Burchard Lake State Park.
Burchard Lake wraps around a small hill with a flat top. This is an "ancestral lek" for a remnant population of Greater Prairie Chickens. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission maintains a blind on either side of the lek, to facilitate viewing of the mating dances performed each dawn and dusk during February, March, and April.
Fontenelle Forest Nature Center.
On the Missouri River in Bellevue (which is south of and very close to Omaha), the Fontenelle Forest consists of hardwood deciduous forest, extensive floodplain, loess hills, and marshlands. It is one of the best migrant stopovers in eastern Nebraska. In all, 246 species have been recorded, among them 35 species of warblers.
Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge.
Alongside the Niobrara River, this reserve has a wide diversity of habitat, and over 230 species of birds have been recorded here. Sharp-tailed grouse and greater prairie chickens are year-round residents, while many songbirds pass through in spring migration. The site can be accessed by driving to Valentine (at the intersection of US Rtes 20 and 83 in north central Nebraska, close to South Dakota).
Platte River.
Probably the best birding hotspot in Nebraska. Every March the 80-mile stretch of the Platte River between Overton (about 20 miles west of Kearney via either US Rte 30 of US Interstate 80) and Chapman (about 10 miles northeast of Grand Island along US Rte 30) sees more than 500,000 sandhill cranes converge in what’s considered one of the birding world’s most awe-inspiring spectacles. The birds linger about five weeks, joined by about 10 million ducks and geese that use the Platte and the neighboring Rainwater Basin wetlands. It is an important stopover location for migrating Whooping cranes during the spring and fall migration. The area is also very important for threatened and endangered species such as the bald eagle, interior least tern, piping plover and many grassland bird species.