Nebraska's Wildcat Hills Protection Expands

Platte River Basin Environments (PRBE) is making headway in preserving Nebraska’s Wildcat Hills for future generations. In 2007, the conservation group closed several deals to protect 8,800 acres of contiguous ranchlands on the escarpment’s western edge. The area is the largest expanse of native range to come under PRBE’s protection since the group began working with Wildcat ranchers in 1995.

“This new acquisition is significant,” said Hod Kosman, PRBE President. “The entire property is large, has a diverse range of escarpments and canyons and includes wheat production which is important winter grazing for big game animals. The Bighorn sheep already decided this is one of their favorite places.”

The Wildcat Hills are a unique feature in western Nebraska. The tabletop escarpment juts out of the flat prairie and stretches 55 miles between the North Platte River and Pumpkin Creek. The Wildcat’s mix of woody and prairie vegetation attracts a wide diversity of wildlife, and is the convergence point for many eastern and western birds such as the Indigo and Lazuli Bunting and Eastern and Mountain Bluebird.

These latest purchases put conservation holdings in the Wildcat at around 22,000 acres of ranchland in two contiguous areas of about 11,000 acres each. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, The Nature Conservancy of Nebraska and the Nebraska Environmental Trust have all been key players along with PRBE in raising money, buying properties and easements, and developing management plans that benefit wildlife and ranching operations.

Ranchers are just as interested as conservation groups in preserving the Wildcat Hills, and owners on more than 5,000 additional acres are currently in negotiations to sell with PRBE.

“It’s exciting for us every day to work on these projects and meet the needs of ranching families and conservation,” Kosman said. “They have all been wonderful stewards and love this land. It is comforting for them to know this same vista they have looked on as a child will still be there in the future.”

PRBE’s overall goal is to acquire and manage 60,000 acres of ranchland and place easements on 60,000 acres of conservation buffers.

“PLJV has really been instrumental in helping us and being a resource for us,” Kosman said. “We have received Capacity Grants which have allowed us to do some of the outreach, education and extension for the region. They are consistently a resource for us to contact when we need support or guidance. We look forward to working with PLJV as we move forward.”

For more information, visit the Platte River Basin Environments website. You can also listen to Playa Country Radio episodes about the project: Keeping the Wildcat Hills Wild and Ranchers Preserve Wildcat Hills Legacy.

~July 2007