October 2021 • Nebraskaland 43
t fi rst sight, a plains pocket mouse makes a lasting
impression.
There's only one word for it: cute. It's tiny and delicate-
looking, with small ears and fur-lined cheek pouches.
Retired wildlife ecologist Mike Schrad can identify one in
seconds, as he does on this cool October morning, striding
through a restored prairie near Wood River, Nebraska.
He lifts one from a live trap baited with oatmeal and
birdseed, and hands it me to warm in my palm while he takes
notes. My hand cups easily around it.
This creature is one of fi ve small mammals Schrad will fi nd
and release out of 80 traps on this particular morning (better
than average numbers, he tells me). The plains pocket mouse
is of particular interest, though. The eastern subspecies is
an at-risk species that relies on prairie habitat, and Schrad is
helping document its presence in Nebraska, along with other
small mammals.
His work could inform future management practices
statewide and help conservationists understand what kind
of habitat Nebraska's small mammals need to thrive. Schrad
also is fi nding plains pocket mice in places they've never been
documented, adding to our understanding of this elusive
species.
But Schrad, age 71, isn't your typical researcher. While he's
A Second Chance
A Retired Wildlife Ecologist Gives Back
by Renae Blum
A plains pocket mouse caught during small mammal trapping at the Nature Conservancy's Platte River Prairies.
CHRIS HELZER, THE NATURE CONSERVANCY
A
