Pioneers followed routes such as the Mormon and Oregon trails that paralleled the river as did the Pony Express, the transcontinental railroad and more recently Interstate 80.

Many of Nebraska's largest cities are located near the Platte and are dependent on the life giving water it provides. The Platte Valley is also one of the most productive agricultural regions on Earth.

The Platte is not only important to man. An amazing diversity of wildlife also inhabits the river and its periphery.

Perhaps most well known of the region's wildlife are the millions of migratory birds that frequent the Platte in spring and fall each year as they have for thousands of years.

Not long ago birds soared the skies over the Platte mostly unencumbered. It is only recently in human history and with the advent of electricity that power lines have been strung across the rivers of the state, posing an aerial hazard to avian migration.

Government agencies have estimated that as many as 174 million birds of different species die in collisions with manmade objects including power lines each year in the United States. These collisions take place often where power lines cross the Platte.

Nebraska has a vital role to play in the conservation of endangered species such as the whooping crane which uses sections of the Platte during both its spring and fall migration.

At Audubon's Rowe Sanctuary near Gibbon there are two sets of power lines that cross the river. For years injured and dead birds of many species have been found under the lines there.

The more common sandhill crane is a regular victim there as are several species of ducks and geese as well as others. The endangered whooping crane frequents Rowe too and that causes a major concern for wildlife managers.

Whoopers have struck power lines in other parts of the country and it is hoped that this can be avoided along the Platte. At less than 300 birds in the wild, the loss of even one whooping crane would be a major setback to the recovery of the species.

A team effort has begun to help reduce the possibility of bird mortality at Rowe. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in cooperation with Rowe, Dawson PPD, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, the Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust and UNK are working together to tackle the risk to birds.

The installation of bird flight diverters in the summer of 2007 will hopefully alert birds to the presence of the power lines and allow them to avoid colliding with them. The devices are commonly called fireflies and are attached to the lines. They spin in the slightest breeze, make noise, are reflective and also glow, properties that should be noticeable to birds.

Ornithologist Paul Johnsgard says that cranes are likely to not see power lines in front of them because of their laterally placed eyes. He adds "Since cranes rarely fly at night (unless forced to) it is mainly fog, snow and sleet that might put them at greatest risk."

These conditions are common at the time in late winter and early spring when the cranes return to Nebraska.

"Two electric power transmission lines cross the Platte River on the Rowe Sanctuary property." says its director Brad Mellema. "These transmission lines are of particular concern because of the heavy concentration of birds that use the river habitats at Rowe Sanctuary".

Many consider burying the lines to be the best solution but the cost would be in the millions of dollars. Monitoring will determine if the fireflies are effective and Robert Harms of the U.S.F.W.S. says that "burial of the transmission lines is still on the table for Rowe Sanctuary as an option should the fireflies not be effective".

Mellema is optimistic that the devices will work and is encouraged by the team effort that made it a reality.

"The cooperation between government and non- government organizations accomplished something that will be a real benefit for migrating birds," he said.