July 2006
Fishing getaways beckon close to home
Friday, July 28, 2006
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| No one in Missouri lives more than a few minutes' drive from the nearest public fishing water, thanks to conservation areas and community lakes managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Largemouth bass, channel catfish and bluegill sunfish are the standard fishing fare. Quite a few Conservation Department lakes also have redear sunfish, like this prime specimen. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
JEFFERSON CITY-It is Friday afternoon, and you have escaped work early. You are headed for a remote fishing hole whose location a friend let slip in an unguarded moment. As you turn onto the highway, you can feel the week's tensions falling behind.
Fifteen minutes down the road, you turn onto a blacktop ribbon where the landmarks are Holsteins and barns instead of billboards and convenience stores. A few minutes after that, you spy a wooden cantilever sign emblazoned with a blue triangle. It also has an area name, but in your mind it translates into "Fishing bliss, next right." You wonder how many people you will find at the lake.
4:15 p.m.
Your luck holds. A single pickup truck is in the parking lot alongside the middle of the crystal-clear, 30-acre lake. Two men are fishing the opposite shore in a tiny, molded-plastic boat. Their shore party of one sits contentedly at the end of a wide, handicap-accessible fishing jetty a few hundred yards from the boat ramp and rock-throwing distance from the rest room. She is lost in a book, waiting for a fish to jingle the bells dangling from the tips of two fishing poles.
The rest of the lake is unoccupied. Best of all, no one is fishing the line of dead trees that forms a belt across the lake's midsection.
The bookworm reports catching a few bluegills, but no catfish, her main objective. The men have boated a few largemouth bass, including one 15-inch keeper, and a channel catfish just right for the skillet. You smile inwardly. Maybe they don't know the lake harbors redear sunfish big enough to qualify for Missouri's Master Angler Program. You decide to play your cards close to the chest.
4:45 p.m.
You slide the canoe out of the pickup bed and paddle around the lake, casting a floating minnow imitation for bass. The action is steady, with 10- to 12-inch largemouths striking savagely at your lure. You keep a polite distance from the other two boat anglers and avoid the flooded tree line, so as not to draw attention to it.
7 p.m.
You beach your canoe, eat a sandwich, set up your tent and sort out bank-fishing gear for later. The last few minutes of full daylight are spent with binoculars, studying juvenile wood ducks that seem to be testing their wings all around the lake. You try not to stare at fish dimpling the water around the flooded trees.
9:30 p.m.
A lovely breeze stirs in the east. At the northwest edge of the horizon, a thunderhead is billowing up. The other anglers are packing it in. As soon as they pull away, you haul a big, comfy lawn chair and two catfish poles to the end of the fishing jetty. With two worm-baited lines angling into the water, you get out your own book, a little, battery-powered headlamp and a cool drink.
Should you go look for one of the bullfrogs calling from the opposite shore? It seems like too much work. Anyway, your poles need tending, and you are having too much fun watching lightning flicker in the distant thunderhead.
Gazing up at the sky you discover your own five-star constellation and name it Happy Face. If you can remember where it is relative to the North Star, maybe you can show it to your family later.
The wind now has swung around to the south, a good sign. You recall the old angler's axiom, "Wind from the east, fish bite least. Wind from the south blows the bait in their mouth."
The temperature is in the mid-70s. The breeze has the perfume that only a summer lake can impart. Fish are splashing all over the place.
10:45 p.m.
The moon, a little more than half full, is rising. It dims your view of the Milky Way, but in its light you detect a jiggle in one of your rod tips. Pick up the rod, take up the slack and JERK. There is a momentary surge on the line, then nothing. You reel in the broken line, wondering how big the fish was. Tying on another hook seems pointless when you still have one line out, and your book is just getting interesting.
The wind now is out of the west, and you remember the rest of that saying, "Wind from the west, fish bite best." Good news, but that thunderstorm seems to be expanding in your direction. You fetch another drink and a can of Vienna sausages from the truck and turn your chair for a better view of the light show. Something has caused the thousands of cricket frogs around the lake to join in an ear-filling chorus.
11:30 p.m.
A pair of guys in a pickup pull up to the boat ramp and slip a johnboat into the water. They proceed slowly along the dam, sweeping the water's edge with spotlights, searching for bullfrogs.
Midnight
The storm has drawn a velvet curtain between you and the stars. The breeze is getting gusty. The froggers high-tail it for the boat ramp. By the time you get your chair stowed, lightning bolts are marching across the landscape. You jump in your truck just as thimble-sized raindrops strike up a drum solo on the hood. The storm is sure to be short, so you read a little more, then catnap.
Waking with a stiff neck an hour later, you decide it's time to dash to the tent for real sleep.
7:14 a.m.
There wasn't any point in waking up earlier, since rain was still falling. Now, however, it is slackening, and you are eager to find those redears. Peek out through the rain fly*the coast is clear. Not another angler in sight. It's overcast and cooler than yesterday, with a pleasant breeze ruffling the water's surface.
Paddle out into the dead trees and tie up to one in the middle of Redear City. After testing the depth, you suspend a tiny hook baited with worms just above the bottom. Bluegill sunfish ranging from 3 to 7 inches are eager to bite, but you are determined to find redears - shellcrackers, stumpknockers, red-bellied bream, the heavyset Cadillacs of the panfish tribe - so you move to a new location.
After several moves, you finally locate the sweet spot, a grove of treetops where every fourth cast produces a snag but every third one produces a chunky redear. The Master Angler qualifiers remain elusive, but your cooler soon holds half a dozen specimens between 7 and 10 inches long. They are the makings of a feast.
9 a.m.
Another angler parks at the boat ramp and begins casting a top-water lure along the dam and the south side of the lake. He gets steady action from small bass, then a surprise. Rearing back at another strike he bends his light rod into a perfect rainbow shape. Instead of tail-walking like a typical bass, the fish bulldogs toward the bottom. After several powerful runs it tires, and the lucky angler slides a 7-pound catfish into shallow water. You give him a thumbs-up by way of congratulation.
As noon approaches, the redear action slows. The sun has reappeared, and a shower and air conditioning begin to sound pretty good. On the way home, you swing by another Conservation Department lake to check it out for your next trip. You can never have too many fishing spots.
Fishing trips like this one take place every day at the more than 600 conservation area lakes, community lakes and fishing accesses managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Most get only light use. Pick one far from the nearest town or highway, and you often can have it all to yourself. Below are some examples. For a complete list, use the Conservation Atlas Database, http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/applications/moatlas/AreaList.aspx?txtUserID=guest&txtAreaNm=s or get a copy of the print version, Missouri's Conservation Atlas. To order by mail, call toll-free (877) 521-8632, or write to The Nature Shop, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102. You can also order online at www.mdcnatureshop.com/.
--Hartell Conservation Area (CA) east of Plattsburg in Clinton County has six impoundments of 2 to 5 acres with trophy bass and bluegill fishing and additional opportunities to catch redears, crappie and channel cats. This area is strictly for catch-and-release fishing with artificial lures. Foot access is extremely convenient, and a few boats are available for use at no charge.
--Bushwhacker Lake CA, (157 acres) in Vernon and Barton counties has abundant bass and exceptional bluegill and redear sunfish fishing. The daily limit on bluegill and redear is 15, including no more than five over 8 inches long.
--Hazel Hill Lake (72 acres) north of Warrensburg in Johnson County is easily fished from shore. It has very good fishing for crappie, bluegill and redear. Bass are abundant, and catfish commonly exceed 3 pounds.
--William E. Towell Lake (100 acres) on Little Prairie CA east of Rolla in Phelps County has lots of bass, with some up to 20 inches long. Bluegill and redear sunfish provide good action, too. Bass between 12 and 15 inches must be released immediately.
--Robert G. DeLaney Lake (102 acres) near Charleston in Mississippi County is a shallow Bootheel lake with lots of cypress trees. Crappie are abundant, and one out of every five is more than 9 inches long. Bass are not abundant, but more than one-third of them are longer than 15 inches. You might also boat a yellow bass (a cousin of the white bass), a bullhead or a bowfin. The entire shoreline is accessible to anglers on foot.
--Lake Girardeau (162 acres) west of Jackson in Cape Girardeau County has good numbers of bass. A few 8- to 10-pounders come out of this lake each year. Night-fishing for channel catfish is a favorite activity of local anglers. Master Angler-sized black crappie (over 15 inches) and redear sunfish (over 10 inches) are found here, too. This lake is easiest to fish by boat, but anglers on foot can reach about a quarter of the shoreline.
--Lake Showme (225 acres) in Scotland County has a strong population of bass over 15 niches (nearly 25 percent), lots of bluegills over 7 inches and redears over 8 inches. Crappie in the 9- to 11-inch range are commonly caught here. One unique feature at this lake is the presence of walleye, which are stocked by the city of Memphis. There is a daily limit of four and a minimum length limit of 18 inches on walleye, but nearly one-quarter of walleyes counted in a recent survey were 20 inches or longer. There are two boat ramps, a handicap-accessible fishing dock with a fish cleaning station, picnic areas and a shelter house. Camp sites with electric and water are available for $10 a night.
--LaBelle Lake (112 acres) in Lewis County has one of northeast Missouri's best bass populations. One in 20 of the lake's largemouths are 18 inches or longer. The lake has good bluegill, redear and black crappie numbers. Foot access is best on the lake's south side.
--Henry Sever Lake (162 acres) in Knox County has crappie ranging from 9 to 14 inches and quite a few redears over 9 inches. There are plenty of bass, but the real draw for adrenalin addicts is muskellunge, some of which top 40 inches. Small numbers of walleye measuring 2 to 5 pounds inhabit the lake, too. This lake has rental boats and gravel camping pads.
--Spanish Lake (33 acres) in St. Louis County has bass, bluegill, redears and white crappie. All are good-sized, with the bass ranging up to 16 inches, crappie in the 8- to 12-inch range and redears running 6 to 9 inches. Ninety percent of the shoreline is accessible on foot, and there are two handicap-accessible fishing docks.
--Fellows Lake (820 acres) north of Springfield in Green County has fair to good bass fishing, with one in five largemouth seen in recent samples at least 15 inches long. The lake also has muskellunge with one in four measuring at least 36 inches long. Channel catfish are abundant, while walleyes and crappie are present in fair numbers.
--Shawnee Trail CA south of Liberal in Barton County has 11 fishable ponds and lakes totaling 40 acres. Pin Oak Lake has the best bass fishing with some fish over 20 inches long. Channel catfish numbers are excellent in Pin Oak Lake, and bluegill and redear sunfish are fair. The ponds and strip mine pits around the area also have excellent fishing. Try pits 1 and 29 and ponds 36 and 37 for catfish, pits 4 and 7 and ponds 37 and 38 for bass, and pits 4 and 7 and ponds 32 and 38 for sunfish.
--Miller Lake (28 acres) east of Van Buren in Carter County is a pretty place to catch largemouth bass, channel catfish, bluegills and redears. Fish habitat has been enhanced with numerous humps in the bottom of the lake and by cutting trees around the lake's perimeter so they extend into the water. A trail provides foot access along the dam and much of the eastern and western shores.
--Proctor Park Lake (7 acres) in the Moniteau County town of California is loaded with 7- to 9-inch redears and great largemouth bass. It has a short trail and picnic facilities. Boating is not allowed here.
--Winegar Lake (8 acres) on Scirvner Road CA southeast of Russellville in Cole County has Master Angler-sized redear and good numbers of catfish, plus hybrid sunfish. One bonus here is grass carp. The best strategy for these hefty, hard-fighting fish is to bait them with feed corn for several days before fishing and then cast hooks baited with canned corn or cherry tomatoes into the baited area.
--Ben Branch Lake (44 acres) CA north of Linn in Osage County has good catfish numbers. A prime spot to catch them is the dam at the southeast end of the lake. There are some brush pile fish habitat structures where crappie hang out. The shallow upper end of the lake is a great place to catch bluegill on a flyrod. Shady spots around the parking lot near the center of the lake are perfect for bankfishing or picnicking.
--Rinquelin Trail Lake (29 acres) CA south of Vienna in Maries County has good numbers of catfish and bass, plus bluegill, redears and crappie. The north and east sides of the lake are easily accessible on foot, thanks to mowing around the dam and three large rock fishing jetties, one of which is handicap-accessible. You need a boat to fish the lake's south side effectively.
Only electric motors are allowed on most lakes managed by the Conservation Department. Camping is permitted at some but not all, and fishing regulations vary. Trotlines are not permitted at most small Conservation Department lakes. Be sure to stop at a parking lot bulletin board to read area rules.
When you leave, take worms, minnows, crayfish or other live bait with you. These often come from other states, and include invasive species that can hurt fish populations. They should be placed in double trash bags and sent to the landfill for disposal with other refuse.
-Jim Low-
Summer is the time to build fishing friendships
Friday, July 28, 2006
The relaxed atmosphere of a fishing trip provides time to reconnect with loved ones.
JEFFERSON CITY-The frantic pace of life in 21st century America leaves many people feeling like they never relax, never have time to talk with children or spouses, never find time to connect with friends. If that describes your life, why not set aside time for an activity that is a proven relationship-builder - fishing?
Unlike many activities, fishing doesn't require complicated equipment, costly services or long-distance travel. Best of all, waiting for a bluegill or a catfish to take your bait creates one of the rarest commodities of modern life - time to talk. That is one reason why a large majority of anglers cite "spending time with family and friends" as their primary reason for fishing.
Missouri has hundreds of public fishing areas with excellent fish populations. There is almost nowhere in the Show-Me State where you have to drive more than 15 minutes to reach a public fishing area.
A resident fishing permit costs just $12. Residents or nonresidents alike can buy a one-day fishing permit for $5.50, less than the price of seeing a movie. Bait shops and discount stores have entry-level rod and reel sets for around $20. Another $5 covers hooks, sinkers bobbers and bait - all that is needed to catch anything from bluegill to monster blue catfish.
The best way to learn to fish is by going with someone who knows how. Beginners also can learn all they need to know to get started at www.missouriconservation.org/fish/how.htm. Further fishing tips are available at www.takemefishing.org/. You can request free publications about fishing at www.mdc.mo.gov/documents/teacher/materials/freepubs.pdf or from the Conservation Department Distribution Center, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180, (573) 751-4115, ext. 3630, pubstaff@mdc.mo.gov.
Fishing with children is a whole different thing than fishing with adults. Kids quickly get excited when fish are biting, but lose interest just as quickly when the action is slow. Be prepared to lean the fishing pole against a tree and liven things up by catching frogs or crawdads for awhile. Older children might enjoy reading a book or playing catch. The key is to keep the outing fun so they will want to go with you again.
New anglers, young or old, usually want to keep what they catch. Humor them, within legal limits, of course. Even though there may not be much meat on small fish, the satisfaction of serving their catch will sustain their interest and keep your new fishing buddies coming back for more.
Bowhunter education is an untapped treasure
Friday, July 28, 2006
Learning from experienced archers can shorten neophytes' learning curve or add depth to experienced bowhunters' knowledge.
JEFFERSON CITY-Bowhunters have more than a little in common with Zen masters. They discipline themselves to sit motionless for hours at a time, not swatting when mosquitoes buzz around their ears or flinching when gnats fly up their noses. They learn to move through the autumn woods as silently as ghosts. They draw their bows and hold them until joints ache and muscles quiver, waiting for the precise moment to release their arrows for quick, clean kills. Yet, very few take time to sit through an eight-hour bowhunter education class offered by the Missouri Department of Conservation.
Why? For one thing, bowhunter education is not mandatory in Missouri. Firearms hunters born on or after Jan. 1, 1967, must successfully complete training that includes firearm safety, hunting ethics and other important hunting knowledge. In contrast, bowhunter education classes remain voluntary, thanks to bowhunters' impeccable safety record.
"Bowhunting accidents are almost unheard of," said Brian Bethel, hunter education coordinator for the Conservation Department. "The nature of bowhunting works against most of the kinds of accidents that firearms hunters are subject to. Bowhunters have to get very close to their game and place their shots exactly. Arrows that miss their intended target don't travel far, and bows are not prone to go off because they were kept loaded when they shouldn't have been. It's just a very safe activity."
If bowhunter education is not required, and if safety - the main reason for firearms hunter education - is not a serious concern to bowhunters, maybe the question is not so much why few bowhunters take the training, but why any of them do. Bethel said part of the answer lies in other states' hunting regulations. Missouri hunters must get certified if they want to pursue deer, elk or other big game in states where bowhunter education is mandatory.
Furthermore, some communities in the Show-Me State are working with archers to control urban and suburban deer numbers. In many cases, they only permit hunters who have completed bowhunter training to help in these efforts.
Bethel said a much better reason for taking a bowhunter education course is self-improvement.
"Very few bowhunters are so experienced and knowledgeable that they can't learn something through bowhunter education," he said. "If you have been bowhunting less than 10 years, I guarantee you will be a better, more successful, more thoughtful bowhunter after taking one of these courses."
It is ironic that bowhunter education is not required in Missouri, because the Conservation Department and Missouri bowhunters were instrumental in developing the national bowhunter education curriculum. The course covers the history and motivations behind modern bowhunting, safe and responsible bowhunting, archery equipment, hunting preparation, tree-stand safety, shot placement, game recovery and outdoor preparedness.
Another possible reason that few people take bowhunter education classes is the fact that they are not offered routinely, due to lack of participation. Instead, the Conservation Department organizes classes when they are requested.
"If we have enough people request a class to make it worth an instructor's time and effort, we set it up," said Bethel. "I would guess we have a dozen or so every year, compared to about a thousand firearms hunter education classes annually."
At present, the Conservation Department has one bowhunter education class scheduled in the St. Louis area Aug. 25 and 26. If you would like information about this class, call (636) 441-4554. For information about setting up a class in your area, call (573) 522-4115, ext. 3256.
-Jim Low-
Emerald Ash borer threatens Missouri forests, yards
Friday, July 28, 2006
This beetle is pretty but destructive.
JEFFERSON CITY-State officials are asking Missourians to be alert for a pest that could devastate forests and city landscapes. They say the culprit, the emerald ash borer (EAB) is a sort of attractive nuisance.
The EAB (Agrilus planipennis) is a bullet-shaped beetle that grows up to a half-inch long. Its metallic green color is beautiful to look at. What it does to ash trees is not. EAB larvae live beneath the bark of green and white ash trees. The tender inner bark is the tree’s circulatory system. Its destruction spells death for infested trees.
The EAB is not native to the United States. It was discovered near Detroit in 2002. Experts say it probably hitched a ride there in wooden packing material from Asia. The pest has decimated ash tree populations in southern Michigan. From this base, it has established beachheads in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.
Since arriving in North America, the EAB has killed more than 20 million ash trees and caused economic losses running into the tens of millions of dollars. Rob Lawrence, a forest entomologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, said the pest could be equally devastating in Missouri, where green and white ash trees are important components of native forests.
Conservation Department Resource Scientist Bruce Moltzan said an EAB infestation in Missouri could cause a significant shift in forest makeup, particularly in the northeastern part of the state. However, he said the EAB is not just a concern for out-state Missouri. He said ash trees are very common in cities, where they were planted to replace trees killed by Dutch elm disease. An EAB infestation would devastate community forests, too.
Ash wood is hard, tough and straight-grained, which makes it good material for bows, tool handles, baseball bats and musical instruments. Ash trees are important ecologically, too. They account for 3 to 10 percent of trees in natural woods in Missouri and as much as 30 percent of urban trees.
Mature ash trees often develop cavities that certain bird species need for nesting. Their seeds provide food for cardinals, finches and other birds, and their presence lends diversity to Missouri forests, making them less vulnerable to devastation by diseases or parasites.
“So far no North American ash tree has been found to be resistant to the emerald ash borer,” said Lawrence. “This insect has the potential to remove the ash component entirely from our forests - something similar to how chestnut blight removed large chestnut trees from Eastern forests, and potentially worse than what Dutch elm disease has done to elms. This is not a part of normal forest ecology. This is a non-native insect killing trees that have previously never been exposed to this insect and have no resistance to it.”
Lawrence said the loss of ash trees in urban areas would have a huge economic impact. Dead trees quickly become safety hazards if left standing, and the cost of tree removal is high.
The Conservation Department is working with the Missouri Department of Agriculture to conduct EAB surveillance in Missouri. Citizens can contribute to this effort, too.
When EABs go state-hopping, it is almost always in firewood or nursery stock. Nursery owners and agriculture officials have taken measures to keep the beetles out of nurseries. That leaves firewood as a source of infestation. Missourians need to be alert to telltale signs of EAB and report infestations so state officials can contain them.
The best way to ensure that you don’t bring EABs into Missouri is not to bring firewood home from other states. Out-of-state travelers should leave firewood behind. If you accidentally bring firewood into Missouri, burn it immediately.
EAB larvae create S-shaped trails under infested trees' bark. Early symptoms of damage in living trees includes dead branches in the crown, and the sprouting of many small branches on the trunk. When the adults emerge through the bark, they leave D-shaped holes up to three-sixteenths inch in diameter. Other wood-boring insects leave oval or round holes of various sizes.
Lawrence noted that Missouri has a number of native beetles that are metallic green, and ashes can suffer from many other conditions that cause them to die. If you think you may have EABs, check for other specific evidence, such as the S-shaped burrows and D-shaped exit holes, before reporting them.
If you do see signs of EAB, contact the nearest Conservation Department office. For more information about EAB, visit www.emeraldashborer.info/.
-Jim Low-
Youth Game Fair set for Aug. 19
Friday, July 28, 2006
Missouri youths can learn about duck and deer hunting at the Dean Lake Education Center near Swan Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
JEFFERSON CITY-The Land Learning Foundation (LLF) will host a free outdoor sports clinic for youngsters at the Dean Lake Education Center near Swan Lake Wildlife Refuge Aug. 19.
The Youth Game Fair will feature presentations and demonstrations by experts on hunting subjects such as archery, fishing, shotgun shooting, black powder shooting, waterfowl hunting, trapping and running hounds. Participants will have a chance to shoot, learn decoying, see waterfowl retrievers work and visit displays by conservation and sporting groups.
Special features of the day-long event include a visit to a wetland construction site and entertainment by master wildlife impersonator Ralph Duren. Officials from the Missouri Department of Conservation will be on hand to help with shooting events and to answer hunting and fishing questions.
The new Dean Lake Education Center is five miles south of Swan Lake Wildlife Refuge and four miles west of Triplett on route Z. Activities begin at 9 a.m. Lunch is provided. Parents and accompanying mentors are welcome.
To register, call the LLF (660) 634-2240 or event coordinator Marshall Murphy at (660) 815-7075. You also can register on line at www.landlearning.org.
The LLF is an educational and conservation organization focusing on wildlife, wildlife habitat and wildlife-based recreation. To learn more, visit www.landlearning.org/ or contact them at 22975 Hog Ridge Ave., Triplett, MO 65286, (660) 634-2240, info@landlearning.org.
-Jim Low-
Conservation Commission favors parks, soils tax renewal
Friday, July 28, 2006
Bipartisan panel calls one-tenth of one percent tax "critical" to the conservation of fish, forests and wildlife.
JEFFERSON CITY-Calling the sales tax for state parks and soil conservation "critical" to conservation, the Missouri Conservation Commission has gone on record as favoring renewal of the tax.
On August 8, Missouri voters will decide whether to extend the one-tenth of 1 percent sales tax that supports state parks and historic sites and soil and water conservation programs through the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Voters originally approved the tax in 1984, with a "sunset" clause requiring periodic votes for renewal. Missourians last voted to extend the tax in 1996.
At its June meeting, the four-person, bipartisan Conservation Commission voted unanimously to support another 10-year reauthorization of the parks and soil conservation tax. In a position statement, the Commission said "The importance of this tax to the continuation of many successful programs, projects, and activities cannot be overstated. Moreover, the relationship of these efforts to the conservation of fish, forests, and wildlife is critical. Soil and water conservation contributes substantially to the needs of plants and animals as well as our quality of life and natural heritage. State parks and historic sites provide a well rounded and diverse linkage to the land, natural resources, outdoor recreation, and the history of all Missourians.
"While the purpose of the soil and water conservation, state parks, and historic sites programs differs significantly from the Department of Conservation mission, it is no coincidence that many participants in these programs share a common view - that protection and use of the state's valuable natural resources are important, and understanding the history of Missouri, its land, people, and character, will help us to understand and shape our future. For these reasons, the Conservation Commission supports reauthorization of the one-tenth of one percent tax for another ten years as a means of funding these excellent programs.
The Conservation Department receives funding through a different, one-eighth of 1 percent sales tax written into the Missouri State Constitution by voters in 1976.
-Jim Low-
Nature Garden brings generations together
Friday, July 21, 2006
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| Students from Mike Collins' botany class at Reeds Spring High School have been working with Joe and Cathy Wolven to turn 18 acres of Ozark forest into a peaceful haven for people and native plants. Gatewood Gardens, located near Galena, is a place for youngsters to build lifetime knowledge, skills and friendships. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
REEDS SPRING, Mo.-Everyone remembers one class in high school that captured their imagination. In most cases, a remarkable teacher turned an otherwise dry subject into a life-changing experience. Botany students at Reeds Spring High School are fortunate to have not one such positive influence, but three. Together, they are creating a legacy for future generations of southwest Missouri residents.
Mike Collins' botany classes have a history of achievement. Each fall they grow poinsettias for a Christmas fundraiser. In the dead of winter, they begin growing thousands of plants that will decorate the pathways at Silver Dollar City. But the program took a quantum leap in interest when one of the botany students mentioned that her grandparents, who had recently retired, were working on a gardening project of their own.
Joe Wolven was a pastor for 50 years. "When Cathy and I decided it was time to retire from active ministry," he said, "we had this 18 acres near Galena, and we said, 'Let's go build a quiet place.'"
Both master gardeners, they envisioned a peaceful retreat in the Ozark hills, somewhere families could come for picnics, nature walks, family reunions or weddings. Being the caretakers of such a natural haven was their dream.
The dream included building trails, erecting bridges over creeks, clearing underbrush and returning their piece of the Ozark hills to a condition at once natural and park-like. It turned out to be a big job. Then their granddaughter mentioned their vision to Collins. Besides the end result, he saw an unparalleled opportunity for education, service and emotional fulfillment.
The Wolvens created a nonprofit organization to pursue their goals, and Collins' botany students adopted the project as their own. The combination of vision and energy produced Gatewood Gardens. At the center of it is the Wolven's rustic home with a sprawling enclosed porch.
The first order of business was to discover what already was there. Classes of 30 or so botany students combed the area in the springtime, identifying liverwort, bloodroot, trillium and a host of other wild native plants. Then they began blazing trails along the steep, rocky hillsides and valleys. In some places, structural solutions were needed to make foot traffic practical or prevent excessive disturbance. That caused the project to spill over into other parts of Reeds Spring High School
Computer-assisted design (CAD) students used their skills to design bridges. The vocational-technical department drew up materials lists for bridges and boardwalks, and those who did the actual construction had to apply math skills for their part of the project. English and art classes even got in on the action, editing copy and designing an area brochure.
Now Reeds Spring High School students make as many as 50 forays a year to Gatewood Gardens, sometimes for planting, sometimes for building, sometimes for botanical inventories and sometimes just for fun.
"It's unending what you can teach out here," said Collins. "We start out talking about plants and botany and then switch over to ethnobotany. From there you get into herbal medicines, Ozark culture and then history, all the way back to native Americans. It all becomes very intriguing to the kids. You can't begin to match the interest we generate out here if you keep them inside of four walls all the time and cram facts into them without ever showing them how it's useful."
The Wolvens could hardly be more pleased with the results. "We had the vision, we had the dream, but there's no way it could have turned out like this without the kids," exulted Joe.
Cathy notes a different kind of building going on. She points out youngsters sporting all kinds of fashion, from low-slung pants to the black leather and stainless steel accoutrements of "Goth" culture and gives a little commentary on each. One was withdrawn and ready to see disapproval when she first began visiting the Wolven's haven. Another had no confidence in his carpentry skills. Each has blossomed in Gatewood Gardens' atmosphere of acceptance and accomplishment. Now when they arrive, shouts of greeting ring out, as if all were at their grandparents' house for a visit.
Collins was pleased when one of his students decided to become a landscape architect. However, he said his ambition is not to turn out dozens of botanists each year. He simply wants to give his students an appreciation and sense of responsibility for their natural surroundings.
"How many botanists will we have out of this class? Probably not many," said Collins. "But I'll tell you what we will have. They will all have some land at one time or another that they rent or buy, and they will want to take care of it. That is our economy here in the Ozarks. It is what people came here for 150 years ago, and it is still why people want to come here. Of all the things we can do, teaching natural resources conservation is among the most important."
Their involvement with Gatewood Gardens also gives Collins' botany students a sense of home. "These kids keep coming back," he said. "When they come home from college for holidays or whatever, they come out here to see the Wolvens and see what has been done in the garden. This has deepened their sense of home."
-Jim Low-
Opportunities abound for hunters with mobility impairments
Friday, July 21, 2006
Sites all over the state have opportunities to hunt.
JEFFERSON CITY-Hunters who might ordinarily have trouble taking part in deer season will have access to special deer hunting opportunities at seven public areas this fall and winter.
Hunters who use wheelchairs, crutches, braces or canes to get around sometimes have trouble reaching good hunting spots. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers offers special hunts on land around its reservoirs to help such hunters overcome barriers. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offers a handicapped hunt at one of its Missouri wildlife refuges.
Hunt dates and places include:
--Nov. 4-5 Clearwater Lake in Reynolds County, two openings. Contact Jason Wilson, USACE, RR3, Box 3559D, Piedmont, MO 63957. Phone (573) 223-7777, ext. 235. Application deadline Sept. 30.
--Nov. 4-5 Truman Lake in Benton, Henry and St. Clair counties, 25 openings. Contact Larry Smith, USACE, 15968 Truman Road, Warsaw, MO 65355. Phone (660) 438-7317, ext. 1212. Application deadline Sept. 30.
--Nov. 4-5 Stockton Lake in Cedar, Dade and Polk counties, 20 openings. Contact Stanton Rains, USACE Stockton Project Office, 16435 E. Stockton Lake Drive, Stockton, 65785-9471, (417) 276-3113, Stanton.r.Rains@usace.army.mil.
--Nov. 18-19 Wappapello Lake in Wayne County, seven openings. Call James Gracey, (573) 222-8562. Deadline Sept. 30.
--Nov. 18-19 Mark Twain Lake in Ralls and Monroe counties, 30 openings. Contact Allen Mehrer, (573) 735-4097. E-mail allen.mehrer@mvs02.usace.army.mil. Application deadline Sept. 12.
--Nov. 18-19 Smithville Lake in Clay and Clinton counties, 60 openings. Contact Bruce Clark, USACE, P.O. Box 428, Smithville, MO 64089. Phone (816) 532-0174, ext. 10. E-mail bruce.k.clark@usace.army.mil. Applications can be requested starting Sept. 15 and must be received by Oct. 20.
--Nov. 18-19, Bois D'Arc in Greene County, 12 openings, Contact Mike Brooks, PO Box 1812, Bois D'Arc, MO 65612, Phone (417) 742-4361: Deadline Sept. 30.
--Dec. 2-3, Shaw Nature Reserve, three openings, Contact Glenn Beffa, PO Box 38, Gray Summit, MO 63039. Phone (636) 451-3512.
--Dec. 30 & 31 Swan Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Chariton County, eight openings. Registration deadline Oct. 31. For reservations, contact John Guthrie, 16194 Swan Lake Ave., Sumner, MO 64681. Phone (660) 856-3323. E-mail swanlake@fws.gov.
-Jim Low-
Young guns can win lifetime hunting permits
Friday, July 21, 2006
Young hunters who are willing to give back to the resources they depend on can win a reward that lasts a lifetime.
JEFFERSON CITY-Five young conservationists will receive the gift of a lifetime for a passionate hunter - a Missouri Lifetime Hunting Permit.
Pheasants Forever (PF) and Quail Forever (QF) received a grant for the permits from the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation. The permits will go to Missouri PF and QF chapters, based on their work providing conservation education events and hunting opportunities to Missouri youths.
"These grants build stronger relationships with our non-governmental organization partners and help all of us deliver conservation education to Missouri youth," said Elsa Gallagher, a wildlife ecologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation. "We look forward to working with PF and QF chapters to provide additional youth hunting opportunities."
The Resident Lifetime Small Game Hunting Permits can only go to youths under age 16. They are valued at $275 each.
"Our chapters and volunteers will use these donations to increase interest and youth participation in conservation, shooting sports, and hunting," commented Jim Wooley, QF's field operations director. "We cannot thank the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation enough for their commitment to youth and continuing small game hunting traditions. These permits commit youth to a lifetime of education afield through environmental conservation and hunting."
The first permit went to the Ozark Plateau chapter of QF in Springfield. Chapter President Mike Brooks said his chapter plans to use the permit as an incentive to get more youths involved in local conservation efforts. Every new youth member who joins the Ozark Plateau chapter over the next year will have a chance to win the lifetime hunting permit, which will be raffled off at the end of the year.
Additional PF and QF chapters will be identified as recipients of lifetime permits this summer. Chapters receiving permits can grant them to youth hunters within their chapters.
Missouri currently has six PF chapters and six QF chapters with more than 1,500 members statewide. Those chapters have spent more than $250,000 for habitat work on more than 16,500 acres. If you are interested in starting a PF or QF chapter in Missouri, contact Wooley at (641) 774-2238 or jwooley@quailforever.org.
-Jim Low-
Apply now for managed deer hunts
Friday, July 21, 2006
All you need is a telephone or an Internet connection
JEFFERSON CITY-If you have ever wished you could hunt deer in a state park, a national wildlife refuge or a nature preserve, now is your chance. Pick up a phone or go online and apply for a spot in one of the 86 managed deer hunts administered by the Missouri Department of Conservation this fall.
The application period for the hunts opened July 1 and will remain open through Aug. 15. You can apply by calling 800/829-2956. The service is available from 4 a.m. until midnight seven days a week. You need a touch-tone phone to apply by telephone. Callers must use touch-tone phone pads to punch in their nine-digit conservation ID numbers and two- or three-digit hunt codes.
To complete the application process, you need your conservation identification number. You can find this on previous permits or on the back of your Conservation Heritage Card by the bar code. If you don't have a conservation identification number, call 573/751-4115, and one will be assigned to you.
The other option is to log onto www.missouriconservation.org/hunt/deer. Everything you need, other than your Conservation Heritage Card number, is there.
All applications received by the Aug. 15 deadline receive the same consideration. Successful applicants receive notices of their selection by mail. Hunters can check the status of their applications on the Conservation Department Web page after Sept. 11.
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. In some, up to three deer may be taken, and in one hunt, four deer are allowed.
Full details about the hunts and applications are contained in the 2006 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet, which is available from permit vendors statewide. The same information is available online at www.missouriconservation.org.";
-Jim Low-
Commission to meet Aug 17 in Sedalia
Friday, July 21, 2006
JEFFERSON CITY-The Missouri Conservation Commission will hold its next meeting Aug. 16 and 17 at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia.
The Commission will meet in closed session Aug. 16. It will meet in open session at 10:30 a.m. Aug. 17 in the Conservation Discovery Room at the south end of the fairgrounds.
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 Aug. 2.
People requiring special services or accommodations to attend Conservation Commission meetings can make arrangements by writing to the same address, or by phone at (573) 751-4115.
Commissioners are: Stephen Bradford, Cape Girardeau, chairman; William F. "Chip" McGeehan, Marshfield, vice-chairman; Cynthia Metcalfe, St. Louis, secretary; Lowell Mohler, Jefferson City, member.
-Jim Low-
Conservation Department Media Contacts Roster
Friday, July 21, 2006
A list of Conservation Department experts on various subjects is available at www.mdc.mo.gov/documents/news/media_contacts.pdf.
-Jim Low-
MDC and Google put a world of outdoor images and information at computer-users fingertips
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Get an eagle's eye view of Missouri Department of Conservation areas online with Google Earth. The Conservation Department and Google have teamed up to give computer users easy assess to satellite images of conservation lands through the most advanced computer technology available.
Google Earth is a new product that combines satellite imagery, maps and the power of Google Search to put the world's geographic information at your fingertips. To view an area you simply type its address and Google Earth zeros in on the location using graphics that simulate an approach by airplane. With a new data file from the Missouri Department of Conservation computer users can view conservation areas along with information on their facilities, activities and regulations. The Google Earth site also provides driving directions between locations, includes tilt and rotate features for viewing 3D buildings and allows viewers to save and share searches, as well as add their own annotations.
The free version of Google Earth can be downloaded and installed for personal use. No registration is required. You can download your copy of Google Earth at Google's Web site, http://earth.google.com/. You must download Google Earth in order to view conservation areas in Missouri with this tool. After you have installed Google Earth, download the KMZ file for conservation areas from the Conservation Department web site. When you double-click on the KMZ file, it will open Google Earth automatically and display conservation areas in Missouri.
Conservation Reserve Program turns 20
Friday, July 14, 2006
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| Missouri Conservation Commission Chairman Lowell Mohler, third from left, was among dignitaries who traveled to Saline County June 28 to celebrate the 20th birthday of the Conservation Reserve program in Missouri. Here Mohler discusses the use of special machinery to speed tree planting. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
JEFFERSON CITY-Officials from Washington, D.C., and Jefferson City converged on Marshall, Mo., June 28 to celebrate a birthday. The honoree was not a person, although it works on farms throughout the state. It was not a place, although it covers millions of acres. It was not even a thing, although the 70 or so people attending the event pointed to it and talked about it as if it had a physical presence. The object of veneration was an abbreviation - CRP.
The importance of the Conservation Reserve Program was evident from those who attended the event. Missouri Farm Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director Tim Kelley was master of ceremonies. Larry Adams, assistant deputy administrator for farm programs for the FSA, came to laud the program and see its effects in the Show-Me State. Missouri Conservation Commission Chairman Lowell Mohler was there. So were Conservation Department Director John Hoskins and Private Land Services Division Chief Steve Wilson. Missouri Department of Natural Resources Director Doyle Childers came to add his voice to the chorus praising CRP, too.
The program's name is too bureaucratic to do anything but hint at its real nature. Adams described it as "one of the most significant conservation programs in history."
The basic facts of CRP make Adams's assertion hard to contest. Since its inception, the program has resulted in:
* 400 million tons of topsoil saved
* 50 million tons of atmospheric carbon tied up in vegetation each year, slowing global warming
* 36 million acres enrolled nationwide (8 percent of available cropland), with an average payment to landowners of $48.90 per acre
* 1.6 million acres enrolled in Missouri (7.5 percent of the state's cropland) on 22,000 farms, saving soil and enhancing wildlife
* $105 million in annual payments to Missouri farmers.
According to Adams, the seeds of CRP were sown in the 1950s, when the USDA realized the importance of soil conservation on private land. Congress translated that growing awareness into action with the Federal Food Security Act of 1985. Article XII of the act provided financial incentives for farmers to take cropland out of production. The program sought to reduce both soil erosion and farm commodity surpluses.
CRP succeeded at both goals. Missouri, whose annual losses to soil erosion were the second-largest in the nation, reaped enormous soil-conservation benefits. Wildlife conservationists hailed the program for the help it could give quail, pheasants and other grassland wildlife. It was a win-win situation where landowners got financial help they needed to control soil erosion and boost wildlife.
For a while, predictions of wildlife gains came true. Then, as grasslands established under CRP aged, the benefits slowly subsided. Wildlife biologists explained that habitat is not static. It changes with time, even without human intervention. If CRP was going to fulfill its wildlife conservation potential, it would have to be dynamic, too.
Working in partnership with state and federal farm and wildlife agencies, Congress added provisions that allow management of land set aside under CRP in ways that would maintain soil conservation while enhancing enrolled acres' usefulness to wildlife. The result was a bevy of conservation practices - CPs for short - that landowners could engage in without violating the terms of their CRP agreements. Many CPs came with further federal cash incentives to encourage landowners to use them.
The Conservation Department pitched in and offered its own incentives. It also put staff in the field to help landowners figure out which CPs would work on their land and how to implement them.
To illustrate the changes wrought by CRP and its brood of CPs, the FSA chose Saline County for the 20th birthday tour. They made the rounds of four farms where CRP is at work. At each of the sites, the landowner was on hand to explain how the program worked for him, for soil conservation and for wildlife.
The first stop was a 60-acre tract near Hardeman owned by David Cramer and Mike Gremaud. The two bought the land in 2002, hoping to transform it into a quail-hunting paradise. Most of the land had been used to grow corn and soybeans. That helped determine what CRP practices were available to Cramer and Gremaud. They chose to install filter strips (CP21), permanent plantings of native, warm-season grasses planted along stream edges. The practice helps stop soil particles, herbicides and other water pollutants in runoff water from reaching streams. They also planted grass on terraces (CP15) to slow runoff and provide additional nesting and escape cover for quail and other wildlife.
Within a year of making these changes, the number of quail coveys on Cramer and Gremaud's land quadrupled. The day of the CRP anniversary tour, visitors heard male bobwhites calling from the surrounding fields.
The second stop on the tour was 294 acres owned by Dan Dillon. He bought the land between 2002 and 2005 with the idea of creating wildlife habitat. Much of the land already was enrolled in CRP CP10, which involves cool-season grasses. He also signed up for the CRP-BOB program co-sponsored by the Conservation Department and the Missouri Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. This program provides cost-sharing for some quail-friendly management not covered by CRP.
Dillon installed small food plots in the cool-season grasses and sowed legume seeds among the grass to provide better nutrition for wildlife. He planted shrubs to provide woody cover for quail, rabbits and other small animals. To enhance the value of this acreage to wildlife, Dillon took advantage of a CRP provision that allows landowners to disc or otherwise disturb dense stands of grass. This creates the bare ground and more open vegetation that quail need.
Stop three on the tour was Van Dorf Farm, a 1,100-acre production agriculture operation run by Larry Pointer. Most of the acreage produces corn and soybeans, but Pointer set aside 40 acres for CP22, a practice that encourages tree planting along stream corridors.
Pointer told visitors he was glad to get help planting thousands of green ash, sycamore, pin oak, burr oak, swamp white oak, hackberry and bald cypress trees in an area that often floods during the growing season. Before he planted trees there, the area was marginal at best for farming. CP22 addressed erosion problems in the creek bottom without reducing his farm income.
J.R. Wade and his grandson, Justin, hosted the final stop on the tour, a 3,000-acre production agriculture operation in the fabled duck-hunting area of Malta Bend. The senior Wade has been farming for more than 50 years. Justin joined him in 1996. Like Pointer, they grow corn and soybeans on most of their land, but they decided that the best use for 200 acres along a stream was to return it to its historic condition.
CP23 enabled the Wades to re-create wetlands. They used CP9 to create shallow-water habitat. Taking this flood-prone land along a stream out of production actually increased the farm's profitability by saving the cost of farming marginally productive acres. It also gave Justin a place to pursue his love of waterfowl hunting and created habitat for animals ranging from salamanders and furbearers to migratory songbirds.
In his remarks over a lunch of barbecued beef, Hoskins said the economic benefits of CRP have extended far beyond the program's original goals. He said quail and other wildlife help attract out-of-state hunters and anglers who spend $1.5 billion annually at Missouri businesses.
"The Conservation Department's partnership with the Farm Service Agency and the NRCS is putting CRP on the ground across the state," said Hoskins. He noted that over the last six years, the partnership has grown, and 60 Private Land Services Division staffers now have offices in USDA offices. "Technical assistance from Conservation Department specialists is now an important delivery contribution for CRP and other federal farm bill programs," said Hoskins.
FSA Director Kelley said soil is the foundation of Missouri's economy. "You and I know we are just caretakers of our land, and that is what CRP is about."
Jef Hodges, regional director for Quail Unlimited, noted that Missouri is one of six states that each received 20,000-acre CP33 allocations for upland bird habitat buffers. He said cooperation between the Conservation Department and the FSA has enabled Missouri to enroll 17,000 acres in this highly beneficial conservation practice.
"I can tell you from first-hand experience that CP33 projects around the state are working," said Hodges. "We have seen increases in quail numbers ranging from 100 percent to almost 400 percent around fields that have CP33 installed. We know the program works."
For more information about the Conservation Reserve Program and associated conservation practices, call the nearest office of the Farm Service Agency or the Conservation Department.
-Jim Low-
3,000th Stream Team is a family effort
Friday, July 14, 2006
In some ways the MacBrides seem average, but their decision to take an active role in stream conservation makes them part of something remarkable.
FREDERICKTOWN, Mo.-James and Sheila MacBride's family seem average on the surface. He is the general manager for Timber Creek Resort in De Soto. She teaches second grade at Fredericktown Elementary. They love being outdoors with their three sons. Like many Missourians, they want to take care of the natural world. When they saw a story about Missouri Stream Teams in Missouri Conservationist magazine, they decided to form the Coldwater Creek Reclaimers. That made the MacBrides part of something extraordinary.
They happened to be the 3,000th group of Missourians who formalized their love of running water by adopting a stretch of stream to look after.
"The boys were really excited," said James. "It's a little bit of bragging rights, being the three-thousandth Stream Team."
The MacBrides celebrated their notoriety May 21 by spending the day on "their" 3-mile stretch of Coldwater Creek, a small, spring-fed stream that issues from the earth not far from their home. Sons Elijah MacBride, 11, Chayce Mell, 9, and Bryce Mell, 7, all got in the act, picking up cans, bottles, plastic bags, a couple of tires and two rolls of discarded fencing. The trash added up to a pickup load.
Statewide, Stream Teams conduct dozens of trash pickups annually and much more. "Stream Teams struck a chord in Missourian's hearts and took off like a rocket," said Mark VanPatten, who organized the first Stream Team, the Roubidoux Fly Fishers, and served as the program's first coordinator. "It has always exceeded our wildest hopes for success. We didn't realize it at the start, but this was an idea whose time had come."
When the program began in 1989, the Conservation Federation of Missouri and the Missouri departments of Conservation and Natural Resources hoped eventually to organize 250 Stream Teams. They surpassed that figure in two years. By 1994, the number of Stream Teams topped 500, and it surpassed 1,000 in 1997. It took only five more years to double that number and four years to add the next 1,000 Stream Teams.
"Nowadays it is normal to add as many Stream Teams in a year as we once hoped to have in the whole program," said VanPatten. He said the biggest challenge today is keeping up with Missourians' enthusiasm for stream conservation. "As far as I know, there is no other program in the nation or the world that matches Missouri Stream Teams for citizen involvement and achievements. It is extremely exciting to be a part of."
Like the MacBride family, Stream Teams began with trash clean-ups but soon sought bigger challenges. They quickly branched out into other stream-conservation work.
The first addition was water-quality monitoring. With training from the Conservation and Natural Resources departments, volunteers check for direct and indirect evidence of pollution in thousands of miles of streams statewide. James MacBride plans to take this training soon, so he and his family can monitor the health of Coldwater Creek.
"The creek seems to be very healthy right now," said MacBride. "We want to be sure it stays that way."
Some Stream Teams paint notices on storm drain inlets, "Dump No Waste - Drains to Stream." Others are getting ahead of litter problems with innovative solutions, such as placing fishing line recycling receptacles at stream accesses. Each year some Stream Teams plant trees along streams to prevent erosion. Public education is the main goal of others.
In 2005, more than 45,000 Stream Team members spent 134,964 hours in activities ranging from adopting an access to zebra mussel monitoring. The value of their labor was calculated at $2,434,750.
In all, 60,000 people are enrolled in Stream Teams. That means that three-quarters of program members were active in 2005, a level of participation that most volunteer organizations would envy.
Stream Team expertise is growing steadily through continuing education courses. These include fish and crayfish identification, tree planting, ground water and Level 1, 2 and 3 water quality monitoring workshops, which trained 448 Stream Teamers last year. The latest innovation in Stream Team education is a Stream Team Academy with in-depth classes in such specialized topics as "Understanding Streams" and the biology of hellbenders and freshwater mussels.
Stream Teams keep up with each other through the program's newsletter, "Channels." They also share work and fellowship through Stream Team associations. Some of these associations have incorporated and obtained tax-exempt status, increasing their chances of obtaining grants to tackle ambitious projects.
"Combining the strengths of several Stream Teams can produce amazing results," said VanPatten. "The Missouri Watershed Coalition is an excellent example. When they get fully organized, they will be in a position to help new Stream Teams get started and coordinate different teams' activities. Stream Team associations are powerful tools for marshaling the resources needed to do big things."
For information on Stream Teams and how you can get involved, contact Missouri Stream Team, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180, 800/781-1989, streamteam@mdc.mo.gov, or visit www.mostreamteam.org/.
-Jim Low-
New Flora of Missouri and Conservation Atlas now on sale
Friday, July 14, 2006
Buy before Sept. 1 and get a 20 percent discount.
JEFFERSON CITY-Two new books are likely to become must-buy items for Missourians who treasure the outdoors. One, from the Missouri Department of Conservation, is a general-interest atlas of conservation areas. The other is an exhaustive collection of Show-Me State plant information and is available from the Missouri Botanical Garden.
Missouri's Conservation Atlas, a large-format guide to more than 900 conservation areas, is an updated version of the original. The 240-page spiral-bound book includes new conservation areas not in existence when the last atlas was printed and has color topographic county maps grouped by region. Each county map has a list of conservation areas found there with driving directions to each and summaries of facilities and recreational opportunities.
A section in the back of the atlas lists shooting ranges and areas with disabled-accessible facilities. The atlas fits neatly beneath car seats, so it is handy when you pass a sign for a conservation area and wonder what is there.
Missouri's Conservation Atlas is on sale now at Conservation Department nature centers and regional offices. It sells for $19 plus shipping and tax, where applicable. Buy during July or August and receive a 20 percent discount. You can call toll-free (877) 521-8632 to order copies, or write to The Nature Shop, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102. You can also order online at www.mdcnatureshop.com/.
Professional naturalists and amateurs who want the ultimate reference book on Missouri plants now can get an updated version of the landmark Flora of Missouri. Often referred to as the state's botanical bible, the original edition was written by Conservation Hall of Famer Julian Steyermark and first published in 1963.
Over the years, this hefty tome has become an indispensable reference tool for anyone who frequently finds himself saying, "I wonder what that plant is." When it went out of print, copies quickly became scarce and expensive. The Missouri Botanical Garden, with help from the Conservation Department, has stepped in to make sure this classic text remains available.
Volume I rolled off the presses in 1999. That book contains a lengthy introduction to Missouri natural history, as well as treatments of the state's ferns and conifers and the first portion of the flowering plants.
Volume II now is available. It covers more than 40 families of flowering plants, including such important groups as the sunflowers, bellflowers, borages, carnations, honeysuckles, morning glories, mustards, pigweeds and spurges. Besides descriptions and keys for plant identification, Steyermark's Flora of Missouri, Volume II, contains discussions of the taxonomy, ecology and conservation of each species, as well as summaries of food, crafts, gardening and other uses and an indication of medicinal and poisonous properties.
Most of the species accounts are accompanied by black-and-white illustrations, and maps show the distribution of each species in Missouri.
At nearly 1,200 pages, the second volume is more than 200 pages longer than the first. The final volume in the set is expected to take several more years to complete, because research on the remaining plant groups is still in progress.
Volume II is available from the Missouri Botanical Garden Press for $48 plus shipping. Volume I is still available for $38 plus shipping. For more information or to order copies, call MBG Press toll free at (877) 271-1930 or send e-mail to mbgpress@mobot.org, or visit www.mbgpress.org.
-Jim Low-
Boaters', anglers' help critical to slowing spread of zebra mussels
Friday, July 07, 2006
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| The discovery of zebra mussels in Lake of the Ozarks points up boaters' and anglers' important role in controlling the spread of the aquatic pest. For information about how to recognize zebra mussels and prevent their spread, visit www.protectyourwaters.net. To report a potential zebra mussel sighting, contact the nearest Missouri Conservation Department office or go to: mdc.mo.gov/nathis/exotic/zebra/. (Missouri Dept. of Conservation photo) |
JEFFERSON CITY-The recent discovery of zebra mussels at Lake of the Ozarks caught some by surprise, but officials with the Missouri Department of Conservation say this is just the latest chapter in a long and continuing saga. Agency officials say this latest development is a reminder of the important role citizens play in efforts to slow the spread of the troublesome mollusk and other potentially damaging exotic species.
The zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) is native to the Caspian Sea region. Adults are dime- to quarter-sized. They attach to solid objects and gather food by filtering tiny plants and animals from the surrounding water. Females produce up to a million offspring a year. They can form dense colonies several layers thick, encrusting objects with their shells.
In some waters, zebra mussels thrive and produce heavy infestations. They can clog the water intakes of boat motors and power plants. They compete with native animals for food, and they can smother native mussels, many of which already are endangered.
An alert citizen noticed the fingernail-sized zebra mussels June 15 on submerged objects beneath a private boat dock at Lake of the Ozarks. An inspection of nearby docks turned up a total of about 50 of the mussels.
State and federal officials are working to determine the extent of the infestation. They say it is too early to tell whether the exotic mussels will thrive in Lake of the Ozarks, but they say the fact that zebra mussels have reached Lake of the Ozarks is not surprising, considering the species' history in North America:
--1985-1986 - Zebra mussels enter the St. Lawrence Seaway, probably in ballast water from ocean-going ships.
--1988 - Zebra mussels found in Lake St. Clair.
--1989 - First live zebra mussels found in Lake Michigan.
--1991 - First zebra mussels discovered in the upper Mississippi River.
--1992 - Zebra mussels spread along the Arkansas River between the Mississippi River and Oklahoma.
--1993 - Zebra mussels found in inland lakes in Michigan and in the Mississippi River in southern Louisiana.
--1999 - A single adult zebra mussel found attached to a native mussel shell in the Meramec River near the I-55 Bridge.
--2000 - A marina employee spots thousands of zebra mussels on a 32-foot cabin cruiser brought to Lake of the Ozarks from out of state.
--2001 - A small number of zebra mussel shells turn up in a filter screen at a power plant on the Missouri River in the Kansas City area.
--2003 - Zebra mussels found in a lake in Kansas.
--2005 - Zebra mussels found in a lake in Oklahoma.
Brian Canaday, who oversees the Conservation Department's efforts to keep invasive plants and animals out of Missouri, says the fact that it took this long for zebra mussels to invade interior waters of the Show-Me State is a strong indication that Missourians take zebra mussel control seriously.
"The zebra mussel is easy to spread," said Canaday. "It could have been here much sooner if anglers and pleasure boaters were not taking care to avoid spreading it."
Immature zebra mussels, called veligers, are tiny and float free in infested waters. They can hitch a ride to new locations in even small amounts of water left in bait buckets, live wells, boat bilges or in the cooling systems of marine motors. Adults attached to the hulls of boats are capable of surviving out of water for several days.
If you are a boater, angler, water-skier, scuba-diver, sailor or canoeist, you can help prevent the spread of zebra mussels by taking the following precautions.
IDENTIFY - Learn how to identify zebra mussels. For information, write to MDC, "Zebra Mussel Watch Card" and "Zebra Mussel: Missouri's Most Unwanted," P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Or E-mail a request for these publications to pubstaff@mdc.mo.gov. If you suspect a new infestation, report it to the nearest Conservation Department office.
INSPECT - Thoroughly inspect your boat and trailer and other items that come in contact with the water. Scrape off and trash any suspected mussels, however small. Remove all weeds hanging from the boat or trailer before leaving any water body.
DRAIN - Drain water from the motor, live well, bilge and transom wells and any other water from your boat and equipment while on land before leaving any water body.
DUMP - Trash leftover bait away from water before leaving any water body. Leftover live bait that has contacted infested waters should not be taken to uninfested waters.
RINSE - When you get home - before launching your boat into uninfested waters - thoroughly rinse and dry the hull, drive unit, live wells, live well pumping system, bilge, trailer, bait buckets, engine cooling system and other boat parts that got wet while in infested waters; use a hard spray from a garden hose.
If your boat was in infested waters for a long period of time, or if you find any attached adult mussels, use hot (104 F) water instead of cold, or tow the boat through a do-it-yourself carwash and use the high pressure hot water to "de-mussel" your boat. Do not use chlorine bleach or other environmentally unsound washing solutions.
DRY - Let boats, motors and trailers dry thoroughly in the sun for at least five days before boating again.
IN THE SLIP - In infested waters, the best way to keep a hull mussel-free is to run the boat frequently. Small juvenile mussels are quite soft and are scoured off the hull at high speeds.
If possible, leave outboards or outdrives in the up position. Periodically inspect hulls and drive units, and scrape free of mussels. Pump hot water through your engine's intake on a regular basis to prevent mussel growth inside the engine's cooling system.
Consult the Conservation Department before trying to control or eradicate zebra mussels or any other exotic pest. Pest species often thrive on disturbance. Do-it-yourself control treatments can make matters worse and can harm native species.
Several Missouri Stream Teams are monitoring lakes and streams for zebra mussels. If you would like to join the effort, call (800) 781-989 or visit the Stream Team web-site at www.mostreamteam.org.
For more information about zebra mussels, contact Canaday at (573) 751-4115, ext. 3371, or go to www.protectyourwaters.net.
To report a potential zebra mussel sighting, contact the nearest Missouri Conservation Department office or go to: www.missouriconservation.org/nathis/exotic/zebra/.
-Jim Low-
Shortnose gar is fourth state record catch of 2006
Friday, July 07, 2006
Brad Smith of Center got lucky with a 13-pound shortnose gar.
PARIS, Mo.-News of state fishing records has become a drumbeat this year, with almost monthly reports of new records from the Missouri Department of Conservation. The latest fish to better a previous mark is a shortnose gar from northeastern Missouri.
Brad Smith, 45, from the Ralls County hamlet of Center, used a bow and arrow to set a new record in the Alternative Methods category. He shot the 13-pound, 47-inch fish at Mark Twain Lake June 16. It topped the previous record of 12 pounds, 3 ounces set by Willard resident Greg Rippee at Pomme de Terre Lake in 1997.
Other state-record fish caught this year include a 9-pound, 10-ounce river redhorse sucker in January, a 5-pound black crappie in April and a 6-pound, 6-ounce yellow bullhead in May. The crappie and bullhead each exceeds the record for its species recognized by the International Game Fish Association in Diana Beach, Fla.
Smith earned his record the hard way, bettering a mark set by another angler. An easier route to fame would be catching a shortnose gar weighing at least 3 pounds on pole line and lure. That is because the pole-line-and-lure record for shortnose gar is open - no one has ever bothered to apply for it. The first record for any fish species must meet the minimum qualifying weight for the Conservation Department's Master Angler Program.
Missouri's state-record fish list reveals lots of other low-hanging fruit for those intent on setting a record. In the pole-line-and-lure category, no records exist for Alabama shad, highfin carpsucker, river carpsucker, spotted carpsucker, burbot, white perch, shadow bass or Ozark bass. In the Alternative Methods category, open records include the shovelnose sturgeon, mooneye, Alabama shad, skipjack herring, highfin carpsucker, river carpsucker, shorthead redhorse, silver redhorse, white sucker, white perch, hybrid black bass, sauger, yellow perch, grass pickerel, muskellunge, brown trout, burbot, hybrid striped bass, white bass, yellow bass, Ozark Bass or hybrid sunfish.
Besides bowfishing, alternative fishing methods include snagging, snaring, gigging, jug lines, limb lines, bank lines and trotlines. Some methods may not be legal for some species, so check fishing regulations before setting out to catch your record.
To qualify as a state record, a fish must be taken by legal methods and be a species that is included on the state-record fish list. Record fish must be weighed on certified scales in the presence of Conservation Department personnel, and their species must be verified by a Conservation Department fisheries biologist. Finally, a color photo of the fish is required.
A complete list of Missouri fishing records is available online at www.missouriconservation.org. Rules and entry forms also are available online, along with details of the Master Angler program. Click on keywords "Fishing" and "Browse Fishing by Subject."
For minimum qualifying weights under the Master Angler Program, visit www.mdc.mo.gov/documents/fish/records/fishawrd.pdf.
Missouri gets maximum number of teal-hunting days
Friday, July 07, 2006
Blue-winged teal numbers are up substantially, setting the stage for a long, productive early teal season.
JEFFERSON CITY-Missourians who savor the opportunity to hunt ducks in short sleeves and sneakers will be pleased to learn that this year's early teal season will be the longest allowed under federal guidelines. The announcement comes on the heels of other good news-that blue-winged teal numbers are up substantially from last year.
Teal are the smallest of all ducks. Their migration begins sooner than other, larger species, such as mallards. To give hunters a shot at these fast-flying, early-migrating birds, federal officials allow states to hold special hunting seasons before the regular waterfowl season.
Federal waterfowl season guidelines are tied to waterfowl populations. This ensures maximum hunting opportunity consistent with good stewardship. In the case of teal, no early hunting season is allowed if spring population surveys show fewer than 3.3 million blue-winged teal, the most numerous and earliest-migrating teal species. If surveys show 3.3 million to 4.7 million, the early teal season is set at 9 days. If surveys show more than 4.7 million blue-winged teal, the season is 16 days long.
This year's survey showed 5.9 million blue-winged teal, a 28-percent increase from 2005. As a result, this year's early teal season will open Sept. 9 and run through Sept. 24. Bag limits and other regulations remain the same as last year - four blue-winged and green-winged teal in the aggregate daily and eight in possession, with shooting hours from sunrise to sunset.
The Conservation Commission set seasons for teal and other early-migrating game birds at its June meeting. Other early seasons include
--SORA AND VIRGINIA RAILS: Sept. 1 through Nov. 9; limits of 25 daily or in possession.
--COMMON SNIPE: Sept. 1 through Dec. 16; limits of eight daily and 16 in possession.
--AMERICAN WOODCOCK: Oct. 15 through Nov. 28; limits of three daily and six in possession.
--MOURNING DOVE, EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES AND WHITE-WINGED DOVES: Sept. 1 through Nov. 9; limits of 12 daily and 24 in possession.
--Shooting hours for early migratory birds other than teal are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset.
Also at its June meeting, the Conservation Commission voted to keep the three-zone structure for Missouri's regular duck season, with one change. The boundary between the North and Middle zones formerly ran west along I-70 from its junction with Highway 47 in Warren County to the junction of Highway 54 in Callaway County. At that point, it followed Highway 54 south to Highway 50 and then followed Highway 50 west to the Kansas border. The new boundary follows I-70 from its junction with Highway 47 west all the way to the Kansas border. For details of the Zone Boundary change, visit mdc.mo.gov/hunt/wtrfowl/zones/index.htm.
Conservation Department Resource Scientist Dave Graber said the increase in teal numbers and encouraging reports about habitat conditions in the northern breeding grounds are good signs for the regular waterfowl season. Dates for the regular waterfowl season will be announced next month.
-Jim Low-
