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Review of the Geo10gi:ca1 Survey's stream gaging records of the Platte River near Overton for the period 1940 to 1910 indicates that ice jams influence the river stage at the stream3g,age location, particularly when river flows are less than 2,500 ft Is. Ice jams, which are formed generally between December and March, cause ponding and temporarily higher river stages of from 1 to 2 feet. the effect on the water table of a 1 to 2 foot rise in river stage at the gage near Overton is approximately equivalent to having a flow of from 3,000 to 6,000 ft3/s. This type of temporary ponding probably occurs throughout the reach of the Pl atte River from Overton to Chapman duri ng the. December-to-March peri od. Whoopi nQCral1es As of January 1, 1978, the count of whooping cranes wintering on the Texas Gul f Coast at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge WaS 71. This remnant natural population is the flock which utilizes the Central Flyway of North. Ameri can, whi ch i nc1 udes the "bi g bend" area of the Platte River, The Central Flyway's 71 whooping cranes migrate 2,600 miles between nesting sHes in northern Alberta's Wood Buffalo Park and wintering grounds in Aransas National Wildlife Refuge on the Texas Gulf Coast. The Pl atte River in Nebraska provi des tmportant resting and feeding h.abitat for the whoopers along their arduous migration route. Exhibit 4 shows the whoopers' present migratory route through the lower 48 states and year of last recorded sightings in surrounding ,states JA 11 en, 1952). ..Nebraskah'6S,recor!!edmore confirmed sighti ngs of'thewhooping crane tha.n any other State with the exception of Texas where the entire flock spends the winter, The locations of some of these confirmed sighttngs, which have occurred in Nebraska during the years 1922-1975, are shown on exhibit 5. It should be noted that this exhibit may not present an entirely accurate distribution pattern for the wh.ooping crane in Nebraska. The preponderance of confinned sightings in the "big bend" (i .e., Overton to Chapman reach) of the Platte River may be due t.o the fact that this river reach is intensively suveyed each spring by professional wildlife biologists. 34 . .. . ,-..", , '.-.' ...\ -:--:0-,---- . ,':;.