Threats to Wildlife and the Platte River

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INTRODUCTION p. 3 phenomenon of feeding and resting is known as "staging," and it allows the birds to gain the body reserves necessary for breeding when they reach nesting grounds in the northern mid - continental states, Canada, Alaska, and Siberia. It is the quality and availability of habitats along the Platte, and its unique ability to support enormous numbers of birds during this critical time, that make it so important. The significance of this area for birds has recently been emphasized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which stated that "The importance of maintaining traditional habitats such as the Platte is amplified by the impact of man's ongoing conversion of pothole and prairie to hay and grain production which has made nearly all of their original range unsuitable for whooping cranes" (USFWS 1986). Part of the Platte River has been designated by the U.S. Department of Interior as Critical Habitat for the Whooping Crane, long in danger of extinction, but whose numbers are slowly rising and whose use of the Platte seems to be increasing (USFWS 1988a). Other endangered birds, including Bald Eagles and Least Terns, and the threatened Piping Plover rely on the river at different times of the year for wintering or breeding. The upper South Platte in Colorado nurtures one of the finest trout populations in the United States, and a reach of the river in this area has been designated Resource Category 1 (unique and irreplaceable) trout habitat by the Fish and Wildlife Service. Two areas along the Platte in Nebraska have been des- ignated Resource Category 1 habitat: one on the mainstem Platte for Sandhill Cranes and Greater White - fronted Geese, the other on the North Platte for Sandhill Cranes, affirming the importance of the Platte to these species. A small butterfly of subtle beauty, the Pawnee Montane Skipper, is known to occur only in a small area of South Platte Canyon in Colorado (Shoumatoff 1986). Historical, Educational and Recreational Values The ecological, recreational, and historical values of the Platte are many and varied, not only as a wildlife resource but contributing as well to the enjoyment of local residents and visiting tourists. The river is a prominent feature of the Nebraska landscape, seen by travelers on Interstate 80, which parallels the river across much of the state. The history associated with the Platte is an integral part of America's heritage. The Oregon, Mormon, and California trails, the Pony Express, and Overland Stage, and the first transcontinental railroad and highway followed the Platte. As an educational resource, the Platte River has great potential for enhancing understanding of the natural environment. The area represents the drama of humans versus nature in all its glory and severity, offering scientists an opportunity to study an ecosystem stretched to its limits. The