10/02/2026
Crane Season is months away, but preparations for the crane's arrival begin now! Once they arrive in Nebraska each Spring, cranes need unvegetated sandbars and a wide river channel to stay safe during their nightly roosts. At Rowe Sanctuary, we protect this habitat through regular river channel maintenance using prescribed fire, invasive species removal, disking and other management actions.
One of the most dramatic happens each and every fall. The Platte River Recovery Implementation Program (PRRIP) supports our work by securing disking services to keep river sandbars free of vegetation.
This work not only sustains the incredible migration of Sandhill and Whooping Cranes, it offers a wildlife viewing spectacle that draws visitors from around the country and globe, offering a significant economic boost to the local economy. This quintessential Nebraska phenomenon is unique as the largest gathering of cranes anywhere on the planet.
All this is possible because cranes have safe places to roost; work that happens months in advance by putting a tractor in the river. When the cranes arrive next Spring, we'll be ready.
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Find out more about our habitat work and the economic impact of crane viewing in the comments.
Footage courtesy of Explore.org. Link to our year-round livestream in the comments.
