most of the money for conservation programs in your state
comes from: a. your taxes b. federal aid c. sportsmen
d. private groups
2. Compared to 75 years ago, the number of deer in the U.S.
today is: a. one-half b. the same c. 10 times as many
d. 30 times as many
3. The number of elk in the U.S. today as compared to 1910
is: a. one-tenth b. one-half c. same d. five times as
many
4. According to the Dept. of Interior, of the 109 animals on
the endangered list, how many are hunted? a. none
b. 15 c. 62 d. 109
5. The most serious cause of wildlife decline is: a. hunting
b. habitat destruction c. natural evolution d. predators
6. In the past 50 years, sportsmen have contributed: a. 50
million b. 250 million c. 1.5 billion d. 2.8 billion for
conservation
Answers:
If he fails
N-1074
N-474
N-574
N-874
9
you're in trouble
Most people can't answer all these questions correctly. In fact, some would miss
them all. That's one reason anti-hunting sentiment exists in this country.
However, if you take the time to introduce your friends to the facts of hunting
and conservation on NHF Day, your friends will come away better informed
and less critical of hunting.
Extra copies of this test are available at 1# each from NHF Day 1075 Post
Road, Riverside, Conn. 06878.
N-674
N-974
50
NEBRASKAland
N-774
N-1174
ABOUT THE ARTIST . . .
For nearly 20 years Tom Kronen has created advertising
art and fine art. He has designed U.S. stamps, cards and
official fish charts. His specialty is wildlife in all its deli-
cate beauty.
YOUR CHOICE OF MOUNTINGS
1. FRAMED AND MATTED, READY TO HANG . . .
8" x 10" wooden frame finished in rich black and gold.
Mat color blends with print subject.
2. MATTED ONLY .. .
9" x 12" backing cardboard with print between board
and 9" x 12" mat. Hang "as is" or frame to suit your
decor. Mat color blends with print subject.
YOU MUST BE COMPLETELY SATISFIED
OR WE WILL REFUND YOUR MONEY.
TO: Nebraskaland
P.O. Box 27342
Omaha, Nebraska 68127
Date
Gentlemen:
Please ship me postpaid (U.S. only) the print's
specified below. A limited quantity of prints avail
able personally signed and numbered by the artist
—only 250 of any one kind.
FRAMED
PRINTS
MATTED
PRINTS
N-474 Raccoon
N-574 Redear Sunfish
N-674 Gadwell Ducks
N-774 Gray Squirrel
N-874 Common Snipe
N-974 Sharp-tailed Grouse
N-1074 Redhead Ducks
N-1174 White-tailed Deer
Add $6.00 each for signed
and numbered prints
Deduct 10% from total if
three, or more, ordered
$8.95
8.95
8.95
8.95
8.95
8.95
8.95
8.95
$4.95
4.95
4.95
4.95
4.95
4.95
4.95
4.95
TOTAL AMOUNT
OF THIS ORDER:
$-
$.
$.
$.
Be sure to include sales tax if applicable
IMPORTANT: Residents of Nebraska must add
2%% sales tax, and residents of Omaha and
Lincoln must add an additional 1% of the pur
chase price for sales tax.
My check is enclosed Money order enclosed
Charge my Bankamericard
American Express Master Charge
MASTER CHARGE ALSO GIVE 4 CREDIT CARD NO. DIGITS BELOW YOUR ACCOUNT NO.
SIGNATURE:
EXPIRATION DATE
PLEASE PRINT CLEARLY
NAME
ADDRESS
CITY.
STATE
ZIP.
If more than one print ordered, prints will be in
one package to one address. If more than one gift
shipment wanted, please enclose names and ad
dresses on separate paper with this order.
25 Days
4:00 weekdays, 2:00 Saturday & holidays
(No racing Mondays except September 2 [Labor
Day]. No racing Tuesday, September 3.)
Warren Albert, General Manager
Phone 402-564-3274
August 20
September 21
