Easement Project to Conserve Schramm Bluffs Along the Platte River

A grant of $1.1 million will be used for the Schramm Bluffs Preservation Project that will protect habitat diversity through the purchase of conservation easements from willing owners of private property in southwest Sarpy County.

View of the lower Platte River valley, as seen from Schramm State Park. Images courtesy of the Nebraska Land Trust.

The funds were provided by the Nebraska Environmental Trust.

The Schramm Bluffs rose to the top of the priority list for the Nebraska Land Trust for four reasons”, according to Dave Sands, executive director of the nongovernmental group:

“1) The lower Platte River has been a focus for the NLT from our inception, due to its location in a region that is projected to have 2 million people by the year 2050;

2) The Schramm Bluffs stand out on the lower Platte due to the presence of significant natural and historical resources on private land;

3) Sarpy County currently has the fastest population growth of any county in Nebraska, creating development pressure that is unmatched in the state;

4) The final and most important reason is landowner support, because only a landowner can open the door to permanent protection of private land.”

At the heart of the 11,000-acre bluffs district is the 331-acre Schramm State Park, an Important Bird Area designated by the National Audubon Society.

“Schramm Park was selected as one of Audubon’s Important Bird Areas in Nebraska because of a combination of the quality of the hardwood forest and the exceptional diversity of birds that can be seen there,” according to Kevin Poague, manager for the IBA program in Nebraska. “The area also contains eastern oak-hickory woodland near the western edge of its range, along with restored and remnant tallgrass prairies.”

One restored prairie probably exceeds 40 acres, Sands said, with a relict virgin prairie of 5 to 10 acres.

The portion of the Platte River that flows adjacent to the Park was counted as part of the habitat. The Platte in this area has been designated as a Biologically Unique Landscape, where endangered interior Least Terns and threatened Piping Plovers nest on sand bars. Endangered pallid sturgeons occur in the river.

Limestone bluffs at Schramm State Park.

“A diverse assortment of songbirds visit the wooded hills and ravines each spring,” Poague said. Species of significant concern known to occur at the park include the American Bittern, Upland Sandpiper, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Short-eared Owl, Whip-poor-will, Red-headed woodpecker, Bell’s Vireo, Kentucky Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, and Dickcissel.

The importance of the area as a migratory stopover, also had a significant role in its IBA designation.

“Many species of warblers can be observed along the trails at Schramm,” Poague said, “as well as Summer Tanager, Scarlet Tanagers, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, and many types of thrushes, finches, and sparrows. There is also an active Bald Eagle nest either on or near the property. The Park is easily one of the best sites in the area to visit during spring and fall migration.”

Several members of the nominating committee noted “that the woodlands at Schramm Park were excellent in terms of diversity and health. Forests that have healthy and sustainable layers of habitat (ground cover, shrubs, sapling trees, young trees, mature trees) can attract a wide variety of birds that forage and nest within these different layers. Proximity to known migration corridors (river systems in this case) and lack of intensive development (urban dwellings, farmsteads, acreages) are other bonuses.”

Having easements on surrounding land would help retain a high bird diversity, Poague explained. “Development close to the Park could hurt bird activity in the following ways: increased noise; increased light pollution; possible run-off from yard pesticides; increased human activity could drive people-sensitive species from the area; increased vehicle traffic could negatively affect bird numbers.”

Sands believes that the time for conservation may be limited, given the existing development pressure in Nebraska’s fastest growing county, including the proposed construction of an extensive business development at Pflug Road, where a new highway interchange is being considered.

“Fortunately, many landowners want to preserve agricultural, historical, and natural resources in the area,” Sands said. “For some families, there has been a tradition of good stewardship for more than 150 years. Conservation easements can offer an opportunity to assure that this legacy lasts far into the future.”

Landowners have responded favorably to efforts to conserve the bluffs.

Eleven of the 16 landowners that were sent inquiry letters regarding an interest in conservation easements responded favorably, Sands said, to allowing an assessment team of NLT Board members, including state, NRD, and federal biologists, to visit their land to identify notable natural resources.

In addition to preserving wildlife habitat and plant communities, land protection will help to preserve water quality in the Platte River, as well as scenic vistas that are viewed by millions of people each year from nearby state parks, public attractions, and Interstate-80.

Sunset in the Lower Platte valley, as viewed from Schramm State Park.

Placing a conservation easement can also lead to additional future efforts to conserve habitats, Sands said. “Once land is protected, it will become an excellent candidate for cost-share programs from various agencies, as habitat improvements could not be lost later on to development. In visiting with landowners last summer, a required question involved their willingness to participate in cost-share programs for habitat improvements and all expressed interest without exception, especially when it came to cedar removal.”

Other funding partners in this project include the Cooper Foundation, the Abel Foundation, and the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District. Expertise and assistance has also been provided by the Fontenelle Nature Association, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Nebraska State Historical Society, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“When we first started on this project in 2006, I likened it to a steep climb up a mountain that would be difficult, but rewarding at the end,” he said. “This grant provides an immeasurable boost up the mountain that will not only preserve land and resources, but attract other funding partners in the future. If this landscape is successfully preserved, generations of Nebraskans will have the NET to thank for being the lynch pin that made it possible.”

“It has been a collaborative effort from the start,” Sands said, “because it offers a true win/win approach to the preservation of this beautiful landscape.”

Coalition Protects Habitat in Historic Plantation District of South Carolina

A team effort of public and private partners have purchased an easement to conserve a 3,732-acre tract of the unique Ashley River district in the low-country of eastern South Carolina. Another 230 acres will be protected through the donation of a protective easement.

Funding of $3.1 million allowed the purchase of an easement on the acreage at the Middleton Place Woodlands. The donated easement will conserve lands at the Uxbridge Plantation.

A third of the funds were provided through a North America Wetlands Conservation Act, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Other contributors were Ducks Unlimited, landowner Charless Duell, Middleton Place L.L.C., the South Carolina Conservation Bank, and the Doris Duke Conservation Foundation.

The Lowcountry Open Lands Trust and The Nature Conservancy also assisted with the required legal transactions. Ducks Unlimited will monitor and enforce the easement.

"The Middleton Place Woodlands easement is an important part of the multi-year effort to protect South Carolina's Lowcountry," said Jason Johnson, South Carolina director for The Conservation Fund. "We are pleased to be a part of these efforts and are thankful to all the partners for working to protect the historic and scenic character of the Ashley River corridor in the face of development."

"The Conservation Fund worked with the owners of Middleton Place Woodlands to facilitate the placement of a conservation easement on this historic property, solidifying the family's generations-long commitment to preserving the property in its natural state while allowing only limited potential for future development."

"Located in the fastest growing county in South Carolina, the Ashley River historic district is considered one of the country's most endangered places," according to the Conservation Fund. "Three years ago, Ducks Unlimited began its Ashley River Historic District Project, an effort aimed at protecting critical habitat and undeveloped land between Charleston and Summerville. With the Middleton Place Woodlands easement and another easement recently secured by Ducks Unlimited on 2,441 acres of Millbrook Plantation, more than 12,000 acres have been protected within the historic district."

"This area consists of former rice plantations which are largely undeveloped and harbor important natural habitats including tidal, managed, and forested wetlands, as well as upland forests and agricultural areas. The area also has important historical and archeological sites which are relatively intact and well documented."

"The conservation easement placed on Uxbridge Plantation will protect approximately 64 acres of wetlands composed of bottomland hardwoods and approximately 166 acres of upland for a total of approximately 230 acres," according to the project summary for the NAWCA grant. "The Middleton Place Woodlands conservation easement will protect approximately 2,458 acres of wetland composed of approximately 2,420 acres of forested wetlands" and another 38 acres of other types of marsh.

There are about 1274 acres of upland habitat.

The "high-quality" habitats are utilized by Wild Turkey, Northern Bobwhite, and waterfowl such as the American Black Duck, Mallard and Wood Duck, the grant proposal says. Birds of high priority for conservation that occur are the Little Blue Heron, American Woodcock, Wood Thrush, and endangered species such as the Wood Stork, Red-cockaded Woodpecker, and Swallow-tailed Kite.

"We are always glad to be involved with projects like this one," said Craig LeSchack, Director of Conservation Programs for Ducks Unlimited. "Protecting areas through permanent easements is an excellent way to provide for future generations, and permanent protection of areas that are so historically and ecologically significant is exceptionally gratifying."

"Middleton Place is an icon in the historic plantation district and represents a special time in the history of South Carolina that typifies moss-draped cypress trees, wide verandas and a gentler way of life," said Marvin Davant, director of the South Carolina Conservation Bank. "It is a statement of our traditions and our heritage. It is important to the future of South Carolina to recognize the value of our past. The South Carolina Conservation Bank is pleased and honored that it could be a partner in conserving this wonderful property."

For the Duell Family, owners of the Middleton Place Woodlands, the project was an opportunity to preserve a unique heritage on a property that has been owned by family members for nearly 300 years.

"Our family is pleased to make possible these conservation easements that protect, in perpetuity, the rural character of the Historic Ashley River Plantation District," said Charles Duell. "With the Carter and Hanahan families placing similar easements on Millbrook and Uxbridge plantations, we have gone a long way to protecting the entire District from additional unwanted, high-density development."

The easements along Ashley River Road will help to "retain the historic atmosphere of the plantation district and protect the viewshed of this historic area for the public in addition to enforcing the urban growth boundary that the City of Charleston has attempted to establish through this area,"

Recreational hunters and boaters will also benefit by having the current land use maintained. Preservation of water quality is a third benefit provided by the easements.

The project partners in the area are working to conserve valuable habitats and open spaces as transitions in land use occur.

"A coalition of groups has worked together to make sure as much land as possible is retained in its natural condition and any development that occurs is consistent with the historic land uses of the plantation area," according to the federal grant summary. "The potential for development became greater in May, 2007 when the MeadWestvaco Corporation announced that it would begin planning for disposition of almost 400,000 acres of land in South Carolina, 70,000 of which is just west of Middleton Place. The protection of the Ashley River Historic District Properties creates a conservation corridor from the Ashley River through to the ACE Basin."

Conservation of Prairies Benefits Native Flora and Fauna

By James Ed. Ducey

Conservation of prairie-grass habitats of southeast Nebraska continues a success in providing places for native flora and fauna.

"Some of my most gratifying times have been while walking across a waving sea of grass and seeing plants not seen in most pastures," said Ernie Rousek, chairman of the conservation committee, Wachiska Audubon Society. "It is a great deal of satisfaction to see the orange mounds of butterfly milkweed in bloom in June. One of our conserved prairies has over 100 of these plants just in one corner. In July the bluish purple flowers of leadplant are a good indication the prairie has never felt the bite of the plow. The names of the plant prairie shoestring was given by settlers whose plowshares caused a popping noise as they severed these tough roots. Purple spires of several species of gayfeather are a pleasant sight in late summer."

"Local flora does not survive the intense grazing that generally occurs on the majority of pastures," Rousek said. The prairies preserved by the Wachiska group are cut for hay or burned, and not pastured.

Their generally small size is an influence on the types of the wild birds. A minimum extent of habitat is needed for many species to occur. Spring Creek Prairie and Nine Mile Prairie are well known in the bird annals.

"A number of birds depend upon prairies for nesting," Rousek explained. Some birds will make use of smaller prairie tracts, others like prairie chickens require much larger areas. A wild turkey flushing from a clump of big bluestem, revealing a big clutch of eggs is a rewarding sight. As is the mid-air song of the Bobolink or the meadowlark on a fence post."

Ongoing efforts of the Wachiska Audubon Society has protected four prairies through ownership:

Dieken Prairie, 12 acres bought in 1995

Wildcat Creek Prairie, 30 ac. in 1998

Lamb Prairie, 6 ac. in 2000

Storm Prairie, 20 ac. in 2004.

These prairies are open for public visits.

Wildcat Creek Prairie. Photo by Ernie Rousek.

The group has 20 prairies under conservation easement, distributed in 12 counties in southeast Nebraska, said Rousek, who has been involved in the prairie conservation efforts for the group for nearly three decades. These parcels range from four acres to 40 acres in size, and total over 400 acres. The names of various tracts are typically those of the people selling the easementm such as Beethe Prairie, Horacek Prairie and Brey Prairie.

"The first prairie easement Wachiska Audubon bought was in 1994, from Dorothy Heavey whose father, Henry Wulf died in 1972," Rousek said. "She owned the farm which had an excellent 4 acre prairie along Hwy. 34 ("O" Street), seven miles east of Lincoln. When Wachiska Audubon contacted her about protecting the prairie, she was very willing, especially when we told her that we would put up a sign on the prairie with her father's name on it." It is thus named Wulf Prairie.

At the August meeting of the society's conservation committee, Rousek led the team discussing prairie concerns: a new easement contract, management options, fixing a grade crossing used as an equipment access by a land owner, and other relevant business. There were a couple of signs that had been renovated. There was some news about the wetland environs at Yutan Prairie.

Some of the most recent prairie projects within Wachiska's large southeast Nebraska region are the result of an advertisement placed in several county papers last winter, asking land owners interested in protecting prairie areas on their farms, to contact the group, Rousek said. "We received about 15 replies. Most were not good prairies, but about five were quite good and we have signed two of these as easements in the summer of 2007.

"A dedication was held for a seven acre prairie north of Syracuse on July 15, 2007. This excellent prairie was owned by Forrest Halvorsen who was 89 years old," Rousek said. "His wife had died some years earlier and he wanted her name, as well as his on the sign. There were 72 people in attendance; many were Forrest's relatives."

"Each time the society gets a prairie easement, a 4' x 6' wood sign is constructed, then erected. The painted sign has the prairie owners name as well as that of Wachiska Audubon Society, which is the holder of the easement."

"A dedication is held for each prairie. We ask the owner to invite his friends and relatives; at times put a notice in the county paper and invite the public," he said. Easements, the makeup and geology of prairies, some prominent prairie plants are identified, and other information is given during a presentation by an Audubon member.

Dieken Prairie, July 2002 photo by Ernie Rousek.

During the August committee meeting, Dr. David Wedin discussed at length the status of Nine-mile Prairie, its surrounding land and zoning concerns and an initiative to have a strategic planning session among interested parties to discuss the prairie's management and use.

"I leased the 230 acre Nine Mile Prairie, in the name of Wachiska in 1978, from the Lincoln Airport Authority," Rousek said. It was during his tenure as president of the society. "The purpose was to 'tie up' the prairie while finding some way to protect it. I notified the UNL Agronomy and Biological Science Departments that they could again use the prairie. The first year there were 11 different courses that used the prairie as an outdoor classroom and for research. With a lease of $4,600 per year, the grass was cut for prairie hay and then sold to pay the lease, meanwhile trying various sources of funding to purchase the Prairie."

"Nine mile Prairie had been used by the University of Nebraska since the 1920s when it was 800 acres. The Air Force took over the Lincoln Airport in the 1950's and placed a 100 acre bomb storage area on a part of the Prairie, making the site off limits to the public, including the University. When the Air Base was deactivated in the early 1970s, The Lincoln Airport bought the Prairie for $200 an acre, as an investment."

"Wachiska had the lease on the prairie for four years. Funds for a purchase eventually became available through the University of Nebraska Foundation. Mrs. Neal Hall donated $69,000, which was one half of the purchase price. Many other community donations helped the cause."

Once the land was bought in 1982 by the University of Nebraska Foundation, Rousek started fifteen years on the property management board in 1983. During this time he designed and built a wooden kiosk which was placed at the prairie foot path entrance, where visitors could register. During the next four years there were visitors from every state and 17 foreign countries. He fixed fence, and did most of the mowing of trails, the entrance and roadways for the benefit of visitors, and other tasks during a tenure through 1998.

About 80 acres of Nine-mile Prairie is burned each year and Rousek helped on a number of those past burns. Dr. Jim Stubbendieck, of UNL, was often involved in planning and conducting these burns to vitalize the prairie.

During several of these years, the Wachiska Audubon Society held a Prairie Appreciation Day for the public each autumn, Rousek said. Tents were setup for speakers and exhibits and, there were those mown trails for prairie walks with "tour guides". A horse and buggy club gave rides.

Rousek's prairie roots extend deep to his first school years attending Komensky, a one room country school in central Nebraska. "It was completely surrounded by rolling hills of prairie, which usually, in the fall and spring, was our playground. We would dig and eat indian turnips and violet wood sorrel, and throw the 'arrows' of porcupine grass at each other, and play a game of 'hide and seek' among the hills," he said.

At the home place west of Ord, a regular job as a boy in the country, was herding "cattle on an unfenced 80 acres of prairie, woodland, and crops. I became familiar with various plants throughout their growth cycles. The Nebraska Weed Book helped with identifying many plants."

A keen interest in flora "steered" Rousek to a major in conservation and agronomy at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His profession was soil scientist for the Soil Conservation Service, a district manager for a hybrid corn company, and with plant seed research when he retired.

An unusual event on the Spring Creek Prairie got Rousek out among the grasses again. He led hikes and shared history of the prairie schooner ruts of the Nebraska-City-Fort Kearny trail on the hill side; then came the outdoor saxophone quintet concert, a event of the Meadowlark Music Festival, this past July, during the prairie flower season.

"Most of the people who own prairies and who wish to preserve them, are usually older," Rousek said. "They seem to look at the prairies as an unchanging connection with their earlier days, and perhaps with people who have since, passed on. The unchanging prairie may serve as a nostalgic bond with family members who may, or may not, have spent time on the prairie, and have passed on. Prairie owners have told me of their parents or grandparents who had owned their farm and the dates when these people bought the land or even homesteaded it. They tell of using horses to cut and rake the prairie hay, and then the stacking of it."

"Virgin prairies serve as a storehouse of soil which has not been contaminated by herbicides or insecticides and serves as a base line compared with cultivated fields. Prairie plants are well adapted for the often stressful climatic and soil conditions of the Great Plains where they serve to protect soil from erosion, yet furnish nutritious feed for livestock."

"Many prairie plants were used by plains Indians for medicinal, and other uses. Some years ago a doctor in Los Angeles doing research on the antibiotic properties of the root extract of the purple prairie coneflower (Echinacea), contacted me about getting some of the plants from prairies in this area. He had gotten plants from two other states previously. When I told him that it was possible, he made a plane trip to Lincoln, and we dug up several plants for his use. A couple of years later a national magazine reported of a very effective antibiotic which had been derived from echinacea roots. The source of this news was from - Los Angeles."