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Conservation 16 Nebraska Game and Parks Commission 2025 Annual Report Expanding wildlife tracking along Missouri River In 2025, Nebraska Game and Parks and partners strengthened regional wildlife research by expanding the Motus Wildlife Tracking System along the Missouri River. New stations deployed by Nebraska Game and Parks, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, and Offutt Air Force Base improved coverage across a key migration corridor long suspected to serve as a natural flyway for birds, bats and insects. Greater coverage is already yielding new insights in 2025, including tracking notable long-distance travelers. An interior least tern — a Tier I at-risk species — was tagged in South Dakota and recorded moving from Indian Cave State Park to the Texas coast in just five days. A Franklin's gull, tagged in North Dakota, passed through eastern Nebraska before continuing to Ecuador. A Swainson's thrush tagged in western Canada in 2024 overwintered in Colombia, returned to Canada, and migrated south again through Indian Cave State Park in mid-September. With this new infrastructure in place, Nebraska researchers will begin tagging songbirds and bats in 2026 to further understand how wildlife use the Missouri River during migration. Advancing pollinator conservation across Nebraska Nebraska made significant strides in pollinator conservation in 2025. Through a four-state Competitive State Wildlife Grant, funding was awarded to continue the Nebraska Bumble Bee Atlas through 2028, allowing the agency to collect data on the status of the state's 20 bumble bee species and summarize the information into a strategic plan for bumble bee conservation in the Midwest. The grant also will support the planting of 400 acres of pollinator habitat at state parks. Meanwhile, Nebraska's Big Butterfly Count — a community science project tracking butterfly diversity — nearly tripled in participation from its 2024 pilot year. Twenty-seven volunteers contributed over 560 hours prepping, surveying and submitting data. They conducted 243 surveys across the state, documenting more than 9,000 butterflies from 65 species, including 13 listed as threatened or endangered in Nebraska. Together, these efforts provide critical data to guide conservation strategies for the state's pollinators. Brown-belted bumble bee. JUSTIN HAAG A Motus tower is installed at Indian Cave State Park. ERIC FOWLER Hackberry emperor butterfly. JULIE GEISER