PRRIP Draft Environmental Impact Statement Summary

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Platte River Draft Environmental Impact Statement THE TARGET SPECIES The target species for the Program are described briefly below. Photographs of the species can be seen in figure E -3. Whooping Crane The whooping crane is found only in North America and is this continent's tallest bird. It is the rarest crane and one of the rarest bird species in the world. Historically, its range extended from the Arctic coast south to central Mexico and from the Rocky Mountain region in Utah eastward to the Atlantic coast. The only remaining wild, migratory flock of whooping cranes migrate from Texas to Canada and use the Central Platte River area in Nebraska as a stopover for roosting and foraging. The species was listed as endangered in 1967. Interior Least Tern The least tern is one of the smallest tern species in North America. The interior population of the least tern breeds along the Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Red, and Rio Grande river systems, mostly on bare sandbars. The species was listed as endangered in 1985. Piping Plover (Northern Great Plains Population) The piping plover is a small shorebird related to the more common killdeer. Three North American breeding populations of piping plovers are recognized. The greatest number of piping plovers breed in the Northern Great Plains. This breeding population occurs on the Missouri River and its tributaries in North and South Dakota and Nebraska. The piping plover nests on sandbars in these rivers, including the Platte River in Nebraska. The species was listed as threatened in 1985. Pallid Sturgeon The pallid sturgeon is one of the largest fishes found in the Missouri- Mississippi River drainage, with specimens weighing up to 85 pounds (39 kilograms). The species is a bottom dweller, found in areas of strong current and sandy or gravel bottom in the main channel of large turbid rivers, such as the Missouri River and the Lower Platte River. The species was listed as endangered in 1990.