The Region

Nebraska birdwatching trails — Chicken Dance Trail

Featured Bird

Burrowing Owl:

True to its name, the Burrowing Owl often nests in a hold in the ground provided by prairie dogs, coyotes or badgers. It is most active in the morning and evening, hunting for insects during the day and mammals at night. Look for it especially in the Sandsage Prairie and Loess Canyons of the Chicken Dance Trail.

BIRDS LOVE THIS PART OF NEBRASKA! YOU WILL TOO!

Out beyond the great Midwestern cities, the land opens up and the pavement gives way to fields and streams, to prairie, rills and endless sky. Right in the center of North America’s central flyway, millions of birds of all shapes, sizes and species pass through this area every year. If you know where to look — and that’s the key — you can see an uncommon variety, and, if you’re dedicated, knowledgeable and lucky, you can often make unusual and interesting sightings.

We live here. We put together this site to help birders discover an area rich not only in birds, but in history and culture, with its own brand of inspiring scenery. As you travel each trail, we’ve included our own recommendations of some of the places you might like to stop, including good local restaurants (we eat there ourselves), places to stay and points of interest.

Each loop is a different terrain and habitat and encompasses a number of sites along the highway or secondary roads. An interactive map for each loop describes the sites, common birds and points of interest in the area. Just click on a link below to get started.

THIS MONTH ON THE CHICKEN DANCE TRAIL!

Sleeping with the windows open: the morning orchestra

For most of the year, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Wildlife Division staff are busy with a variety of duties and responsibilities, but on one day a year in each of our six districts, we get together to do a “District Birding Day” (DBD). at one or more of our agency’s Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs).... more...

The Adventures

Rainwater Basin Adventure

The rainwater basins of Central Nebraska provide spring migration habitat for about 6 million snow geese and a million Canada geese as well as 5-7 million ducks, and well over a million Sandhill cranes. Nearly half the mallard population rests in the rainwater basins before continuing north to nesting grounds. Spring offers an unparalleled birding experience.
Loess Canyon Adventure

Rivers, rains and winds dissected and eroded the high tablelands south of the Platte River in central Nebraska to carve the rugged, scenic Loess Canyons. The prevailing northwest winds belw in silt (loess) and deposited the mineral rich dust across the deep canyons and uplands.The loess mantle nourishes thick growths of prairie grasses and a variety of wild flowers. Here, in April, May and early June, lucky birders can see prairie chickens “dance” on their traditional breeding grounds.
Sandsage Prairie Adventure

Harry Strunk Lake offers canyon, sky and water vistas as well as miles of walking trails for wildlife viewing. On this loop you’ll also drive along the scenic Republican River to McCook and Red Willow Reservoir. The Republican River basin and floodplain offer a rich habitat for wildlife, and prairie wilderness draw birds that soar as well as many other animal species.
Republican River Adventure

The Republican River Valley is where Willa Cather, one of America’s literary giants, grew up and gathered material for her seminal novels My Antonia and O Pioneers!. Here you’ll find broad vistas of gently rolling hills carpeted with sage and long grass. Join us as we look for birds in virgin prairie and croplands, along the river and riparian wetlands, and on the shores of Nebraska’s second largest lake.
Medicine Creek Adventure

A habitat mix of towering cottonwoods, brushy seed and fruit bearing perennials, moist bottomlands and moving water draws a mix of wildlife. Water birds may be spotted along the river and many species of woodland songbirds nest in the deciduous, ancient trees along the Republican. A careful birder can make a big dent in their bird list in many of the scenic spots along this loop.