Ecology: Sargent Wetlands?
According to Wikipedia, the Nebraska Sandhills is the "largest and most intricate wetland ecosystem in the United States." The Sandhills sit on top of the Ogallala Aquifer, and is bounded on some sides by tributaries of the Loup and Niobrara rivers.
Sargent sits right at the Southern edge of the Sandhills. As most home owners with basements in town know, the water table in the area is pretty high. A geography map from the University of Nebraska at Omaha shows that the water table is anywhere from 10 inches to to feet below the surface of the ground in the Middle Loup Valley. According to some sources, ground water can migrate up to 500 feet in any one direction during the course of a year.
According to sources at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, the ground in the Sargent area is characterized as "sand, loamy sand and sandy loam soils with little organic matter and a water table less than 30 feet below the surface. These areas have a high vulnerability for groundwater contamination."
The Sandhills are classified as a semi-arid region, averaging less than 20 inches of rain per year. Many of the lakes and rivers in the Sandhills, such as the Middle Loup River, get their water from ground water being pushed up by the Ogallala Aquifer, and not from rainfall.
Information from the Sandhills Task Force, the US Fish and Wildlife Service in Nebraska and other groups show that the Sandhills region is a prime pathway for migration birds and waterfowl. When you're out and around town, look for the Western Meadowlark, Nebraska's State Bird. I've seen them around town and up at Calamus Lake. During the migration season, check the Middle Loup River for migrating water fowl. Keep an eye out, the Middle Loup River is used as a watering hole by coyotes.
For more information:
Humor: A Farmer's Advice
Contributed by an anonymous reader.
- Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight, and bull-strong.
- Keep skunks and bankers at a distance.
- Life is simpler when you plow around the stump.
- A bumble bee is considerably faster than a John Deere tractor.
- Words that soak into your ears are whispered...not yelled.
- Meanness don't jes' happen overnight.
- Forgive your enemies. It messes up their heads.
- Do not corner something that you know is meaner than you.
- It don't take a very big person to carry a grudge.
- You cannot unsay a cruel word.
- Every path has a few puddles.
- When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty.
- The best sermons are lived, not preached.
- Most of the stuff people worry about ain't never gonna happen anyway.
- Don't judge folks by their relatives.
- Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
- Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time.
- Don't interfere with somethin' that ain't bothering you none.
- Timing has a lot to do with the success of a rain dance.
- If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin'.
- Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.
- The biggest troublemaker you'll probably ever have to deal with watches you from the mirror every morning.
- Always drink upstream from the herd.
- Good judgment comes from experience... and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.
- Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin' it back in.
- If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around.
- Live simply, love generously, care deeply, and speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.
- Don't pick a fight with an old man. He's got a lot of experience, and nothing to lose.
Come to the next Sargent, NE City Council Meeting
The next regular Sargent, NE City Council meeting will be held at the Community Center on Monday July 13, 2009 at 7pm. The Audit Committee will meet at 6:30pm just before the meeting.
Sargent City Council meetings are held under the rules of the Nebraska Open Meetings Act. Read more about the Nebraska Open Meetings Act.