Hidden Wonders
Sharing the ranch with tourists offers one family additional income and extra appreciation for their land.
Sarah Switzer Sortum always sensed that something about her family’s Burwell, Nebraska, ranch would have to change to support more than one generation.
She is the fourth generation on the ranch her great-grandfather established in 1904 and was working in Colorado with her husband, Mark, when the couple recognized their deep desire to move home to Switzer Ranch to raise their family. That desire to go home again also meant they needed another income stream.
The family had already added a business in 2000, Calamus Outfitters. Sortum’s parents, Bruce and Sue Ann Switzer, and her brother, Adam, founded the endeavor as a means to support Adam’s family on the ranch. Their original vision for a hunting lodge evolved into catering to outdoor enthusiasts and providing a family-oriented destination.
As the business grew, four cabins were added to two lodges. Guest activities include river trips on the Calamus River, bird-watching and Sandhills Ranch Habitat Ecotours.
“I helped with Adam’s business for a while, and, it was a nice cushion for our young family. But, it didn’t look like it would ever be enough to allow all of us to live and work here,” Sortum says.
DANCING CHICKENS
Switzer Ranch is in the heart of Audubon’s Greater Gracie Creek Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA), the first privately owned IBA in the state of Nebraska. The area is primarily known for Greater Prairie-Chicken and Sharp-tailed Grouse, but, many other bird species are also found in the area.
When Calamus Outfitters’ activities expanded its offerings to include sharp-tailed grouse viewing, Sortum and her family took time to observe the activities of the grouse and the prairie chickens on the ranch. It was time well spent, because it gave them an idea for a new income stream.
“We grew up with the grouse and prairie chickens, and took them for granted,” Sortum says. “When we checked cow/calf pairs in spring, we often saw the mating actions of the birds. We never thought other people would be willing to make a special trip here to see it, too.”
Prairie chicken mating rituals fascinate many Switzer Ranch visitors. Brown and white barred male birds, about the size of a domestic chicken, act out a mating dance, raising feathers on the sides of their necks to expose orange air sacs. The air sacs inflate, creating a booming sound while the birds dance.
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“The mating rituals of these birds is such an awesome, fantastic thing that happened right here under our noses,” Sortum says. “Once we took time to watch the birds, we fell in love with them. Now, we recognize that these birds are symbolic of how agriculture and conservation go hand in hand. We support these birds, and, they are supporting us in a very unique way.”
Once found in much of central and eastern North America, prairie chickens are now localized to areas with appropriate habitats, such as native tallgrass prairie, primarily found in the Midwest.
Sortum saw an opportunity to expand the ranch’s bird-watching activities and bring visitors in solely to watch the prairie chickens’ early-spring mating rituals. Calamus Outfitters now offers bird-watching tours from mid-March through April, which Sortum notes is “the best time to see the prairie chicken.” There are also bird-watching tours around migratory waterfowl and bald eagles.
“American white pelicans, Swainson’s hawks and several species of sparrows come through here in April,” Sortum says. “By May, many other bird species are also found here.”
Tours are guided in open-air vehicles or as safari-style groups. Members of the Switzer family head up all the tours, providing historical ranch information and details about ongoing conservation projects implemented on the ranch to support habitat for grassland species.
For prairie chicken tours, buses bring tour members to blinds set up on the birds’ breeding grounds. Morning tours include transportation, guide(s) and breakfast. Tour members who want to stay longer can also reserve lodging and supper on the ranch.
Once the Switzers refined their prairie chicken observation tours, they looked for more prairie chicken-related activities for visitors. That led to the development of the annual Prairie-Chicken Festival, which includes conservation speakers and authors who share a passion for wildlife.
“We didn’t have any experience in developing an event like this,” Sortum says. “Pricing was difficult for us, because ranchers aren’t used to setting their own prices. It was challenging to determine a price that was fair to both our clientele and to us.”
With the aim to celebrate the Prairie Chicken species, the grasslands they inhabit and the culture surrounding them, Sortum and her family found assistance with Prairie-Chicken Festival plans through the Center for Great Plains Studies. The Center’s assistant director, Katie Nieland, says the Switzer Ranch is a valuable example of the benefits conservation tourism can provide both landowners and the general public.
“The Switzer family’s goal is to stay on the land they’ve grown to love so much, while they share the beauty of that area with others,” Nieland says. “Sarah and her family have learned as much as they can about the grasslands and wildlife on their ranch. Their knowledge is what makes it so enjoyable for tourists to visit and learn more about the ranch, too.”
EVERYTHING HAS VALUE
In her work, Nieland hears tourists excitedly comment on the beauty of an open-space, open-sky experience, which is difficult to find in highly populated areas. Observing waterfowl migrations also rates high on the list of experiences tourists seek.
“The Switzer family has approached their tourism business step-by-step, starting small and adding experiences as they analyze what visitors and guests are seeking,” says Nieland, who works with the Switzers and a coalition of landowners in the Great Plains region.
“We have a group of university researchers who assist landowners like the Switzers in identifying the legal aspects of conservation tourism and developing best practices for their business,” Nieland says.
Sortum believes the value of private lands like her family’s ranch will continue to grow during the next 50 years.
“After bird-watchers came for several years, we realized our visitors were interested in both the birds and ranching activities,” Sortum says. “Our clientele are very educated, intelligent people who are genuinely curious and desire to learn about the birds and agriculture.”
Sortum and her family recognize the ranch represents more than just their survival. Preserving the grasslands ecosystem adds value to the ranch and offers future generations a priceless living archive.
“Our family has come to understand that everything on the ranch has value,” Sortum says. “Grass always earned our income through grazing, and, now, we see that even the grasshoppers here play a role in the life cycle by feeding the birds. The role we play in keeping the grassland system healthy and as diverse as possible ensures that future generations will have the same opportunities we have had.”
For more information:
> Nebraska Prairie-Chicken Festival
> University of Nebraska Center for Great Plains Studies
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