Nebraskaland

50 Nebraskaland • March 2026 MIXED BAG Slinking out of a tunnel hidden between a tangle of roots and the muddy bank, a North American river otter mother slips out of her burrow and into the icy stream in search of a meal. Deep inside the streambank her two black, velvety pups wait in their grass-lined den for her return. Born in March, they will not venture outside for another two months while they grow bigger and stronger. With hungry mouths to feed, the mother otter is in search of fish and other prey to fuel herself. She chose her den site well; this section of stream is teeming with life, giving her the resources she needs to raise her young. Families like this one represent a conservation triumph in Nebraska. Unregulated trapping in the 1800s decimated river otter populations throughout North America. By 1920, they had been extirpated from Nebraska, a fate shared in many Midwestern states. Listed as endangered in 1986, they became the focus of statewide conservation efforts. Biologists and partners worked together to reintroduce otters to Nebraska. Between 1986 and 1991, 159 otters trapped in other states were released in seven of the state's major rivers. As a result of good scientific planning, the otters began to reproduce on their own and expanded their range. After research showed the population was growing, the species was down-listed to threatened in 2000. By 2020, their numbers had climbed into the thousands and their range included all of the state's major river systems; most of the descendants were reintroduced in Nebraska and a few were the result of recovery efforts in neighboring states. With their recovery complete, the call for de- listing was made. Today, otters are managed as a furbearer species, with continuing research on their distribution, genetics and trapper success helping ensure otters continue to thrive in Nebraska. Nebraska lists 32 species of plants and animals as threatened or endangered. The North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) was de-listed in Nebraska in 2020. For more information on Nebraska's threatened and endangered species, visit OutdoorNebraska.gov. North American river otter on the south channel of the Platte River in Hall County. ERIC FOWLER, NEBRASKALAND A DE-LISTED SPECIES SPOTLIGHT North American River Otter By Ruby Micek, Environmental Specialist Nebraska's List Threatened Species Eastern black rail Piping plover Rufa red knot Thick-billed longspur Mountain plover Southern flying squirrel Lake sturgeon Northern redbelly dace Finescale dace American burying beetle Timber rattlesnake Western massasauga Western prairie fringed orchid Ute ladies'-tresses American ginseng Small white lady's slipper Endangered Species Eskimo curlew Whooping crane Interior least tern Black-footed ferret Swift fox Gray wolf Northern long-eared bat Pallid sturgeon Topeka shiner Sturgeon chub Blacknose shiner Salt Creek tiger beetle Scaleshell mussel Blowout penstemon Colorado butterfly plant Saltwort

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