64 Nebraskaland • August-Spetember 2026
Mixed Bag
Nebraska lists 32 species of plants and animals as
threatened or endangered. The blacknose shiner (Notropis
heterolepis) is listed as endangered and can be found in
the northwest amid sandy-bottomed, cool-water rivers
and streams.
From a bird's eye view, you'd barely see the winding strip
of water as it cuts through the Sandhills. Grasses and sedges
hang over its edge obscuring it from view with only its silver-
reflecting pools giving its presence away overhead. Even more
inconspicuous is a small minnow in the cool water along the
stream's edge. Just two inches long, the blacknose shiner's
yellowish back and white underbelly disguises it within the
sandy-bottomed stream. Setting it apart from other shiners is
a stripe of black crescents running from nose-tip to tail along
its side. Its edges shimmer with gold-flecked scales.
Listed as endangered in 2000, the blacknose shiner is
considered a glacial relict in our state. This tiny fish likely
thrived during the last ice age. But, as the glaciers melted,
this fish quickly found itself on the fringes of its range
trapped in the few cool, clear-water streams left in the
glacier's retreat.
Already squeezed into a small range, these shiners were
pushed to the brink by decreased water quality, quantity
and overall warming water due to longer, hotter summers.
To help combat their decline, today's conservation efforts
focus on promoting stream-friendly farming and grazing
practices like establishing water sources for livestock away
from sensitive prairie streams and leaving buffer strips
along stream edges when planting crops. With the spread of
conservation efforts improving water quality and quantity
across our state, we are hopeful these little fish have a "cool"
future ahead of them.
For more information on Nebraska's threatened and
endangered species, visit OutdoorNebraska.gov.
Threatened
and Endangered –
Blacknose Shiner
By Ruby Micek
The blacknose shiner was listed as endangered in Nebraska in 2000.
