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Restoration efforts by the Missouri Department of Conservation and banning of the pesticide DDT have helped bald eagles stage a dramatic recovery in Missouri. More of these big birds of prey are nesting beside Show-Me State rivers and lakes each year, and our national symbol is becoming a common sight throughout the state. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
Private landowners can get help establishing native plants, too.
JEFFERSON CITY - Some Missouri highways soon could be added to the state's list of nature viewing attractions. A cooperative program between the Missouri departments of Conservation and Transportation (MODOT) seeks to spruce up highway roadsides with native plants.
Part of the money for roadside planting is being provided by a $1 million U.S. Department of Transportation Roadside Enhancement Grant. That fund can only be used to improve the appearance of highways. The Conservation Department also will provide $200,000 in matching funds and technical assistance to contractors participating in the program.
Besides making roadways more pleasing to the eye, the native grass and wildflower plantings will help the Conservation Department and MODOT meet important agency objectives.
"We've been planting natives for a long time," said MODOT Roadside Management Supervisor Stacy Armstrong. "There are many good reasons why we use them. We've found that they are very effective in controlling erosion and they're not invasive like the exotic plants. That's important to Missourians who are concerned about the environment."
Armstrong said using native plants also allows savings in maintenance costs along urban highways. "In some areas where we traditionally mowed five to six times a year, we've been able to reduce mowing to one to two times a year."
The planting will help the Conservation Department efforts to preserve the state's biodiversity, said the Conservation Department's Private Land Services Unit Chief Steve Young.
"One of the strategic goals of our department is to increase the biodiversity of the state," said Young. "Replacing exotics with native plants helps us do that by increasing the presence and predominance of native plants, which reduces the impact of invasive exotics."
Eight highways have been selected for the native conversions. The roadside at the junction of 291 and I-70, I-35 near Bethany, Highway 71 north of Lamar and Highway 54 near Kingdom City will be planted this fall. Motorists will be able to enjoy native grasses and a showy mix of wildflowers from late spring through early fall. Young says the grasses will look rougher than what drivers have become accustomed to, but they will not look like they are growing out of control. Young said the project will look planned, not abandoned. Plant mixes have been selected that will be showy, even at 70 miles per hour but yet are functional at controlling erosion.
The two agencies have reviewed all available research to ensure that native conversions will not cause problems. Some Missourians expressed concerns that native plants would attract deer to the roadways.
"Research from several states indicates that native conversions do not increase deer-vehicle collisions," said Young. "It may decrease them because deer tend to be attracted to the new growth of freshly-mowed grasses. With this project we'll be reducing the amount of mowed grass along the highway. And we're not going to plant things that we know attract deer."
The Conservation Department is optimistic that native conversions will catch on with private landowners as well. The agency has contact information for 75 contractors who are qualified to perform native plant installation and roadside conversion projects. This makes it easy for landowners to use native grasses, wildflowers, shrubs, vines and trees to provide more natural landscapes for personal enjoyment and to benefit wildlife.
"We've worked with contractors throughout the state to ensure that Missourians have access to the plants and the help they need to establish natives on their property," said Grow Native Marketing and Communications Specialist Bonnie Chasteen. "We have information on cost share incentives for native conversion. We've made it easy to establish natives on everything from a small yard to a large farm."
Chasteen says people who are interested in establishing native plants on their properties should visit the Grow Native website www.grownative.org. The site has information that can help landowners design a landscaping plan, locate nurseries that sell true Missouri natives and find knowledgeable contractors.
- Arleasha Mays -
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The Conservation Department encourages anglers and giggers to report sightings of Ozark hellbenders to Jeff Briggler at 573/522-4115, ext. 3201. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
Whether they are of the bull or green variety, these jumpy amphibians are the stuff of family fun and feast.
JEFFERSON CITY--Frog legs rank alongside caviar, escargot and oysters Rockefeller as delicacies for cultured palates. Missourians who treasure the taste of fresh frog legs fried, fricasseed or sauteed don't have much longer to wait, The season opens June 30. From sunset the last day of this month through Oct. 31, frog aficionados can take bullfrogs or green frogs with either a fishing or a hunting permit.
The bullfrog and the green frog are exceptional amphibians. Among Missouri's slimy tribe, they alone are considered fit for human consumption. During the summer they serenade us and protect us from plagues of insects. Then they mysteriously disappear for half a year. They possess the almost magical ability to transform themselves from pollywogs to megafrogs. And as if that wasn't enough of a trick, they can also walk on water when necessary to elude predators. Clearly, there is more to these creatures than their legs.
Their legs are what draw the most attention, however. Each summer thousands of hungry Missourians head out to darkening lakes and streams to bag a "mess" of frog legs for a midnight snack. Frog legs are variously reported to taste like chicken or fish. Perhaps a fitting nickname would be "chicken of the pond."
Regulations concerning the taking of green and bullfrogs are almost as versatile as the victuals themselves. If you have a hunting permit, you can take frogs with a .22-caliber rim-fire rifle or pistol, pellet gun, longbow, crossbow, handnet or with your bare hands. With a fishing permit, you may use your hands or a handnet, a gig, a longbow or hook and line. Frogs are among a small number of game animals for which the use of artificial lights is not only legal but nearly indispensable.
The daily limit is eight green and bullfrogs in the aggregate. The possession limit is 16. If you choose the right frogs, 16 legs is a lot of food.
The bullfrog is North America's biggest frog, measuring up to 8 inches all scrunched up and ready to jump. A good-sized bullfrog can weigh well over a pound, and much of that is legs. Green frogs are more modest-sized, topping out at about 4 inches long when sitting. Though not as large, their legs taste just like those of bullfrogs.
If your taste runs more toward nature study than cooking, you might be interested to know how to tell bullfrogs and green frogs apart. Size won't always work since even bullfrogs must start out small. However, green frogs have folds of skin that run from the back of each eye down the sides of their backs. Bullfrogs lack this feature.
To tell male and female green and bullfrogs apart, look at the circular tympanic membrane behind the eye. It is located about where you would expect the ear to be. In fact, it is the frog=s ear. If the tympanic membrane is much larger than the eye, the frog is a male. If it is about the same size or smaller than the eye, it=s a female.
Female green and bullfrogs are prodigious reproducers, laying more than 20,000 tiny eggs at a time and sometimes producing two clutches in a summer. These eggs form a single-layered mat on the water and hatch four or five days after laying.
The larval stage, known as tadpoles or pollywogs, eat algae and other nearly microscopic food at first, graduating to larger fare as they grow. They mature rapidly, and trade their tails for legs 12 to 14 months after hatching. After that, it takes them another two years or so to reach adult size and breeding age.
The male frogs' part of the mating ritual includes defending territories so they will have the sole right to mate with females there. Between the middle of May and early July, males declare their turf from established calling stations and defend those spots aggressively. Intruding males risk being pushed, kicked, bitten or even humiliated by being mounted.
Even people who have never ventured to streams or ponds to see green and bullfrogs know them by their voices. You can make a rough estimate of a bullfrog's size by how loud and deep their booming "jug-o-rum, jug-o-rum" chant is.
A green frog's song is completely different. Most often, it is a single note that sounds like a loose banjo string being plucked. Sometimes it consists of a series of chuckles, and occasionally it takes the form of an intense bark. Sometimes these barks are so explosive that it seems like it would hurt the frog to make them.
There's not much of a threat, but green and bullfrogs face real danger from poachers. Some Missourians insist on getting a mess of frog legs before the season opens . . . and before others have a chance at them. If you witness frog poaching, call the toll-free Operation Game Thief hot line, 800/392-1111.
Frogs continue to grow throughout their lives. Their size depends on age and food abundance. Dietary staples include (in decreasing order of preference): insects, crayfish, amphibians (including their own young), small mammals, fish and even birds. Bullfrogs also have been known to eat snakes, small turtles and baby muskrats and minks.
Bullfrogs and green frogs use their sticky tongues to subdue prey, but that's not their only method of securing food. Large frogs are more likely to lunge at their targets. Once they get a grip with their wide, sturdy jaws, they use their front feet to shove the items down their gullets.
Frogs are, in turn, prey for minks, raccoons, herons, snakes and, of course, humans. They don=t go quietly, though. If they detect a predator early enough, they can either make one spectacular jump into the water, from which they seldom stray. They often scamper 5 or 10 feet across the top of the water with their large, webbed hind feet before taking a plunge to safety.
Green and bullfrogs are active from late March through most of October in Missouri. Large individuals are the first to seek shelter from cold weather, digging themselves into soft mud where they spend the winter. Their body temperature may drop virtually to the freezing point during the winter, and their hearts slow so drastically they seem to stop altogether. But they continue to absorb oxygen through their moist skin, and when their surroundings thaw, they emerge into the spring sunshine to resume their business of catching insects.
- Jim Low -
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Hungry bears on the prowl for food can cause problems for campers and landowners. However, most problems can be avoided by eliminating conditions that attract bears. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
Wildlife and people are better off when they keep their homes separate.
JEFFERSON CITY- Well-meaning bird lovers take in fledgling robins that "fall" from nests. Misinformed hikers bring "deserted" fawns to conservation agents for help. Tenderhearted children adopt "orphan" raccoons. But according to the Conservation Department officials, such adoptions usually end in an animal's death and can cause problems for humans as well.
People adopt young wildlife for many reasons. One of the most common mistakes is thinking they are helping young birds. In most cases, fledglings do just fine on their own. Having grown too large for the nest, they flutter to the ground. They hide in weeds and brush, where their parents continue to deliver meals.
People often remove fawns or tiny rabbits from their natural surroundings because they find them alone and mistakenly think they are orphans. Deer and rabbit mothers stay away from their offspring, except when nursing, to avoid betraying their location to predators.
Such mistakes need not spell doom for young animals, however. If wild young are put back where they were found, normal care will resume. The notion that "human smell" will result in parental rejection is a myth.
Even knowing these facts, some people still can't resist adopting wildlife. Hollywood has created an immensely appealing image of playful, mischievous pets from the wild. But before you take home a cuddly raccoon kit, or a whitetail fawn, you should be aware of some not-so-pretty facts.
There are no approved vaccines to protect wild animals against rabies and other diseases, many of which can strike humans as well. If you want to adopt a wild animal, you have to accept this risk.
There also is the risk of sharing wild pets' parasites. One example is baylisascaris, a common parasite of raccoons. Eight of 10 raccoons have the round worm, but they have a natural resistance. Humans don't. Baylisascaris can cause serious illness in humans, particularly children.
Wild animals really don't make great pets. "Tame" white-tailed deer often become aggressive when fully grown and attack the humans who befriended them. Wild animals remain wild, regardless of how they are treated.
It is important to remember that even under the best of circumstances most animals born in the wild don't survive to adulthood. Birds and small mammals produce many more young each year than are needed to perpetuate their species. It is normal for eight out of 10 quail, rabbits and squirrels to die each year.
This knowledge, along with the potential for health problems and the fact that baby animals seldom survive removal from the wild, are reason enough not to adopt wildlife.
- Jim Low -
Turkey Federation executive replaces Denny Ballard.
JEFFERSON CITY--Dave Murphy, a former executive with the National Wild Turkey Federation, has been chosen to replace Denny Ballard as executive director of the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM).
Murphy worked as the Turkey Federation's regional director for 10 years before taking over as the CFM's director June 1. CFM President Gary Van De Velde said farewell to Ballard and greeted incoming director Murphy in a written statement.
"Under Mr. Ballard's leadership over the past four years, the federation implemented many progressive changes, and we wish him much success in his new position. Mr. Murphy is a well-know conservationist. The Federation membership looks forward to advancing Missouri's resource conservation efforts with Dave's leadership."
Ballard has accepted a job as director of the newly formed Land Learning Foundation, which teaches youths, women and the disabled how to hunt, fish, trap and shoot.
The CFM is Missouri's oldest and largest citizen conservation group, with 25,000 members statewide. For more information, contact CFM, 728 W. Main Street, Jefferson City, 65101, phone 800/575-2322.
- Jim Low -
JEFFERSON CITY--The Missouri Conservation Commission will meet June 25 and 26 at the Cedar Creek Conference Center, 1401 Olive Road, New Haven.
The Commission will meet in closed session at 1:30 p.m. June 25 and in open session at 8:30 a.m. June 26. Commission meetings are open to the public. People requiring special services or accommodations to attend the meeting can make arrangements by writing to: Director, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180; fax 573/751-4467, or by phone at 573/522-4115.
Commission officers are: Howard L. Wood, Bonne Terre, chairman, Stephen C. Bradford, Cape Girardeau, vice-chairman; Cynthia Metcalfe, St. Louis, secretary, and Anita B. Gorman, Kansas City, member.
- Jim Low -
JEFFERSON CITY--Hunters who want to plan vacation or decide where to hunt can get full details of season dates, bag limits and permit availability for the 2003 deer hunting season online at http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/hunt/deer/deertuk/.
The printed version of this information, the "2003 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Information" booklet, will be available from permit vendors statewide by July 1.
- Jim Low -
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2003 deer hunting regulations approved by the Missouri Conservation Commission May 29 will encourage hunters to shoot more female deer. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
This year's deer hunting regulation changes grow out of an ongoing examination of future deer management needs and how to meet them.
JEFFERSON CITY - When Missouri hunters pick up bows and firearms to pursue deer this fall, they will find a wealth of new hunting opportunities. Officials with the Missouri Department of Conservation say that additional days of hunting and more plentiful and less expensive antlerless-deer permits will help the agency respond to changing deer management challenges. They also say more changes are in store.
At its May 29 meeting, the Conservation Commission approved 2003 deer hunting regulations that increase the length of the firearms deer seasons by eight days. They cut the cost of antlerless-only deer hunting permits. They more than doubled the number of management units in which bowhunters can buy antlerless-only archery hunting permits, and removed the cap on the number of such permits available in selected units.
"Deer hunters and the needs of both the hunting and nonhunting public have been changing for several years now," said Resource Science Center Chief Larry Vangilder. "If we are going to give Missourians what they want and what they need from deer management in the future, we need to examine those changes and adjust our strategies to fit the new conditions."
Early in the 20th century, Missouri's deer herd was depleted by unregulated hunting. From the 1930s through the 1980s, Missouri's deer management strategy was to maximize the deer herd's reproductive potential to repopulate the state. To do this, deer regulations were designed to protect female deer.
Today, deer populations have exceeded the Conservation Department's targeted goals in some parts of the state. A few management units in southeastern Missouri still could have more deer, but in urban areas and in parts of Missouri, deer have grown numerous enough to start causing problems. These problems include deer-car accidents and complaints of damage to crops and suburban landscapes.
Where deer numbers reached target levels, the Conservation Department increased bag limits and offered permits to encourage hunters to kill more does. However, the basic structure of Missouri's deer hunting seasons remains grounded in the old, population-increasing model.
"One of the problems with the old deer season framework is the assumptions it's based on," said Vangilder. "It assumes a constant number of deer hunters and a constant success rate for those hunters. It also assumes that does have to be protected. None of those assumptions is as true as before. Some aren't true at all, and others are in the process of changing."
Vangilder said the Conservation Department needs to reduce the deer herd's reproductive capacity if it is to continue controlling deer numbers in the future. That could be done by shifting the sex ratio to include more bucks and fewer does.
One of the adjustments made this year to achieve that goal is to make it easier for hunters to kill more does. In 39 of the state's 59 management units, hunters will be able to buy as many antlerless-only second bonus permits as they want. This is a dramatic change, but Vangilder said it isn't likely to solve the entire problem.
"Theoretically, the deer harvest could skyrocket under these new rules," he said. "But the fact is that people's freezers are only so big. Their opportunity to hunt is limited, too. A few people will shoot five or six or even more deer. But it will be very few."
More important, said Vangilder, is the opportunity that the new regulations offer landowners and suburban communities to control local deer problems. "A farmer who has trouble with deer in his alfalfa field can invite hunters in to take out deer, and they will have access to all the permits they need. A municipality where people are seeing more and more deer on the roads can allow deer hunters to thin the herd safely and efficiently. These regulation changes are very powerful tools for those who are willing to use them."
The changes will meet Missourians' needs in another way, too. Conservation Department surveys show that hunters would like to see more antlered deer in the population. This, said Vangilder, will happen as more does are removed from the population and more bucks live three and four years or longer.
"It's sort of a chicken-and-egg situation," said Vangilder. "If hunters want more and bigger bucks, the way to get there is to shoot more does. Once the shift in sex ratio is accomplished, it will be practical to shoot more older, bigger bucks."
In the next few years, the Conservation Department plans to continue examining existing deer hunting regulations and adjusting them to ensure that the state's deer management program serves all Missourians.
"There will be some significant changes," said Vangilder. "People are going to have understandable concerns and questions about those changes. It's important for everyone to know that we aren't just changing things for the sake of change. The deer herd and public attitudes are shifting, and we are looking ahead to get where people want us to be five or 10 years from now."
- Jim Low -
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