Nebraska Bird Partnership

Sarah Sortum is the fourth generation to raise her kids on her family's ranch near Calamus Lake.  She grew up watching the grouse, the owls and the hawks on the 106-year-old Switzer Ranch and wanted to make sure those birds were around for future generations.  "The Sandhills is one of the last major strongholds for some of these birds," she said.

That is why Sortum pursued getting 50,000 acres of the Switzer Ranch and neighboring Morgan and Gracie Creek ranches designated as an Important Bird Area by Audubon Nebraska.

She said she was pleasantly surprised at the ready cooperation she received from neighbors. She said that although many didn't talk about it before, apparently her neighbors had a passion for wildlife and birds on their property. Bob Price runs the Gracie Creek Ranch and brothers Ronnie and Dan Morgan head up the Morgan Ranch.

"Now when we meet on the road, we are as apt to talk about birds as cattle," Sortum said. "They have taken a genuine interest in bird populations."

Read more about Calamus ranches and birds from the Grand Island Independent.