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Recovery of the Salt Creek
Tiger Beetle Continues
By Shaun Dunn, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Zoologist
Salt Creek tiger beetle larva develop into adult beetles on
Wildlife Management Areas.
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NEBRASKALAND
MAGAZINE
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n 2019, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
(NGPC) and its partners continued their recovery efforts of
the endangered Salt Creek tiger beetle (Cicindela nevadica
lincolniana) by releasing 315 lab-reared larvae and adult beetles
onto critical habitat.
In late 2018, the NGPC Board of Commissioners approved
a plan to begin augmenting existing Salt Creek tiger beetle
populations on properties owned by NGPC. In June 2019, a
public meeting was held to inform the local community about
our augmentation and reintroduction plan. The meeting was a
great opportunity for landowners and other stakeholders to get
updates on our current recovery plans for this species.
Just over a month later, we released 37 adult Salt Creek
tiger beetles onto Little Salt Creek Wildlife Management Area
(WMA) to augment the current population in that area. Over
the next several weeks, we released over 80 more beetles onto
the WMA. We will continue closely monitoring all the release
sites as we progress toward full recovery of this endangered
species.
Also in 2019, we established a partnership with an additional
zoo to help raise the tiger beetles in the lab. In March, the staff
at the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center in Topeka, Kansas
began raising larvae transferred from Omaha's Henry Doorly
Zoo and Aquarium. Having multiple zoo partnerships will help
us to increase the number of lab-reared beetles, and thus speed
up our recovery efforts. Other partners raising beetles include
the Lincoln Children's Zoo and the University of Nebraska-
Lincoln. ✔
Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo personnel (left) and Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center's personnel (right) are helping to rear and
return endangered Salt Creek tiger beetles onto Nebraska Game and Parks Commission properties.
