44 Nebraskaland • August-September 2021
T
he Nebraska state income tax
form isn't known for its wildlife
illustrations. Yet, tucked on the
second page is a small illustration of
a peregrine falcon, along with a space
to donate to the Wildlife Conservation
Fund.
These tax-deductible donations play
a vital role in conserving Nebraska's
wildlife, said Melissa Panella,
Nebraska Game and Parks' wildlife
diversity program manager. They
form the Wildlife Conservation Fund,
which is "one of the primary means
that Game and Parks uses to conserve
our species of greatest conservation
need," Panella said. "Without it, we
wouldn't be able to do a lot of the
programs that we're doing."
Since 1984, the Wildlife
Conservation Fund has helped the
thousands of Nebraska species that
are not hunted or fished. It's been
behind some of Nebraska's biggest
conservation success stories, including
the comeback of the North American
river otter and bald eagle in the state.
It's also funding efforts to protect the
monarch butterfly in Nebraska, such
as milkweed plantings and habitat
restoration.
"As much as possible, we would like
to prevent the need to list species as
threatened or endangered," Panella
said. "We also want to recover species
so that they may be removed from the
threatened and endangered lists."
Nebraska Game and Parks zoologist
Shaun Dunn said the Wildlife
Conservation Fund is "absolutely
vital" to a lot of the work he does,
providing support for creatures like
insects, bats and snakes that may not
attract much grant money or public
interest, but are still an important
part of Nebraska's native ecosystems.
Dunn is currently working on a
survey of Nebraska's eastern spotted
skunks, trying to get a sense of where
this reclusive species still exists in
the state. The Wildlife Conservation
Fund is helping his team purchase
equipment so they can cover more
ground.
"Many projects I do are at least
Becoming Part of
Something Bigger
Now thriving, the North American river otter was removed from the
state's threatened species list in 2020.
ERIC FOWLER, NEBRASKALAND
Nebraska's bald eagle
populations have recovered with
the help of the Wildlife Conservation
Fund.
JEFF KURRUS, NEBRASKALAND
The Wildlife
Conservation Fund
By Renae Blum
