Wildlife
•
2019 Annual Report 35
S A L T C R E E K T I G E R B E E T L E
R E L E A S E S
The Commission continued its recovery efforts for the endangered
Salt Creek tiger beetle in 2019 by releasing 315 lab-reared larvae and
adult beetles onto critical habitat at Little Salt Creek WMA. It was the
first time the agency released Salt Creek tiger beetles onto Commission
property. Also in 2019, the Commission partnered with a Kansas zoo to
help raise the tiger beetles in the lab. In March, staff at the Topeka Zoo
and Conservation Center began raising larvae transferred from Omaha's
Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium. Having another zoo partner will help
us increase our lab-reared beetles and help speed our recovery efforts.
Other partners raising beetles include the Lincoln Children's Zoo and the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
M E M P H I S L A K E W M A W E T L A N D
R E S T O R E D
The Memphis Lake Wildlife Management Area (WMA) wetland
restoration project, which created a more open and natural marsh
habitat with the ability to manage water levels for the benefit of the
wetland and wildlife, was completed in 2019. In this Saunders County
project, the lake water level and wetland were drawn down to prepare for
restoration. Invasive trees and shrubs were removed from the wetland
area and west berm, and the level ditches were filled. Two water-control
structures were installed to help manage water in the wetland separate
from the adjacent lake on the state recreation area. Partners in this
project were the Nebraska Environmental Trust, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and Ducks Unlimited.
One of the rarest insects in North America, the Salt Creek tiger beetle is currently
only found along a four-mile stretch of Little Salt Creek north of Lincoln.
