36 NEBRASKAland • JUNE 2018
M
uch of the bottomland is comprised of backwaters, wetlands and cattail
marshes that fill the traces of the historic river channel and provide
valuable habitat for waterfowl, shorebirds and other migratory birds.
It includes bottomland prairie that was once farmed but abandoned due to
rising groundwater levels and is now wet during periods of high river flows and
always pocked with shallow wetlands, providing nesting habitat for grassland
birds, including pheasants. In recent years, a pair of bald eagles has nested in a
cottonwood growing along an old road in the midst of the backwaters. Sandbars
on the river provide habitat for least terns and piping plovers, and the Niobrara
River delta provides an abundance of shallow water for many water birds. A 120-
acre parcel of land stretching from the bottomlands into the bluffs includes a mix
of tall- and mixed-grass prairie and hardwood forest and is home to white-tailed
and mule deer, wild turkeys and numerous woodland bird and mammal species.
In all, the property is home to 25 resident bird species and visited by another 115
migratory species.
ABOVE: The extent of Niobrara Confluence WMA and its wetlands and backwaters can be seen from the group lodge at Niobrara
State Park. BELOW: A least tern sits on its eggs. The birds, a threatened species, nest on sandbars in the Missouri River.
