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Stockton Lake and Osage River tailwaters are prime sites for anglers in mid-March when walleye will make their annual pilgrimage.
JEFFERSON CITYYou can catch a walleye just about any time of the year in Missouri, but anglers really get excited about fishing for walleyes in the spring, when the fish gather in large numbers to spawn.
Stockton Lake is one of Missouri's better known walleye sites. According to the Missouri Department of Conservation's publication "Fishing Prospects at Selected Missouri Lakes and Streams 2000," great improvements in the walleye population and in walleye angling are expected in upcoming years at Stockton.
Effective March 1, the length limit on Stockton walleyes will go from 18 inches down to 15 inches. This will improve anglers' chances of catching fish large enough to put on the stringer. Also, many of the walleyes that the Conservation Department stocked in the lake in 1998 should be nearing legal size.
Many anglers fish off the face of the dam at Stockton after dark during spawning season, according to Chris Vitello, fisheries regional supervisor with the Conservation Department. "It's a popular spot. I've been there when there have been several boats and a line of anglers on the bank."
Vitello notes that walleyes have some natural reproduction at Stockton. The Little Sac River at the upper end of the lake and Turnback Creek both see significant spring runs of spawning walleyes in some years. The Conservation Department plans to ensure the quality and consistency of walleye fishing at Stockton by stocking fingerlings in the lake.
Stockton's natural spring runs of native walleyes start around mid-March. "Most of the fish go to the first two or three riffles," Vitello says. "Those riffles can be in different locations from year to year depending on the level of the lake."
The upper end of Bull Shoals Reservoir below Powersite Dam near Forsyth, Mo., and some of Bull Shoals' small tributaries are traditional sites for spring walleye anglers. The water just below the dam is known as the "pothole." Angling may be tough there this year because of scant rainfall during 1999; Bull Shoals is low and the area at the pothole is almost devoid of water. Overall, walleye numbers are up at Bull Shoals due to stocking and the 18-inch length limit.
Vitello says that, though it is not known as a traditional walleye spot and the Conservation Department does not stock walleye in Table Rock Lake, there is a run of fish from Table Rock into the Kings River arm of the lake. People who know the fish are there are learning to catch them. Anglers trolling for white bass later in the season at Table Rock Lake even catch some of these fish.
The Osage River below Truman Dam produces spring walleye. "It's one of the better spots in the state," says Ron Dent, also a fisheries regional supervisor with the Conservation Department. "There is a good population of walleyewe stock Lake Ozark with walleyes that run upstream to Trumanand there are numbers of large fish."
Dent adds that Truman Lake itself supports a stable walleye population, and anglers that know the location of some flats and drop-offs near the river channel catch them year-round. In the spring, Truman Lake walleyes can run up the Sac River, the Pomme de Terre River and the Marais de Cygnes River. The largest run goes up the Sac.
Dent says anglers also catch some walleyes and a few saugers in the Osage River below Bagnell Dam.
In the Kansas City region, both Lake Jacomo and Longview Lake have some walleyes. On the opposite side of the state, Mark Twain Lake has limited walleye fishing. Some fish over 22 inches in length are present, especially in the Indian Creek area. The new 15-inch length limit will be in effect for Mark Twain and its Salt River tributaries.
In the Ozarks, Lake Norfork has a walleye run that centers on two tributary streamsBryant Creek and the North Fork of the White River. Anglers are reminded that from Feb. 20 through April 14, walleye fishing is limited to daylight hours upstream of the confluence of the two streams.
Fishing for walleye and its relative, the sauger, is open all year in Missouri, with a daily limit of four fish, except on the Mississippi River, where the daily limit is eight. From Feb. 20 through April 14, walleyes and saugers can be taken and possessed only between 6:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. CST in the Swan Creek Arm of Bull Shoals Lake above Highway 160 and the unimpounded portions of all streams except the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Though fishing is mostly limited to daylight hours on flowing waters, many anglers fish after dark on impounded lakes.
Walleye fishing should be better in the future, thanks to Conservation Department plans to bolster walleye numbers in suitable lakes and streams. The agency spent part of 1998 surveying the state's waters to find the best walleye territory, then stocked more than 2.1 million walleye fingerlings in the best spots.
The Conservation Department is releasing fingerlings in Stockton, Lake of the Ozarks, Bull Shoals, Norfork, Smithville, Long Branch and Mark Twain lakes. The St. Francis and Eleven Point rivers are also being primed with fingerlings.
The plan calls for stocking large numbers of walleyes through the year 2004. Part of the new walleye plan is lowering the statewide length limit from 18 inches to 15 inches. Some of the fish stocked in 1998 could reach 15 inches at the end of their second growing season, making them likely targets for anglers during the upcoming season.
The 18-inch limit is being maintained at Bull Shoals, Long Branch, Norfork and Table Rock lakes and the Current and Eleven Point rivers. There is no length limit on walleye or sauger on the Mississippi River, where an established fishery is being evaluated.
Walleye stocking in the St. Francis River above Lake Wappapello goes back to 1996. The Conservation Department has stocked fish there for several years in an effort to reestablish a self-supporting population. Anglers won't be allowed to keep fish on the St. Francis River or Lake Wappapello and its other tributaries until the new population is well established. Conservation Department fisheries biologists are sampling the river to follow the growth of the fish.
For a copy of the booklet on Missouri fishing prospects in the new year, write to "Fishing Prospects 2000," Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City 65102.
- Jim Auckley -
Economic growth and flood control are among this program's benefits. Can you guess who paid for it?
JEFFERSON CITYSince 1986, Americans have spent more than $1.3 billion on wetlands; a quarter of the money has gone to Canada. At first glance, such a program sounds like a candidate for the Golden Fleece Award. But consider these additional facts:
--The wetlandsranging from wet prairie to bottomland hardwood forestsDent adds that Truman Lake itself supporhave become wildlife factories, supporting shorebirds, songbirds and waterfowl, fish, furbearers and big game.
--The wild "capital" grown on wetlands created or preserved through this program has spawned birdwatching, nature photography and other ecotourism that annually generates $3.3 billion in retail sales, $2.6 billion in wages and $576 million in state and federal tax revenues. The total economic benefit of these activities is about $10 billion each year, according to the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. Nearly three-quarters of the waterfowl on which this return depends comes from the Canadian investment.
--While providing this substantial economic boost, the program improves water quality and alleviates flooding throughout the United States.
--Wetlands created under the program have helped make possible a recovery of North American waterfowl populations from their low ebb in the mid-1980s to the current record levels. Last year's fall flight of ducks was estimated at 105 million. In Missouri alone, duck usage of managed wetland areas increased from 12 million in the 1980s to more than 36 million in 1998.
--Duck hunting opportunities and expenditures for equipment, supplies, food, lodging and services associated with duck hunting increased proportionately.
--The federal government paid only half the cost of the program. The remainder came mainly from state conservation agencies and private sources.
--A major source of federal funds for wetland restoration is revenues from the sale of state and federal duck stamps. Nearly $7.7 million in federal money and $33.5 million of matching funds have been awarded into Missouri wetland projects.
All these benefits are direct results of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP). The plan is an unprecedented effort developed cooperatively by private conservation groups in the United States, Canada and Mexico, working closely with state, provincial and federal wildlife management agencies.
Ducks Unlimited, the U.S. and Canadian Fish and Wildlife Services and state conservation agencies have taken some actions on their own to create and preserve wetland habitat for waterfowl. But the preferred tool under the NAWMP has been the "joint venture," in which state, federal and private agencies combine forces to tackle projects too big for individual partners.
The lion's share of money for the NAWMP's achievements has come from hunters. Ducks Unlimited, the biggest private contributor, draws its members from the ranks of waterfowl hunters. Money from state and federal and migratory bird hunting permits fuels the program, too.
The latest NAWMP project in Missouri created Four Rivers Conservation Area, 14,000 acres in western Missouri and one of the largest state-owned wetland areas in the Midwest.
Hunters proudly point to the recovery of waterfowl populations under the NAWMP as yet another shining success, comparable to hunter/conservationists' bringing back the white-tailed deer and wild turkey. And, as with those successes, the restoration of waterfowl has created unexpected bonanza of secondary benefits to wildlife and people.
- Jim Low -
Warm weatherconsidered a detriment to early-season deer hunters may have helped them regain lost ground during the January Extension.
JEFFERSON CITY--Hunters bagged a record 4,092 deer during the December portion of Missouri's deer season and 13,703 during the January Extension of firearms deer season, pushing the season total to 193,720.
The deer kill during the December deer hunt, which is for muzzleloaders only, was up 2,545 (165 percent) from the 1998 muzzleloader season. The number of deer checked during the four-day January Extension was up 5,609 (69 percent) from last year's figure.
Unusually warm weather kept the deer harvest low during the November hunt, when most of Missouri's annual deer harvest takes place. Going into the December hunt, the deer harvest was 18,745 behind the previous year's pace. They cut that deficit by 8,154 during the December and January hunts, finishing the year just 10,591 (5 percent) shy of last season's total.
Only parts of the northern half of the state are open to deer hunting during the January Extension. Northeastern Missouri led regional harvest totals with 5,506 deer checked. Northwestern Missouri came in second with 4,392, and the state's central region was third with 3,020. Other regional totals included the Kansas City urban deer management unit with 386 and the St. Louis unit, with 310. Small portions of the west-central and east-central deer management units were open during the January Extension and posted harvest figures of 48 and 41 deer, respectively.
The Missouri Department of Conservation received no reports of firearms-related deer hunting accidents during the January Extension.
Several factors may have contributed to this year's increased January deer harvest. In the wake of a poor November harvest, more hunters had unused deer permits and so were eligible to take part in the January hunt. Unseasonably warm weather during the four-day hunt made staying in the woods more comfortable, increasing the odds of hunters encountering deer. And, going into its third year, the January Extension undoubtedly is becoming a tradition for an increasing number of deer hunters.
- Jim Low -
Missouri stands to gain $17 million annually for wildlife and recreation.
JEEFFERSON CITY--March may be a critical month for fish, wildlife, parks and outdoor recreation, according to the Wildlife Management Institute. The private conservation group, which is based in Washington, D.C., says that's when Congress will take up one of the most important conservation measures in decades.
When Congress gets down to the business of its spring session, one of the bills on its agenda will be H.B. 701. The House Resources Committee gave the bill, also known as the Conservation and Reinvestment Act or CARA, its stamp of approval before Congress adjourned last fall. The bill would provide funding for fish and wildlife conservation, parks, recreation, education and other local projects from existing federal revenues.
The money would come from revenues the federal government receives from oil and natural gas leases on the outer continental shelf (OCS). The funds originally were intended to support local parks and recreation projects and conservation programs that mitigate the environmental impacts of offshore oil drilling. However, the legislation setting up the fund failed to earmark its monies for conservation, parks and recreation programs, and Congress has used most of the money for other purposes. CARA earmarks $2.8 to $4 billion in OCS funds annually for the purposes for which they were originally intended. Under the bill's provisions, this money would be turned over to states for recreation, fisheries, wildlife, conservation education and other related projects.
The Wildlife Management Institute, a private conservation group based in Washington, D.C., says coordinated support from hunters, anglers and a wide range of conservation groups will be critical to the bill's success. That support seems to be in place. More than 3,000 groups and businesses have expressed support for the bill. Supporters include the Bass Pro Shops, National Wildlife Federation, the National Audubon Society, the National Association of Counties and the National Governors' Association.
CARA also enjoys bipartisan support. The bill's 127 House sponsors include 65 Republicans and 62 Democrats. It is a priority bill for conservative Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) and liberal Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.). A similar bill has strong support in the Senate. All 50 state governors have come out in support of the bill.
Missouri's share of the money would be channeled through the Missouri departments of Conservation and Natural Resources. Much of the money would be available to local governments and conservation groups through grants administered by the two state agencies. Qualifying projects could include local parks, outdoor classrooms and wildlife habitat work.
Annual funding through CARA would include:
--Coastal conservation programs - $1 billion
--Land and water conservation - $900 million
--Wildlife conservation and restoration - $350 million
--Conservation easements and species recovery - $150 million
--Urban parks and recreation - $125 million
Missouri wildlife will benefit from CARA funding through conservation partnerships in which state agencies and local groups promote wildlife viewing, grants to schools, habitat restoration, urban green space and nature tourism. The program also would help songbirds whose populations are in decline and other nongame wildlife.
Community grants that would be available through CARA could provide support for development of trails, wildlife habitat, parks, green space, nature areas, outdoor classrooms, aquariums and nature-related tourism.
Missouri proponents plan to take part in a rally March 1 in Washington, D.C., to lobby for CARA. The event will include a breakfast with members of Congress, visits with senators and representatives, a rally on the Capitol steps, an evening reception and wildlife festival and possibly a meeting with White House officials.
For more information about the rally and CARA, call 202/624-7890, visit the web sites at
- Jim Low -
Sport fishing, aquatic education and fisheries research benefit.
JEEFFERSON CITY--This year, anglers celebrate 50 years and more than $3.6 billion worth of support for aquatic conservation through the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Fund. The fund uses federal excise taxes on fishing equipment and marine fuels to fund fishing and boating access sites, fisheries research and education programs.
The Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act was the brainchild of Congressman John Dingell of Michigan and Senator Edwin Johnson of Colorado. Enacted by Congress in 1950, the federal law established an excise tax on fishing tackle to pay for sport fish restoration programs.
A growing deficiency of available funds for fisheries projects prompted Senator Malcolm Wallop of Wyoming and Congressman John Breaux of Louisiana to amend the act in 1984. The Wallop-Breaux Amendment enacted a tax on essentially all items of fishing tackle, as well as the new motorboat fuel taxes and import duties on fishing tackle and boats.
The amendment more than tripled the amount of revenue raised for sport fish recreation. During the final year of funding under the original law (1985), $38 million was available to the Sport Fish Restoration Program. During the first year of the program under Wallop-Breaux (1986), funding increased to $122 million. Since then the figure has increased to more than $350 million annually. Other amendments to the act have provided funds to restore costal wetlands and create boating safety programs.
Sport fish and restoration funds are generated by a 10 percent tax on fishing supplies and a 3 percent excise taxes on pleasure boats and sonar devices. Revenues raised from those taxes have provided 75 percent of the funding of state projects, such as purchases of fisheries habitat and boating access sites, fishing education programs and research projects to improve fisheries management.
Missouri's share of Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration money averages about $7.8 million annually. The Missouri Department of Conservation uses this money for research and to build hatcheries, lakes, stream accesses and other facilities.
- Arleasha Mays -
Proper handling and preparation of venison means plenty of good eating.
JEFFERSON CITY--Missourians hunt deer for a variety of reasons, but all of those who are successful will share in what can be an enjoyable feast of venison. Deer that are field dressed properly, then cooked the right way, can yield food every bit as tasty as the beef most people eat day in and day out.
Missouri hunters took 175,925 deer during the November firearms deer season. When the kills from archery and muzzleloader seasons and the January Extension are added, Missouri 1999-2000 harvest will probably total around 200,000. The average deer weighs about 150 pounds on the hoof and yields about 75 pounds of meat.
That means Missouri hunters will put about 15 million pounds of venison in the refrigerator or freezer. All those steaks, roasts and venison burger are a valuable contribution to the food
budgets of many families.
Venison is a good buy ecologically, too. Because deer live in forests and other undeveloped land, eating their meat saves the costs associated with clearing land, plowing and fertilizing, applying pesticides to crops and raising domestic livestock. Taking and consuming deer close to home also saves the cost of transporting food cross-country.
Many hunters are generous enough to share their food bonanza with less fortunate people. Missouri hunters donate more than 15 tons of venison to the Share the Harvest program each year. Meat funneled through this program is given to charitable organizations that then distribute it to needy Missourians. Participation in the program has increased 43 percent in one
year, and it's likely to grow in the future.
Ideally, a deer carcass would yield as much as 65 percent of its field-dressed weight in meat. But in reality, most deer yield less. Trimming away bruised meat reduces the yield. Some loss also occurs due to meat contaminated by paunch contents, soil and leaf litter while being dragged from the woods or by careless field dressing.
Deer hunters can increase the yield of venison from deer they take by making clean shots, field dressing the deer carefully and dealing with an experienced, reputable meat processor.
The most common complaints about venison are that it is tough or dry. One way around tough meat is to cook it in soups or stews with plenty of cooking time. Another way is to grind it with
pork. It can then be used just like hamburger in dishes such as chili.
When preparing venison steaks, consider sauteing them in butter or ham drippings and cooking them on low heat; the trick is to quit while the meat is still rare. This is because venison is so lean that it has to be cooked gently or with moist heat. Roasts can be larded with pork or covered with bacon or salt pork held in place by toothpicks to achieve the same results.
Cy Littlebee's Guide to Cooking Fish & Game, published by the Missouri Department of Conservation, contains many venison recipes. The 142-page paperback is $3.50 (plus 6.225 percent sales tax for Missouri residents and $2 shipping and handling). To order copies, write to Nature Shop, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102, or call 573/751-4115, ext. 325.
- Jim Auckley -
Payments in lieu of taxes compensate local governments for lost tax revenue.
JEFFERSON CITY--In 1999, school boards, ambulance districts, public libraries and other local political subdivisions throughout Missouri received more than a half million dollars in funds from the Missouri Department of Conservation. Each year the Conservation Department provides funds to compensate local governments for revenues lost when land is purchased for
conservation areas, removing it from tax rolls.
The Conservation Department is allowed by law to provide such payments in lieu of taxes (PILT). Most PILT money is paid on lands purchased since voters approved the one-eighth of 1 percent conservation sales tax. Those payments equal the taxes that were being paid on the land when it was purchased. The Conservation Department also pays 75 cents per acre on land it purchased before passage of the sales tax. The agency owns 764,642 acres statewide.
Last year, 112 counties received $567,420 in PILT funds. The money provided substantial revenue for several counties. St. Louis County received the largest PILT allotment of $47,761. Shannon County, which contains more conservation land than any other, received $27,074 in PILT. Mississippi County received $23,701. Only Jasper and Polk counties receive no PILT money.
The Conservation Department also provides money for county coffers through the Forest Cropland Program. The program provides financial incentive for landowners to manage their forests for a sustained timber yield. Those who enroll in the program for a 25-year period are allowed to defer tax payment on their forest acres. A 6-percent yield tax is charged on timber cut before the end of the agreed-on period. To assure the local tax base does not suffer due to the deferments, each year the Conservation Department pays county collectors 50 cents for each acre enrolled in the program.
The Conservation Department made payments to 107 counties for acreage enrolled in the Forest Cropland Program last year. Those payments totaled $312,825.34. The largest payment, $52,476.58, went to Shannon County. Reynolds County was second with $30,373.96, followed by Carter County with $22,842.99. Other top counties in Forest Cropland PILT receipts included Wayne with $19,047.07, Texas with $17,189.61, Dent with $15,001.56 and St. Charles with $10,981.43. Hickory County brought up the rear with a Forest Cropland payment of $1.30.
- Arleasha Mays -
Starting March 1, privileges will be valid instantly.
JEFFERSON CITYPeople who find it inconvenient to go to permit vendors to buy Missouri hunting and fishing permits now can do their permit shopping by telephone any time of day or night. And starting March 1, hunting, fishing and trapping privileges purchased by phone will become effective immediately.
Last fall the Missouri Department of Conservation initiated a telephone permit sales system that allows outdoors people to order permits by dialing 800/392-4115 and paying with Visa or Mastercard. The system operates 24 hours a day year-round.
At present, telephone permit buyers must wait until their paper permit
arrives in the mail to use the privileges they have purchased. But starting
March 1, privileges purchased via the Conservation Department's telephone
permit line will become effective immediately for all but deer and turkey
permits. Instant posting of each purchase will allow conservation agents to
check hunters' permit status from the field by radio or cell phone.
Conservation Department officials say the system will make permit buying
much more convenient.
"There's no need to stand in line to buy most permits now," says
Conservation Department Fiscal Services Chief Carter Campbell. "The whole
process takes about five minutes. If you don't want to buy all your permits
for the year you can wait until the day before you need each permit to buy
without having to make several trips to a permit vendor."
The only permits not available by phone are daily trout park tags and
no-creel trout fishing tags for use at trout parks during the winter.
First-time permit buyers can realize a windfall by buying permits between now and the end of the current permit year Feb. 29. The permits now on sale are valid as soon as they arrive by mail and remain good through the end of the next permit year, Feb. 28, 2001.
To buy permits by phone you need the Conservation Heritage Card number of the person for whom the permit is being purchased. The heritage card number can be found on current permits. If the conservation number is unavailable, you must provide the person's name, address, date of birth, social security number, hair and eye color, height and weight. To buy a hunting permit for a person born on or after Jan. 1, 1967, you also need a hunter education certification number.
Telephone permit purchases are subject to a $2 transaction fee. Most permits are delivered by mail in seven to 10 business days. A hunter education certification number also is required if the recipient was born on or after Jan. 1, 1967.
- Jim Low -
Loggers can improve the safety and environmental soundness of their work. The training is mandatory for bidders on timber sales on conservation areas.
JEFFERSON CITY--Missouri loggers who want to learn to harvest timber in the safest, most efficient and environmentally friendly manner can learn the secrets of the craft from a world-renowned woodsman through the Professional Timber Harvester Program sponsored by the Missouri Forest Products Association beginning this month.
The program features Soren Eriksson, considered by many professional foresters to be the world's leading authority on timber harvesting techniques. Foresters from the Missouri Department of Conservation cover sustainable forest management techniques and logging "best management practices."
The program gives participants information about getting the most from timber harvests while ensuring maximum sustainable yield from the land they work in the future. The program offers one course for logging supervisors, landowners and company owners and a separate course for loggers and skidder operators. Foresters can attend either training.
Logger sessions emphasize personal safety through practical, hands-on training in such topics as planning efficient harvest layouts, cutting and wedging techniques on leaning trees, bucking and limbing methods, equipment maintenance and protective gear. Benefits to loggers include extending the life of their equipment, safer working conditions, increased timber volume and quality and lower insurance rates.
Logger sessions are divided into five daylong courses during a five- or six-month period. Upcoming logger sessions begin Jan. 15, Feb. 5, Feb. 12, Aug. 12 and Aug. 19.
Supervisor sessions take place in five daylong courses over a three-month period. They cover much of the material from the logger sessions, but also include information on maintaining water quality, site rehabilitation, wildlife habitat assessment, sustainability, accounting and legal and insurance considerations, first aid and CPR. They cover a comprehensive system of forest management principles, objectives and performance measures to ensure that logging activities protect wildlife, plant and soil quality.
Successful completion of a supervisor session is required for logging contract bidders on Conservation Department lands. Sessions begin Jan. 25, Jan. 27, July 26 and Aug. 2.
The cost of both logger and supervisor sessions is $135 for MFPA members or $155 for nonmembers. Enrollment is limited to 30 persons per session. Full course details and application forms are available from MFPA, 611 E. Capitol Ave., Suite 1, Jefferson City, MO 65101. Phone 573/634-3252. Information also is available via the Internet at
- Jim Low -
Carp, gar records fall to anglers using archery and gigging methods.
JEFFERSON CITY--As far as record-sized Missouri fish go, 1999 was the year of the carp and the bow-fisher. Anglers broke the grass carp record twice and set a new record for the common carp, all with archery tackle. They also broke the bighead carp record by snagging and registered a new longnose gar record by gigging.
On May 23 Jeffrey Burnett of Oak Grove launched a boat on Lake Lotawana near Kansas City with friend Dave Williams. They had archery tackle and were hunting for carp. Just 10 days earlier Williams had taken a common carp on the same lake that set a new archery record at 35 pounds and 9 ounces.
Both men are experienced archery hunters, and they were looking for big carp on the prowl during spawning season. They put on fishing tournaments for the United Missouri Bowhunters and had recently sponsored a youth archery fishing tournament. Burnett says archery fishing differs from lake to lake, depending on water clarity. Big fish usually hold somewhat deeper than small fish, making them harder to hit with an arrow.
They were only a few moments out of the dock when Burnett saw a shadow on the water. He saw it move, determined it was a carp and drew his bow for a shot. The arrow went over the top of the fish, and the two anglers continued moving down the lake. "We hadn't gone 30 yards when I saw another fish," Burnett said. He shot, driving an arrow into what proved to be a large grass carp. Williams put a second arrow in the fish and they hauled it in fairly rapidly on the 400-lb test line they use for archery fishing.
The fish weighed 69 pounds, 13 ounces. It was 47 inches long and had a girth of 36 inches. Burnett is having a fiberglass replica of the big fish made by a taxidermist. He says they are difficult to mount because of they contain a lot of oil. Burnett says smaller grass carp are good to eat if prepared properly. He also eats gar and buffalo he takes with archery tackle.
Burnett's record did not stand for long. On June 17, Donald H. Atterberry of Memphis, Mo., was bow fishing on Lake Showme in Scotland County. Lake Showme is the city water supply lake for Memphis, and it is managed for recreation by the Conservation Department. Atterberry does most of his bow fishing in the spring. Lake Showme is productive for bow anglers; a previous state record grass carp had come from there.
The week before, Atterberry had taken a 45-pound grass carp and several in the 30-pound range from Lake Showme. "We fished about three hours the day I hit the record fish," Atterberry says. "We had a lot of shots that day, but we couldn't seem to hit them." When Atterberry did finally connect with a fish, it was a trophy. He nailed a grass carp that weighed 71 pounds, 4 ounces. It was just over 50 inches long and had a girth of 35.5 inches.
"I had just gotten a fleeting glimpse of the fish and didn't realize it was so large until it passed close to the boat," Atterberry says. His companion put a back-up arrow in the fish. "It took line off of both our reels before tiring."
Other record fish in 1999 included a bighead carp taken by Gary Talley of St. Joseph. Talley snagged the fish in Lake Contrary in Buchanan County. It weighed 52 pounds, 8 ounces, was 48 inches long and 30 inches in girth. Talley was using 30-pound test line when he snagged the fish. Bighead carp are exotic fish native to eastern China. They are relatively new arrivals in Missouri. They were first brought to the United States in the 1970s for research, but have escaped from captivity.
The fish's large head and relatively small eyes, located forward and low on the head and seeming to focus downward, are keys to identifying the fish. Bighead carp are filter-feeders with a preferred diet of tiny animals called zooplankton. Consequently, they are usually snagged rather than being caught on bait. Some anglers have reported catching them, however, on bass lures, crappie jigs and on cut bait on trotlines.
The other record fish taken in Missouri in 1999 was a longnose gar. Keith Adamson of Poplar Bluff gigged the fish in the Black River in Butler County on Nov. 29. The gar weighed 34 pounds, 7 ounces and was 64 inches long, with a girth of 21 inches. Adamson boated the fish at 10 p.m.
- Jim Auckley -
Hunters are wildlife managers' best hope of saving hundreds of square miles of arctic habitat used by snow geese and other wildlife.
WASHINGTON, D.C.--Missouri hunters again are being called upon to help preserve arctic waterfowl habitat. The state is one of 24 targeted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for participation in measures to reduce North America's snow goose population.
Snow geese have grown so numerous in recent years that they are damaging their nesting habitat. Wildlife biologists say without a decrease in their population the birds could cause permanent ecological damage to themselves and other species.
Habitat improvements and changes in agricultural practices along the birds' migratory route contributed to explosive growth in snow goose numbers. North American snow goose numbers have tripled since the 1960s to a population of about five million, too many for the fragile Canadian Arctic nesting grounds to support.
The birds, which pull up plant roots when above-ground vegetation is exhausted, literally are eating away arctic tundra habitat. A third of the area is so heavily overgrazed that biologists believe it is unlikely to recover in our lifetime. Wildlife biologists say a 50 percent reduction in the snow goose population is needed to prevent the birds from destroying all of the nesting area. They say the best way to accomplish this is through hunting.
To give states a better opportunity to increase snow goose harvests Congress recently approved legislation to enact a "conservation order" allowing hunters to take snow geese beyond the regular hunting season. State wildlife agencies in the Central and Mississippi flyways also are being allowed to use methods normally prohibited.
In support of the conservation order the Missouri Conservation Commission recently approved the following regulations for hunting snow geese, blue geese and Ross' geese, collectively known as "light geese," from Feb. 1 through April 30, 2000:
--Use of electronic calling devices;
--Use of unplugged shotguns capable of holding more than three shells;
--Shooting hours from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset;
--Unlimited daily and possession limits.
A valid Missouri Migratory Bird Hunting Permit will be the only license requirement. Other regulations will remain in effect during the period covered by the conservation order. Snow goose season dates, bag limits, shooting hours and other regulations published in the 1999-2000 Migratory Bird Hunting Digest still apply prior to Feb. 1.
This is the second year state and federal wildlife management agencies have enacted liberalized snow goose regulations. Relaxed rules allowed Missouri hunters to post a record snow goose harvest of 80,500 birds during the 1998-1999 snow goose hunting season. That is about twice the previous state record. Hunters in the Mississippi and Central flyways harvested an estimated 1.07 million snow geese during the 1998-1999 season.
Regulatory adjustments are just the first steps in efforts to reduce the snow goose numbers. The FWS also is changing the way it manages national wildlife refuges in the mid-continent region to make them less attractive to snow geese. An environmental impact statement that will determine long-term strategies for managing snow goose populations is expected to be completed by this spring.
A coalition of wildlife groups including the Audubon Society, the National Wildlife Federation, Ducks Unlimited, the Ornithological Council and the American Bird Conservancy has voiced support for measures that would help reduce snow goose numbers.
"These goose populations are out of control because of changes in agricultural practices on the birds' wintering grounds and other human activity," says Bruce Batt, chief biologist for Ducks Unlimited and Chairman of the Arctic Goose Habitat Working Group. "The scientific community has recognized that this is a man-made problem that requires a man-made solution, like increased hunting. Without it, we might be witnesses to a catastrophic loss of habitat in the Arctic-habitat that is shared by a large variety of other wildlife species."
Support of Missouri landowners also is needed to help to prevent destruction of the waterfowl nesting area. Enormous numbers of snow geese often gather to feed on crop land. Allowing hunters access to your fields for several days at a time during the conservation order gives hunters the best chance at harvesting snow geese.
Landowners also can benefit by allowing snow goose hunting on their properties. Hunters can help prevent geese from moving into newly planted fields and gobbling up sprouting crops.
- Arleasha Mays -
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