Nebraskaland

MARCH 2017 • NEBRASKAland 63 PHOTOS BY ERIC FOWLER An aerial photo of the Arbor Lake Complex, owned by the city of Lincoln, looking south along North 27th Street toward Interstate 80 on the edge of Lincoln, shows the work that has been done to restore saline wetlands to benefit the Salt Creek tiger beetle and other wildlife. It also shows a channelized stretch of Little Salt Creek, at right, that is home to the insect but once held many more. recent surveys of the condition, vegetative cover, soil properties and hydrology of wetlands on publicly-owned properties in the watershed, the plan will prioritize and guide restoration efforts on those lands. More suitable habitat is needed to test the success of the captive breeding and rearing program researchers have developed and appear to have mastered in recent years at the Lincoln Children's Zoo and Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha. Begun in 2011 with dismal results, they are now able to produce more larvae than they can handle: 1,300 in 2015 and 900 in 2016. Their goal will be to produce 800 larvae each year, according to Mike Fritz, natural heritage biologist with the Commission. Some will be released in the spring or fall, while others will be reared to adults, which will be released to breed in the wild. This summer, a mark and recapture study will measure survival of adults in the wild, and monitor population response the following year. To date, captive-reared beetles have only been released to supplement existing populations. Partners know they need to begin releasing them in unoccupied areas that once held beetles to meet the delisting criteria outlined in the final recovery plan. The insect will be downlisted from endangered to threatened when there are three wild populations numbering between 500 and 1,000 individuals each in three recovery areas. When three additional populations are established, including one in a fourth recovery area, and those wild populations remain stable for 10 years, the species may be delisted. "We've got a long ways to go," Harms said. Having the final recovery plan in place should make it easier to obtain funding for habitat acquisition and restoration, including more from the Fish and Wildlife Service, Harms said. "The Fish and Wildlife Service is supposed to protect these species, but most important is for us to restore the habitat and ecosystems in which these species reside," Harms said. "That's the saline wetland system." The benefits of the work go far beyond the Salt Creek tiger beetle, Harms said. The streams, wetland and uplands around them provide habitat for other wildlife. And most sites are also open to the public, some for hiking and birdwatching, some for hunting and some for all of these activities. Several sites have primitive nature trails. Two – Arbor Lake and Shoemaker Marsh – often serve as outdoor classrooms for university and other students. "There are going to be a lot of environmental amenities that people can appreciate and enjoy when this is all over," Harms said. "There already are. And a lot them came to be because of the Salt Creek tiger beetle." ■

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