May 2023 • Nebraskaland 21
A Blanchard's cricket frog rests on a lily pad in a backyard urban wetland in the heart of Lincoln. DAKOTA ALTMAN
ABOVE: Countless species, such as the familiar
bluet damselfl y, spend much of their life in
wetlands. They represent what we are protecting
when wetlands are not taken for granted.
DAKOTA ALTMAN
LEFT: Urban wetlands in the 21st century have
gone through drastic changes. Oak Lake in Lincoln,
Nebraska, was once a beautiful saline wetland,
then a dumpsite, to now a home for wildlife and
recreation. This lesser yellowlegs searches for
invertebrates, and the capital of Nebraska can be
seen in the background. DAKOTA ALTMAN
