Nebraska hosts millions of winged beauties.
Hastings Museum is home to the largest serial bird collection on display in Nebraska – more than 200 in total. It’s a vast collection of birds that either live in Nebraska year round or migrate through thanks to the Central Flyway and rainwater basin.
The bird exhibit gives an up close look at a variety of bird species. Of particular note is our display of whooping cranes. These rare birds can still be seen during their spring migration through Nebraska. Their low numbers can be difficult to spot as they blend in with nearly 800,000 sandhill cranes and millions of other migratory birds. Hastings Museum is a great stop to view these birds before heading to the fields to see them in their traditional migratory layover area along the Platte River.
Some non-Nebraska birds are also on display. They include herons, the extinct heath hen, tufted puffins, zone tailed hawk, and the brown booby–a spectacular diving bird that plunges into the ocean at high speed.