July 2003

Aug. 8, 1978, was a pivotal date in Missouri stream conservation history

The free-flowing Meramec River that draws thousands of vacationing anglers, canoeists and campers to Missouri annually, came close to being dammed 25 years ago. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo)

A straw vote 25 years ago turned the tide against damming three Ozark rivers.

SULLIVAN, Mo. - A nonbinding vote 25 years ago this month was a turning point in Missouri conservation history. On Aug. 8, 1978, voters in east-central Missouri dealt a mortal blow to 40 years of planning to create five lakes on the Meramec, Big and Bourbeuse rivers. The outcome of that struggle preserved Missouri's legacy of clear Ozark float streams and the basis for the state's current license plate motto, "Where the Rivers Run."

In 1978, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers already had condemned and bought 23,000 acres for the Meramec Park Lake Project. The project also would have flooded parts of Huzzah and Courtois creeks. Recreation, flood control and improved water quality were among the justifications offered for the dams.

Practical problems--such as the cost of grouting Onondaga Cave, Greens Cave and other smaller caves to prevent water leakage--weighed heavily against the dams. The discovery of colonies of endangered Indiana bats in caves and the loss of biological diversity in the Meramec River basin raised environmental issues.

The Conservation Department, the Conservation Federation of Missouri, President Jimmy Carter, U.S. Rep. Dick Gephardt and Missouri Attorney General John Danforth, then running for the U.S. Senate, came out against the project. The Sierra Club filed suit to stop it, but the courts found in favor of the Corps.

In the end, it took public opinion to turn the tide. Voters in 13 counties in and around the project area held a straw vote on the issue. Two-thirds voted against damming the Meramec River.

Political support for the project waned following the vote, and in 1981 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill deauthorizing the Meramec Park Lake Project, which had been on the books since the late 1930s.

Today the Meramec and its tributaries are at the heart of a multi-million dollar tourist industry built on fishing, canoeing, kayaking, tube-floating, hunting and other stream-based recreation. Restrictions on land use along the river corridor now preclude developments that would require protection from floods.

- Jim Low -

Events planned for anniversary of Meramec River vote

Missourians will get to see first-hand the legacy of the historic vote.

SALEM, Mo.--Missourians will have a special opportunity to hear the story of how citizens stopped the damming of the Meramec River. They also will be able to get their feet wet and participate in river-related events to celebrate the renaissance of the Meramec River and its natural riches.

The Missouri Department of Conservation and the Missouri Division of Parks plan special events along the Meramec River this summer to recognize some of the miracles and milestones that have resulted from the river's preservation. Participants in these events will learn about the river's restoration and the unique character of the natural wonders that survive in and around the Meramec River. These events include:

--A Wade in the Meramec July 26 at Meramec State Park, Sullivan. The Meramec River contains 120 (21 percent) of the 574 native freshwater fish species in North America. Join park staff in a refreshingly wet exploration of the Meramec River from a large gravel bar island. Call 573/468-6072 to register.

--The Meramec River Watershed Celebration July 26 at Meramec State Park. This seventh annual event includes educational programs, exhibits, award presentations and family activities.

-- Meramec-Past, Present & Future 6 to 9 p.m. July 26 at Meramec State Park. The program includes entertainment, refreshments and a presentation on how a dam was stopped and a river saved. Call 866/983-9900 to register.

--Mussels in the Meramec Aug. 2 at Castlewood State Park, Ballwin, 636/227-4433. Freshwater mussels once were numerous in Missouri's rivers. Now they are among the most threatened animal groups in North America. Freshwater mussel experts will meet visitors at a gravel bar to show how these overlooked animals help keep streams clean.

--Miracles and Milestones-Rebirth of a River, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 8 at Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center, Kirkwood. Hear firsthand the story of how a river was saved by those who worked tirelessly for years to halt the construction of the Meramec Dam. This event highlights the renaissance of the Meramec as a valued asset for all Missourians. The evening also will feature music, refreshments, exhibits by local artists and organizations, plus the premier of a new Meramec River video. Call the Open Space Council at 866/983-9900 for more details or reservations.

--Meramec Freedom Canoe Trip Aug. 8 at Meramec State Park. This five-mile interpretive canoe trip will explore the rich natural and cultural history of the Meramec River, including stops at Green's Cave and the proposed Meramec Dam site. Call 573/468-6072 to register.

--What Could Have Been, Aug. 9 at Onondaga Cave State Park, Leasburg. The park will offer half-price cave tours. The intertwined history of Onondaga Cave and the Meramec dam will be highlighted during the tours. Call 573/245-6576 for reservations.

--Meramec River Expedition, Sept. 19 at Greentree Park, Kirkwood. Local businesses and political leaders and conservation enthusiasts are invited to hike, bike or float the Meramec River from Castlewood State Park to Greentree Park and learn more about the conservation and outdoor recreation value of the Meramec River Greenway. Call the Open Space Council at 866/983-9900 for details.

Just a short distance from the doorstep of millions of Missourians, the Meramec watershed has become a backyard playground that accommodates a wide variety of recreation pursuits while offering tens of thousands of acres of healthy habitat for fish and wildlife.
The Meramec River arises in the Ozarks near Salem and travels 228 miles to join the Mississippi River south of St. Louis. Its spring-fed waters provide a summer haven for canoeists, anglers and others who treasure free-flowing streams. The Meramec is one of the most biologically diverse rivers in the Midwest, giving observant explorers constant opportunities to discover the wealth of aquatic life it harbors.

Thousands of acres of public land border the Meramec River today. Following the de-authorization of the dam project, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources created Onondaga Cave State Park near Leasburg. Onondaga Cave has been designated a National Natural Landmark because of the abundance and quality of its stalactites, stalagmites and other cave formations.

Also now protected in Onondaga Cave State Park are Vilander Bluffs, the tallest and most spectacular bluffs along the river. In Meramec State Park near Sullivan, the 90-foot-tall riverside entrance to Green's Cave now is preserved.

The 6,225 acre Huzzah Conservation Area managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation near Leasburg offers an abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities such as hunting, fishing and hiking. The Department of Conservation also manages many conveniently located river accesses along the Meramec, making the river inviting and accessible to all users.

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Quail on the mind leads to quail on the land

David Copeland makes room for quail and production agriculture on his Saline County farm. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo)

With the right mindset, farmers can produce both quail and profits.

MARSHALL, Mo.--On a rainy May morning, David Copeland is apt to wonder where bobwhite quail are finding shelter from the rain on the 1,500 acres he farms. Through the parched weeks of August, his reveries focus on where quail will find bugs to eat and water to drink. On a cold, blustery February night, he is prone to imagining a covey huddled in a tight circle in a brushy field border not far from his house, conserving energy.

Copeland has developed the habit of thinking like quail. Not coincidentally, he has a thriving quail population on his land, while neighbors wonder where all the bobwhites have gone. The difference is less in what he does than in how he thinks.

Not that he can afford to think exclusively of quail. Copeland is deeply committed to production agriculture. His fields and yields demonstrate that commitment. But within the constraints of successful farming, he has found ways to make room for the game bird he loves.

Copeland, 50, is a full-time farmer. He and his wife raised their sons, now grown, on the farm his father operated. Today he works 1,500 acres in Saline County around Grand Pass Conservation Area and Van Meter State Park.

Aerial photos of the area from the 1950s through the 1970s show striking changes in the landscape. Fields got bigger, and fence rows disappeared. Pastures swallowed up small wood lots. Ballooning crop fields pinched brushy draws back to pencil-thin lines around creeks, ponds and roads.

In effect, Saline County farmers dispensed with wildlife habitat in pursuit of agricultural efficiency. Copeland has his doubts about the wisdom of the trade-off.

"I don't see the sense in mowing or plowing right up to the edge of ditches and fencerows," he says. "A lot of that is marginal land, and it doesn't add up to any significant acreage."

When the federal Conservation Reserve Program came along in the 1980s, Copeland saw it as a way to take this marginal land back out of production. Doing so yielded more than quail habitat. Native grass waterways and permanently vegetated filter strips helped him stop soil erosion, and that improved water quality in his ponds.

"I guarantee you, these 22 acres that I have in filter strips are making me more money than I made farming them," he says emphatically. "Too many farmers never bother to put a pencil to the economics of clearing and farming marginal land."

Copeland says there is much that farmers can do for quail that doesn't involve much expense or loss of productivity. He has gone from having one or two coveys each year to finding between five and eight. That, in his book, is a good return on a little investment.

As an example, he points to a wooded corridor near the gravel road to his house. "I could clean this up and get a few more acres to farm, but I have a covey of quail there every year. I figure if I can't save up an acre here and there for quail and deer what's the use of being a farmer? I get as much enjoyment from wildlife as I do from my work."

Copeland has taken quail habitat needs into account in lots of on-the-ground farming decisions. His farm is a patchwork of water, grass, bare ground and brushy cover. In some spots where cover didn't already exist, he planted native trees and shrubs, such as dogwood, plum and blackberry, from the Missouri Department of Conservation's forest nursery to create it. He calls this his "sampler platter" approach to ensuring that coveys can find everything they need--food, water, nesting and brood-rearing cover and escape cover--readily accessible everywhere on his 1,500 acres.

The effects of this philosophy are clearly visible in the contrast between Copeland's land and neighboring farms. His fields are defined by strips and pockets of habitat, while the surrounding land is a moonscape, stretching to the horizon with hardly a tree or bush in sight.

Copeland shares his experience with others. He helped found the Gary R. Pointer Memorial Chapter of Quail Unlimited in 1991. Since then, the chapter has poured $50,000 into quail habitat in Saline County. When landowners in neighboring counties asked for help they lent a hand there, too. For the most part, though, the appeal of his approach is lost on others.

"I'm a trashy farmer," Copeland says with a sly grin. "At least that's what some people think. If you look at my fields, they are as clean as anybody's. It's just the edges, where wildlife can live, that look junky to some people."

Nevertheless, he says, others are set in their ways. "The attitude is, 'I'm not giving up any ground.'"

Copeland attributes his attitude to childhood experiences, when his family spent every weekend hunting or fishing. He says he thinks the family farm experience is changing, and that accounts for many of the changes in how farming is done.

"I farm three times the acreage that my dad did to make a living, and I have a lot less free time. I think that's partly why people 'clean out' their land. That's naturally what you are going to do if you are under pressure to get every bit of production you can from your land, and you don't have time to enjoy the benefits that go with brushy draws and clean ponds.

"I've been as bad as anybody about changing the land, but I've always tried, when I do something that's not good for wildlife, I try to do something good somewhere else. I figure I've replaced as much if not more habitat than I've taken out. A farmer's motto ought to be to leave his ground in better shape than when he got it. I want to do the same for wildlife.

"An acre here and there isn't going to break me. Meanwhile, we get to kill turkeys every year, and my boys come home to hunt."

- Jim Low -

Surplus property auctions set for Aug. 16 and Oct. 18

This year's events will be long on ATVs.

BROOKFIELD, Mo.--All-terrain vehicles, pickup trucks, boats, farm equipment and office furniture are among the many items the Missouri Department of Conservation will sell at two upcoming surplus property auctions.

The auctions are set for Aug. 16 in Brookfield and Oct. 18 in Salem. Conservation Department auctions typically include sport-utility vehicles, sedans, tractors, lawn mowers and other power equipment. Office equipment seen at most auctions includes copiers, cabinets, shelves, calculators, desks, chairs, filing cabinets, cameras and air conditioners.

The Brookfield event will include a larger-than-usual number all-terrain vehicles, more than 20 in all.

Auction items are on display from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. the day before the auction and starting at 8 a.m. the day of the auction. The auctions begin at 10 a.m. Complete lists of sale items and terms of sales are available at the registration desk the day of the sale.

All property must be paid for on the day of the sale and before removal. The Conservation Department will accept cash, MasterCard or Visa credit cards or personal checks with proper identification. For lists of sale items, call the Conservation Department General Services Division at 573/522- 4115, ext 3279 or 3283.

- Jim Low -

MDC grants available to fund Lewis and Clark events

Schools and communities can receive funds to celebrate Corps of Discovery expedition and connect citizens with outdoor resources.

JEFFERSON CITY_The rich Missouri forest, fish and wildlife resources that helped make the Louisiana Purchase a great bargain remain among the states most valuable assets. Missourians interested in sponsoring programs to help their friends and neighbors learn about our outdoor resources and the Corps of Discovery expedition can get financial help from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).

The MDC's Lewis and Clark Conservation Grant program will provide $250,000 to help fund Lewis and Clark bicentennial projects that connect citizens with our natural resources. School and community grants will be awarded through the program.
Schools can receive grants up to $750 to fund educational activities. Projects eligible for school grants include field trips to Lewis and Clark sites and conservation and natural areas, instructional materials and teaching aids. The number of students benefiting from the program is among the factors that will be considered to determine grant recipients.

Local government agencies, organizations and individuals sponsoring Lewis and Clark commemorative events or projects are eligible for community grant awards of up to $15,000. While matching funds are not required to receive a grant, projects that secure matching funds will receive preference over those that do not have matching funds.

Community projects and events eligible for the MDC grants include those that:
* Promote effective stewardship of Missouri's outdoor resources
* Engage citizens with the natural resources of the state, allowing them to experience both a historical and modern perspective
* Promote eco-tourism
* Establish or improve facilities to be used during the bicentennial celebrations. Examples include campsites, river rescue equipment, provision of boating fuel and waste removal.
* Enhance nature-based use of sites. Examples include river access, wetland restoration and wildlife habitat.

To apply for a Lewis and Clark Conservation Grant, visit the MDC website at www.missouriconservation.org and use the key words "lc grants," or call 573/522-4115, extension 3370. The application deadline for school grants is Oct. 1. The deadline for submitting community grant applications is November 14.

Special dove hunt gives mobility impaired hunters a shot

Hunters with mobility impairments are invited to take part in a dove hunt specially tailored to their needs. The hunt is set for Sept. 7 at Ten Mile Pond Conservation Area in Mississippi County. Cosponsors of the event are the Missouri Department of Conservation and the National Wild Turkey Federation. For more information, call Larry Neal, 573/334-8881, or Tim Hendershott, 573/335-9350. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo)

Participants will have some of the Show-Me State's hottest dove hunting action all to themselves.

JEFFERSON CITY--A handful of hunters who use wheelchairs will be in the catbird seat--or maybe the dove seat--Sept. 7. That's when the Missouri Department of Conservation and the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) will team up in the third annual dove hunt for mobility-impaired hunters.

The event takes place at Ten-Mile Pond Conservation Area in Mississippi County. The Conservation Department reserves a hunting area for the event, and NWTF volunteers serve as guides, helping hunters get to and from the field and retrieving downed birds.

Last year only three hunters took advantage of the event. That was good for them. They had an entire sunflower field to themselves. Two shot limits of 12 doves each.

In the past, hunters have come from as much as 200 miles away to get in on the action.

"It's well worth driving several hours to get here," said NWTF Regional Director Larry Neal. "With this kind of setup, the hunting usually is excellent. This year I can pretty much guarantee it's going to be terrific."

Participants check in at Ten Mile Pond CA headquarters at 5:30 a.m. The hunt ends at 1 p.m. For reservations, call Neal, 573/334-8881, or Tim Hendershott, 573/335-9350.

- Jim Low -

Managed deer hunt applications now open

Applying for managed deer hunts is as easy as making a toll-free call.

JEFFERSON CITY--It's time for Missouri deer hunters to apply for managed hunts, and the Missouri Department of Conservation makes the process easy with either a telephone or internet-connected computer.

From July 1 through Aug. 15, hunters can apply for one of Missouri's 71 managed deer hunts by calling 800/829-2956 between 4 a.m. and midnight seven days a week. The other option is to log onto www.missouriconservation.org/hunt/deer and select "managed deer hunt information and registration." Telephone applications are easy with the Conservation Department's interactive voice response (IVR) system.

To apply by phone you need a touch-tone telephone, your conservation identification number and the information contained in the 2003 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Information booklet. The booklet is available from hunting permit vendors statewide. The information also is available online at www.missouriconservation.org under key words "deer hunt."

All applications received by the Aug. 15 deadline will receive the same consideration as those filed earlier. Successful applicants will receive notices of their selection by mail. After Sept. 10, all applicants can check the status of their applications on the IVR system or the Conservation Department Web page using their Conservation I.D. numbers.

Only a Resident or Nonresident Managed Deer Hunting Permit is valid at a managed deer hunt. The number of deer that may be taken with a single permit depends on the hunt for which they are issued. In some hunts, up to three deer may be taken, and in one hunt, four deer are allowed.

New this year, youngsters also apply for the youth-only managed deer hunts on the internet or IVR system. In the past only paper applications were accepted for those hunts. For full details on how to apply for youth-only deer hunts see the 2003 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Information booklet for details.

- Jim Low -

Conservation Commission welcomes Mohler appointment

JEFFERSON CITY --Experience building coalitions between Missouri's conservation and agriculture communities and a commitment to protect the state's outdoor and wildlife resources are among the qualities Lowell Mohler brings to the Missouri Conservation Commission.

Governor Bob Holden announced on July 8 the appointment of Lowell Mohler, Jefferson City, to serve on the Conservation Commission. After the appointment is confirmed by the Missouri Senate, Mohler will serve until July 1, 2009.

Mohler, a native of Oregon, Mo, is a graduate of the University of Missouri College of Agriculture. Since January 2001 he has served as the Director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture. His other accomplishments include Chief Operating Officer of the Missouri Farm Bureau, Senior Vice president and National Board member of Ducks Unlimited, member of the Conservation Federation of Missouri, Chairman of the Advisory Council of the School of Natural Resources at the University of Missouri, recognition by the Missouri Chapter of the Wildlife Society with its G. Andy Runge award and honored as Master Conservationist by the Conservation Commission in 2001.

The Conservation Commission and Conservation Department Director John Hoskins welcome Mohler's appointment.

"We've had a good working relationship with the Department of Agriculture under Lowell's leadership," Hoskins said. "He will help foster the strong connection between conservation and agriculture."

Mohler succeeds Howard Wood whose term expired July 1, 2003. He joins Stephen Bradford of Cape Girardeau, Cynthia Metcalfe of St. Louis and Anita Gorman of Kansas City on the Conservation Commission, which oversees the control, management, restoration, conservation and regulation of the forest, fish and wildlife resources of the state, as well as the expenditure of conservation sales tax dollars through the Missouri Department of Conservation.

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Pioneering ospreys branch out

The Missouri Department of Conservation's efforts to bring ospreys back to the state are paying off as birds branch out to new nesting locations. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo)

Restoration efforts that began nearly a decade ago are paying wild dividends.

JACKSONVILLE, Mo.-Call them Cingular, Nokia and Motorola. These three osprey chicks growing up in a unique location in northeastern Missouri are the latest characters in a saga that began nearly a decade ago. The fluffy white birds are pioneers of sorts, staking out new territory in more ways than one.

Senior Conservation Agent Tom Skinner was surprised when he spotted an osprey flying around a cellular-telephone transmission tower a few weeks ago. The tower was within sight of Highway 63, just a mile or so south of Jacksonville.

Skinner was surprised for several reasons. For one thing, ospreys' seasonal migrations normally bring them through Missouri in the spring and fall. Before the turn of the 20th century, ospreys were common summer residents of the state. However, pollution and indiscriminate killing of birds of prey eliminated them from Missouri. With no nesting birds in the Show-Me State, summer sightings became rare.

Ospreys are serious home-bodies. When they grow old enough to raise families of their own, they set up housekeeping close to where they were hatched. This stay-at-home habit means that once eliminated from an area, ospreys are unlikely to return without a helping hand.

The Missouri Department of Conservation provided that helping hand, bringing young ospreys from other states between 1994 and 1998 and raising them here in hopes they would imprint on their new homes and return to nest.

Skinner worked on the osprey reintroduction. He knew the nearest place where ospreys had been reintroduced was Thomas Hill Reservoir. That's about 8 miles west of Jacksonville.

Skinner knew something was up, so to speak, when he spied the ospreys around the cell phone tower. Any osprey hanging around Missouri in the summer had to be working on a nest. Skinner checked the tower as he traversed Highway 63 in his daily rounds. It wasn't long before he spotted the original bird and its mate making a pile of sticks atop the telephone tower. A few weeks later the female osprey was sitting on the nest, incubating eggs.

The location is a bit far from Thomas Hill Reservoir, but chances are good that one or both the tower-nesting birds were reared in a protective cage at the reservoir. A private lake about two miles from the nest probably is a regular fishing destination for the two adults feeding a hungry family.

"There are three chicks in there now, near as I can tell," said Skinner. "They jostle around, so it's a little hard to tell. It's really cool to watch the adults bringing food for the little ones."

The ospreys' willingness to branch out from the original release site is encouraging news for Missourians who place a high value on wildlife diversity. As ospreys released by the Conservation Department disperse and multiply, so do opportunities to see these symbols of independence and freedom.

Ospreys are brown and grey-speckled with wingspans of four to six feet when fully grown. That is bigger than hawks commonly seen in Missouri but smaller than eagles. The birds have white heads with dark stripes running from the eye to the nape of the neck. In flight, their light-colored wings show a pronounced crook and a dark spot at the wrist.

Other osprey reintroduction areas included Mark Twain Lake near Hannibal, Pony Express Lake near St. Joseph, Montrose Lake near Clinton and Truman Lake at Warsaw. If you visit these areas in the summer, cast a glance skyward now and then. You might catch a glimpse of the dividends accruing from the Conservation Department's restoration work.

- Jim Low -

Commission to meet July 30-31 in Jefferson City

JEFFERSON CITY- The Missouri Conservation Commission will meet July 30 and 31 at Conservation Department Headquarters, 2901 W. Truman Blvd., Jefferson City.

The Commission will meet in closed session July 30 and in open session starting at 8:30 a.m. July 31.

Commission meetings are open to the public. Items to be placed on the agenda for presentations or other business should be sent in writing to: Director, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180; fax 573/751-4467 at least 10 working days before the meeting date. The deadline for the next meeting is July 16.

People requiring special services or accommodations to attend the meeting can make arrangements by writing to the same address, or by phone at 573/751-4115.

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 -