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1. Missouri Rabbit Population Continues Slump
2. Gravity Is Biggest Threat to Bowhunters
3. Colorful Fall in Store for Missourians
4. MDC to Auction Land, Equipment in Salem Oct. 5
4. Commission to Meet at Montauk State Park Oct. 21
5. Outdoor Calendar
"For the last word in procrastination, go travel with a river reluctant to lose his freedom in the sea." -- Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
1. Missouri Rabbit Population Continues Slump
Rabbit numbers continue their long-term down trend, but good hunting is still widely available.
JEFFERSON CITY -- Missouri's rabbit population showed a decline again this year. The good news for rabbit hunters is that more than a dozen counties still have strong rabbit numbers, and isolated pockets of habitat provide good rabbit hunting in nearly every part of the state.
July surveys conducted in 112 of Missouri's 114 counties showed rabbit numbers down 15 percent statewide compared to last year. The surveys showed declines in all counties except St. Charles and St. Louis, which are not included in the survey. Statewide rabbit numbers also were 34 percent lower than the average annual figure for 1983 through 1995.
The good news is that the average daily bag for rabbit hunters has changed very little over the years. From 1967 through 1993, Missourians killed an average of 1.49 rabbits per hunter per day. The average daily bag in 1994 was 1.37, just 8 percent less than the long-term average.
Research Biologist Dr. Tom Dailey, who is in charge of rabbit management for the Missouri Department of Conservation, says hunter's continued success in spite of declining overall rabbit numbers is due to several factors. One is the fact that Missouri has about 100,000 fewer hunters today than it did in the 1970s. The continued success is due partly because fewer hunters are competing for existing rabbit populations, says Dailey, and partly due to the fact that those who still hunt rabbits tend to be the more dedicated and experienced. Finally, he says, Missouri continues to have high-quality rabbit hunting in pockets scattered throughout the state.
"The cottontail rabbit's reproductive capacity enables it to respond very rapidly in places that have good rabbit habitat," says Dailey. "Those places have good hunting, and the dedicated rabbit hunters work very hard at finding them."
Dailey attributes the decline of Missouri's rabbit population to changes in land use. "Heavy grazing is not conducive to quail or rabbits," he says. "With the increase in size of the average farm, we have seen a progressive loss of wooded fence rows that once were our quail and rabbit havens. We even have some programs that encourage landowners to tear out woody draws and convert them to grass. That's devastating to rabbit and quail populations."
He says the same trends and accompanying decline in rabbit and quail numbers can be found in neighboring states. Weather plays a tremendous role in short-term rabbit population trends, as with the decline in rabbit numbers following the harsh winter of 1983. But rabbits' legendary reproductive ability allows them to recover quickly from these short-term setbacks.
Counties with the strongest rabbit numbers were in northern and western Missouri. The highest counts were Barton, Dade, St. Clair, Andrew, DeKalb, Gentry, Daviess, Grundy, Mercer, Putnam, Sullivan, Schuyler, Scotland, Knox, Lewis, Randolph, Pike and Butler counties.
Rabbit season opens Oct. 1 and runs through Feb. 15. The daily limit is six, and the possession limit is 12. However, hunters in southern Missouri should remember that only two swamp rabbits may be included in the daily limit and only four in the possession limit.
2. Gravity Is Biggest Threat to Bowhunters
A hunter who learned the hard way has advice for those who still have the use of their legs.
MAYWOOD, Mo. -- On a frosty morning in late October of 1983, 36-year-old Mike Schnitzer arose in the dark, dressed in camouflage clothing, collected bow and arrows and drove a mile and a half to one of several tree stands he had placed around Lewis County. He climbed nine feet up to his stand and, as he slipped an arrow onto his bowstring, noticed he wasn't feeling well.
"I started feeling sick to my stomach and lightheaded," recalls Schnitzer "I thought, 'If I don't get to feeling better, I better get down and go home.' Next thing I knew, I was laying face down on the ground. I reached back and slapped myself on the leg and I couldn't feel anything. I knew immediately what was wrong."
What was wrong was that Schnitzer had several crushed vertebrae. That's when he realized that he had neglected to tell anyone where he would be hunting. Help eventually arrived, but it was too late to save Schnitzer from being paralyzed from the waist down.
Spring turkey hunters must take care not to let other hunters mistake them for game. Firearms deer hunters have to keep a sharp lookout to ensure that they aren't caught in other shooters' line of fire. But for archery deer hunters, the biggest worry is gravity.
The nature of their sport makes archers less susceptible to the kinds of dangers that other hunters must guard against. The need to get very close to their quarry and place their shots carefully makes misidentification of targets and "line-of-fire" injuries extremely rare among archers. Furthermore, longbows don't "go off" accidentally as firearms can.
But archers face different hazards because they spend so much time climbing trees and sitting in tree stands during the three-month-plus archery deer hunting season. Every year, Missouri bowhunters fall from high places. Many are injured; some are crippled. A few die.
It was only good luck -- if you can call it luck -- that spared Schnitzer's life. Doctors told him that he most likely passed out and fell from his tree stand because of low blood sugar. He had gone straight from his night-shift job in a steel foundry to bed, then went straight from bed to the woods, without a bite of breakfast. He might have died instantly of spinal injuries after his fall. He probably would have perished from hypothermia if he had not been found shortly before dark the same day he fell.
"I made every mistake I could possibly have made," says Schnitzer. "Not eating right, no safety harness, not telling anybody where I was, going hunting alone, not getting down as soon as I knew I wasn't feeling good."
Hindsight makes it easy for Schnitzer to see his mistakes, but he has plenty of company. Reliable information about tree-stand accidents is scarce. The Missouri Department of Conservation defines a "hunting accident" as a mishap involving the discharge of a rifle, shotgun, pistol or bow and arrow. Since falls from tree stands fall outside this definition, they don't show up in the state's hunting accident statistics. But studies of bowhunting accident accounts show that falls are the leading hazard for archers. Such studies also provide information that can help bowhunters avoid Schnitzer's fate, or worse.
More than 2,300 readers of Deer & Deer Hunting Magazine responded to a survey the magazine conducted in 1993 to gather information about tree-stand mishaps. One third of the respondents said they had taken spills while hunting. Of those who had fallen, fewer than one in five said they had taken the easiest and most effective measure to avoid injury -- wearing safety belts or harnesses.
Three percent of readers reported suffering crippling injuries in their falls. Others reported injuries ranging from minor cuts to crushed vertebrae and punctured lungs. Most of those who were wearing safety harnesses when they fell reported nothing worse than scrapes and bruises. Their safety tethers halted their falls, allowing them to make safe exits to the ground.
Interestingly, fewer than one-third of the magazine survey respondents who reported falls were sitting on their stands when they fell. Nearly three-quarters said they fell when climbing up to or down from stands or while entering or exiting their stands. Yet, more than 80 percent of respondents in the magazine survey said they rarely or never wore safety belts when ascending or descending tree stands.
Not that wearing a safety strap is a guarantee of safety. A quarter of those in the magazine survey who said they were wearing safety belts when they fell still suffered serious injuries. Belts that are poorly designed or worn improperly can actually contribute to injury or death. Wearing a belt around the abdomen impairs breathing when the wearer's full weight is suspended from the strap. Straps or ropes that cinch tight when the wearer's weight comes down on them are even more likely to cause internal injuries or death by suffocation.
The U.S. Air Force ran tests in which volunteers were suspended from safety belts. Some began losing consciousness after only 30 seconds; none stayed conscious more than four and a half minutes. Volunteers wearing chest harnesses began blacking out after anywhere from one to 13 minutes. Those wearing full-body harnesses like parachute harnesses lasted five to 30 minutes.
For greatest benefit, safety tethers should be worn under the armpits. Models that spread the hunter's weight over a wide area by means of a chest harness are less likely to impair breathing, but all do so to some extent.
Schnitzer has adapted to paraplegia, changing his vocation to gun smithing and learning to hunt from places he can reach by wheelchair. Last year he settled for killing a 10-point buck during firearms deer season, after a bigger deer eluded him during the early part of the archery season. But he offers the following tips to help other hunters keep all their physical capabilities.
3. Colorful Fall in Store for Missourians
Fall Foliage Fanciers are in for a special treat this year, thanks to timely rain and a mild summer.
JEFFERSON CITY -- It s almost that time of year, when trees are aglow with bright color. Each October Mother Nature adorns leaves with vibrant fall color. And some of the most magnificent fall color displays can be found right here in Missouri.
Bruce Palmer, forestry information specialist for the Missouri Department of Conservation, says adequate rainfall and mild temperatures this summer created good conditions for a spectacular fall color display. This year we didn t have a drought during July and August like we ve had in some past years. When it is too hot and dry trees get stressed then they drop their leaves and you don t have fall color. This year most of the state had good rainfall. It was drier than normal in the northeast part of the state and the Springfield area. In those areas fall color will be average.
Fall colors will be most vivid from early through mid-October. MDC has several ways to track peak color around the state. The colorful 23- x 33-inch poster Missouri s Season of Splendor and a new brochure Fall Colors of Missouri" include road maps of the best routes for viewing fall color. The publications are available at conservation nature centers. MDC s computer home page offers information on the peak of fall color at: http://www.mdc.mo.gov/ nathis/fall/fall.html. The web site also contains an online version of "Fall Colors of Missouri," a game based on identifying fall leaves, and a quiz on fall leaves and their uses.
The USDA Forest Service offers a toll-free fall color hotline to help Missourians catch a the climax of the autumn display. Dialing 1-800-898-8895 will get you an update of the progress of the color change and advice about routes where the best colors are found.
4. Commission to Meet at Montauk State Park Oct. 21
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Conservation Commission's next meeting will take place Oct. 21 at Montauk State Park, Route 5, Salem. The Commission will meet in closed executive session at 8:30 a.m. The open session will begin at 10:15 a.m.
Commission meetings are open to the public. To be placed on the agenda for a hearing or other business, write to Director, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180, at least 10 working days before the meeting date. For information about Commission meetings, call (573) 751-4115. Persons requiring special services or accommodations to attend the meeting can make arrangements at the same address or phone number.
Commissioners are: John Powell, Rolla, chairman; Ronald J. Stites, Plattsburg, vice-chairman; Randy Herzog, St. Joseph, secretary; and Anita B. Gorman, Kansas City, member.
5. MDC to Auction Land, Equipment in Salem Oct. 5
SALEM, Mo. -- Property ranging from pickup trucks to real estate will go on the auction block Oct. 5 in Salem. The Missouri Department of Conservation will sell two tracts of land in Bollinger County, two in Shannon County and one in Crawford County. Also to be sold is office equipment and furniture, farm implements, lawn mowers, power tools, welders and a video camera.
The auction begins at 10 a.m. at MDC s facility at the junction of Highways 32 and 72 in Salem. Real estate will be sold first. Sale items will be on display from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Oct. 4 or from 8 to10 a.m. the day of the auction. A list of sale items is available at MDC s Salem office. Personal checks will be accepted with proper identification, and they must pay for all property the day of the sale before removing it.
For more information about land to be sold at the auction, call Ann Holland at (573) 751-4115, ext. 187. For information on other auction items, call ext. 283.
HUNTING
Bag Limit
Opens Closes (Daily-Possession)
Bullfrogs 6/30/96 10/31/96 8-16 (See Wildlife Code)
Common Snipe*+ 9/ 1/96 12/16/96 8-16
Coyotes 5/ 6/96 3/31/97 Some restrictions during
deer season. (See Wildlife Code)
Crows 11/ 1/96 3/ 3/97 No Limit
Deer/Turkey (Archery) 10/ 1/96 11/15/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
11/27/96 1/15/97 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer (Firearms) 11/16/96 11/26/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer (Muzzleloader) 11/16/96 11/26/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
12/ 7/96 12/15/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer 1/ 4/97 1/ 5/97 Open only to hunters with unfilled
(Firearms & Muzzleloader Any-Deer Bonus Deer Tags for
in units 1-17, 22, 58 & 59) open units. See Regulations
Dove*+# 9/ 1/96 10/30/96 15-30
Ducks and Coots*
North Zone 10/26/96 12/14/96 Five ducks daily with no more
Middle Zone 11/ 2/96 12/21/96 than 4 mallards (no more than 1 female),
South Zone 11/23/96 1/11/97 2 wood ducks, 2 redheads, 1 pintail,
Youth-only Duck Hunting Dates 1 black duck, 1 hooded merganser or
North Zone 10/19/96 10/19/96 1 canvasback. Daily bag for coots is
Middle Zone 10/26/96 10/26/96 15. Possession limits are twice the
South Zone 11/16/96 11/16/96 daily limit.
Furbearers 11/20/96 1/20/97 No Limit
Geese and Brant
Blue, Snow and Ross' Geese*+# Daily bag limits include no more than
North and Swan 10 blue, snow or Ross' geese; 2
Lake Zones 10/26/96 1/19/97 Canada geese; 2 brant; and 2 white-
2/17/97 3/9/97 fronted geese. Possession limits for
Middle and Schell-Osage Canada geese, brant and white-fronted
Zones: 11/ 2/96 11/ 7/96 geese are twice the daily limit. For
6 (See Wildlife Code)
Quail 11/1/96 1/15/97 8-16
Rabbits 10/1/96 2/15/97 6-12
(may include only
2-4 swamp rabbits)
Ruffed Grouse 10/15/96 1/15/97 (See Wildlife Code)
Sora and Virginia Rails*+ 9/ 1/96 11/ 9/96 25-25
Squirrels 5/25/96 1/15/97 (See Wildlife Code)
Teal*+ 9/ 7/96 9/15/96 4-8
Turkey 4/21/97 5/ 4/97 1 bearded bird per week
Turkey (Fall Firearms) 10/14/96 10/27/96 (See Wildlife Code)
Woodcock*+ 10/15/96 12/18/96 5-10
FISHING
Trout Parks 3/ 1/96 10/31/96 5-10
Trout Parks 11/8/96 2/ 8/97 Catch & release Fri., Sat.,
(Winter Tag Required) Sun. 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Trout Management Areas Open All No Closed 5-10 (See Wildlife Code)
(Trout Permit Required) Year Season
Trout (Trophy and Wild) Open All No Closed 3-3 (See Wildlife Code)
Trout Management Areas) Year Season
(Trout Permit Required)
Black Bass
(streams, specified zone) 5/25/96 2/28/97 6-12 (See Wildlife Code)
(impoundments) Open All No Closed (See Wildlife Code)
Year Season
Bullfrogs 6/30/96 10/31/96 8-16 (See Wildlife Code)
Paddlefish 3/15/97 4/30/97 2-4 (See Wildlife Code)
Nongame Fish Stream Gigging 9/15/96 1/31/97 20
(See Wildlife Code for creel limits on other species.)
TRAPPING
Beaver 11/20/96 3/31/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
Coyotes 11/20/96 2/15/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
Furbearers 11/20/96 1/20/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
___________
*Hunters of migratory birds are required to have a migratory bird
hunting permit in addition to other appropriate permits (See Wildlife Code).
+Subject to final federal approval
#Complete waterfowl details will be found in the Migratory Bird Hunting Digest,
to be available from permit vendors and MDC offices in early October.
CONSERVATION COMMISSION MEETING
October 21 Montauk State Park, Route 5, Salem, Mo.
(For additional information contact the Department Director.)
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