Missouri Conservationist August 2019

2019·6 MB·English

by  Missouri Department of Conservation

MISSOURI
VOLUME 80, ISSUE 8, AUGUST 2019
SERVING NATURE & YOU
CONSERVATIONIST
E
V
I
S
A
stop
the
invasion
V
N
I
CARP
Silver carp leap from the water, menacing boaters. Bighead
carp devour plankton that native fish need. Grass carp consume
aquatic plants. Black carp can gorge on native mussels.
Stop the invasion in the aquatic zone. Catch, clean, and cook
carp. Don’t move carp or use them as live bait.
Join the fight at MissouriConservation.org
MISSOURI
CONSERVATIONIST
Contents
AUGUST 2019
VOLUME 80, ISSUE 8
10
ON THE COVER
Sun filters through
the trees at Grassy
Pond Natural Area.
: NOPPADOL PAOTHONG
17–40mm lens, f/10
1/25 sec, ISO 800
GOVERNOR
Michael L. Parson
THE CONSERVATION COMMISSION
CHAIR Marilynn J. Bradford
VICE CHAIR David W. Murphy
SECRETARY Don C. Bedell
16
MEMBER Wm. L. (Barry) Orscheln
DIRECTOR
Sara Parker Pauley
22 DEPUTY DIRECTORS
Mike Hubbard, Aaron Jeffries,
Jennifer Battson Warren
MAGAZINE STAFF
EDITOR
Angie Daly Morfeld
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Larry Archer
STAFF WRITERS
Bonnie Chasteen, Heather Feeler,
Kristie Hilgedick, Joe Jerek
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
FEATURES Stephanie Thurber
ART DIRECTOR
10 Cliff White
DESIGNERS
Happy Birthday,
Les Fortenberry, Marci Porter
Smokey! PHOTOGRAPHERS
Noppadol Paothong, David Stonner
Celebrating Smokey by supporting CIRCULATION MANAGER
local fire departments. Laura Scheuler
by Holly Dentner DEPARTMENTS mdc.mo.gov/conmag
16
2 Inbox
A New Approach to Quail
3 Up Front With Sara Parker Pauley
Grassland management
4 Nature Lab
key to quail recovery.
5 In Brief
by Francis Skalicky
28 Get Outside
22
Awesome Opossums 30 Places To Go Download this
32 Wild Guide issue to your
America’s only marsupial phone or tablet at
packs secret superpowers. 33 Outdoor Calendar mdc.mo.gov/mocon.
Ruby-throated
hummingbird ADownndloardo foird
Inbox
Letters to the Editor MAKE WAY FOR BEARS
Submissions reflect Thank you for the informative article on black bears
readers’ opinions and in Missouri [May, Page 10]. I’ve never seen one, but
may be edited for length hope to one day. And now after reading your article,
and clarity. Email
I am better prepared if I do. I just hope I have my
[email protected]
camera with me!
or write to us:
Dawn Blake Hollister
MISSOURI
and fishing, and our vacations on Table Rock Lake.
CONSERVATIONIST
SQUIRREL HUNTING 101 Sometimes we would just sit and enjoy the beautiful
PO BOX 180
JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65102 More than 60 years ago, my friend and I rode the scenery. Please don’t discontinue your magazine and
inner-city bus from St. Joseph to Savannah with publish it only online. Reading and looking at the
our shotguns. We got off at Stop 9 and walked to gorgeous pictures brings back so many wonderful
his sister’s place to squirrel hunt. With my 410 in memories.
hand, we scoured the place looking for the best Jeannine Crowe St. Louis
targets. Finally, a squirrel scurried from one tree to
the next and my friend let loose with his 12 gauge PRAISE FROM INDIANA
before I even saw the target. Good times and fond I was visiting my son, who lives here, and I came
memories. [June, Page 16] across your free magazine in a local restaurant. I am
Phil Sifers Kansas City really impressed by its quality and the real topics
that it puts in front of the public. I am a hunter and
MAGAZINE MEMORIES I fish. I also own land back in Indiana that I apply
I taught at Licking Elementary School for 30 glorious conservation principles to, so that I can harvest deer,
years. You sent me the Missouri Conservationist squirrels, and turkey. I also try to get young people
all those years, and they were such a help in my involved in all of this. Great job and thank you for
second grade. I want to thank you for your wonderful bringing such balance to conservation.
SALAMANDERS magazine. They furnished me with information to Nick Gray Marion, Indiana
Spotted teach the little ones – my aim in life.
Salamanders was I retired from teaching in 1969, but I still enjoy DEDICATED READER
a pleasure to read the magazine. I moved to Garland, Texas, four I would hate to miss even one issue of the Missouri
[June, Page 10]. months ago. I write letters to several friends and Conservationist. Your articles and photos are the
I was not familiar share some of the articles with them. They will know best in the country with regards to conservation and
with this beautiful that Missouri is a nice place. wildlife issues. You also have managed to stay above
little creature, but Colleen Agee Garland, Texas politics, a great and admirable feat.
will now try to spy Lloyd Houseworth Todd, North Carolina
one in our 10 acres I want to tell you how much I enjoy your beautiful
of woods or near magazine. My husband of 58 years and I used to CORRECTION NG
O
our pond. read it together cover to cover. He has sadly passed, Danny Brown was the photographer for and the OTH
but I still look forward to every colorful issue. We author of Hunting Snipe and Rail, which ran in the OL PA
Lvieaa eAmnna iWl est spent many hours on various Missouri lakes, boating July 2019 issue. NOPPAD
Conservation Headquarters Have a
Connect With Us!
573-751-4115 | PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180 Question for a
Commissioner?
/moconservation Regional Offices
Send a note using
@moconservation Southeast/Cape Girardeau: 573-290-5730 Southwest/Springfield: 417-895-6880 our online
Central/Columbia: 573-815-7900 Northwest/St. Joseph: 816-271-3100 contact form at
@MDC_online Kansas City: 816-622-0900 St. Louis: 636-441-4554 mdc.mo.gov/
Northeast/Kirksville: 660-785-2420 Ozark/West Plains: 417-256-7161 commissioners.
2 Missouri Conservationist | August 2019
Up
Want to see your photos
in the Missouri Conservationist? Front
Share your photos on Flickr at
flickr.com/groups/mdcreaderphotos-2019,
email [email protected],
or include the hashtag #mdcdiscovernature
on your Instagram photos.
with Sara Parker Pauley
_ Imagine spending a couple of days with a modern-day
version of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The only differ-
ence is that instead of blowing up trains and robbing banks for
treasure, these two high-plains desperados are passionately
focused on another treasure — Missouri’s beloved game bird,
the bobwhite quail.
Recently, I had the opportunity to head to the southwest
corner of the state to meet up with two such characters, MDC
1 biologists Kyle Hedges and Frank Loncarich (aka Butch and
Sundance). Kyle looks like a cross between Butch and Wyatt
Earp and sounds just like comedian Jeff Foxworthy. Then there
1 | Fragile 2
is Frank, the calmer more pensive spirit of the two, yet exuding
forktail damselfly
by Mark the same fiery passion for the prairie and its bounty.
Beckemeyer, It was there on the grasslands of southwest Missouri with
via Flickr
its beautiful public-land prairies that the two shared with great
2 | Indigo enthusiasm the work they and their teams have labored over
bunting by
for the last seven years. Their vital research has been all about
tomoro289, via
unlocking the secrets of what makes quail thrive in Missouri,
Instagram
much like treasure seekers finding piles of gold after years of
3 | Princess and
searching (read more about their research on Page 16).
the frog by Clay
Guthrie, via Flickr It was fitting, then, as we made the last stop of our journey
on a beautiful prairie filled with vibrant colors of blooming
wildflowers, that we heard the distinctive whistles of bobwhite
3
quail from various directions. There it was, treasure all around
us, and Butch and Sundance smiled.
SARA PARKER PAULEY, DIRECTOR
[email protected]
The Missouri Conservationist (ISSN 0026-6515) is the official monthly publication of the Missouri
Department of Conservation, 2901 West Truman Boulevard, Jefferson City, MO (Mailing address: PO
Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102.) SUBSCRIPTIONS: Visit mdc.mo.gov/conmag, or call 573-522-
MISSOURI CONSERVATION COMMISSIONERS 4115, ext. 3856 or 3249. Free to adult Missouri residents (one per household); out of state $7 per year;
out of country $10 per year. Notification of address change must include both old and new address
(send mailing label with the subscriber number on it) with 60-day notice. Preferred periodical postage
paid at Jefferson City, Missouri, and at additional entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send correspondence
to Circulation, PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180. Phone: [phone], ext. 3856 or 3249.
Copyright © 2019 by the Conservation Commission of the State of Missouri.
Equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from programs of the Missouri Department of Conserva-
tion is available to all individuals without regard to their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, ancestry,
age, sexual orientation, veteran status, or disability. Questions should be directed to the Department of
Don Marilynn David Barry Conservation, PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102, 573-751-4115 (voice) or 800-735-2966 (TTY), or
to Chief, Public Civil Rights, Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW,
Bedell Bradford Murphy Orscheln Washington, D.C. 20240.
Printed with soy ink
mdc.mo.gov 3
Nature
L A B
by Bonnie
Chasteen
Each month, we highlight research
MDC uses to improve fish, forest,
and wildlife management.
FISHERIES MANAGEMENT
Alligator Gar Restoration
_ It looks virtually indestructible, but the big,
toothy alligator gar is critically imperiled in Missouri.
“Like many top predators, it has fallen victim to
overharvest and habitat loss,” said MDC Fisheries
Management Biologist Salvador Mondragon.
The study team caught
In 2007, MDC and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser-
this 100-pound
vice launched Missouri’s Alligator Gar Management alligator gar with a
and Restoration Plan. trammel net. To keep it
“This is an effort to restore a species that has alive during tagging, a
team member flushes
declined not only in our state but throughout its
water into its gills.
entire range,” Mondragon said.
To support the restoration plan, Southeast Mis-
souri University (SEMO) graduate student Kevin
Lambert worked with staff at MDC’s Big Rivers and that trammel nets do the best job of catching alli-
Gear efficiency
Wetlands Field Station (BRWFS) in Cape Girardeau to gator gar in the most habitats and in the most
study will help
evaluate the equipment managers use to detect the weather conditions.
managers
presence of alligator gar. “Trammel net sets were responsible for detect-
“We’ve had a hard time figuring out what gear is gauge ing the smallest, longest, and heaviest specimens,
most effective,” Mondragon said. population while the lightest-weight fish was captured with
Lambert’s study began in March 2018. His team growth and electrofishing,” Lambert said.
included SEMO and BRWFS staff. They tested five dif- build a self- Mondragon is excited about the study’s results.
ferent techniques in different habitats, at different sustaining “This information will help us develop a standard
times of the year, and in different weather. When the fishery sampling protocol that will improve our efforts to
study ended in February 2019, the team determined track the fish’s recovery in our state,” he said.
Alligator Gar Study Results
Trammel net Trammel net design
Float line
at a Glance sets detected the
most specimens
• Trammel
Project Partners net sets: 39 Outer
nettings
• Gill net
MDC • Southeast Missouri State University
sets: 16
• Electrofishing Inner
Study Dates Study Area surveys: 1 mesh
netting
March 2018– Marquette • Mini-fyke
February 2019 NCoartphe L Gaikrea rndeeaaru • s Jeutgsl:i n0e sets: 0 Sinker line DAVID STONNER
4 Missouri Conservationist | August 2019 Report alligator gar sightings to [email protected]
In Brief
News and updates from MDC
CWD MANAGEMENT
ZONE REDUCED
IMPORTANT CHANGES TO THE
UPCOMING DEER SEASON
 MDC reduced the number of counties in
the management zone for chronic wasting
disease (CWD) from 48 to 29. The change will
impact restrictions on feeding deer, antler-point
restrictions, antlerless permits for some counties,
and mandatory CWD sampling.
The 29 counties now included are: Adair, Barry,
Cedar, Chariton, Christian, Crawford, Franklin,
Gasconade, Hickory, Howell, Jefferson, Knox, Linn,
Macon, Mercer, Oregon, Ozark, Perry, Polk, Putnam,
St. Charles, St. Clair, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve,
Stone, Sullivan, Taney, Warren, and Washington.
Hunters who harvest deer in any of the 29
counties of the CWD Management Zone during
opening weekend of the fall firearms deer season
(Nov. 16–17) must take their deer (or the head with
at least 6 inches of neck attached) on the day of
harvest to a sampling station. Hunters who harvest
deer in counties no longer part of the zone are not
required to participate in mandatory sampling.
Feeding deer or placing minerals for deer
unnaturally concentrates the animals and can
help spread CWD. Therefore, the Wildlife Code
of Missouri prohibits the placement of grain, salt
products, minerals, and other consumable natural
and manufactured products used to attract
deer year-round within counties in the CWD
Management Zone. The feeding ban no longer
applies to counties removed from the zone.
The antler-point restriction (APR) does not
apply to counties in the CWD Management Zone.
Protecting young bucks from harvest in areas where
CWD has been found can increase the spread of
the disease. The APR has been reinstated for some
counties removed from the zone.
The increased availability of firearms
antlerless permits for some counties in the CWD
Management Zone can help prevent undesired
populations in local deer numbers where CWD has
been found.
Learn more at short.mdc.mo.gov/Zf9 and from
the 2019 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Regulations
JIM RATHERT CCfaoWllu fiDnr teMieaasr mninas go dereamenerg nseet iaZnsodonincea. ftoer t thhei s &so Ilndf.ormation booklet, available where permits are
mdc.mo.gov 5
In Brief
Ask MDC
Got a Question for Ask MDC?
Send it to [email protected]
or call 573-522-4115, ext. 3848.
Q: My brother was visiting Table
Rock Lake last August when
he photographed this moth.
Can you help us identify it?
 Recognizable for their broad pink
patch and single blue eyespot on
each hindwing, the blinded sphinx
moth (Paonias excaecata) is a
common breeding resident of
Missouri.
These moths undergo four stages
of development: egg, caterpillar, Blinded sphinx moth
ELK HUNTING IN MISSOURI pupa, and adult.
The Conservation Commission gave initial With wingspans between 2 and out sheltered places to pupate and
approval for elk hunting during its June 3 ¾ inches, adults are short-lived overwinter underground until the
meeting. MDC will begin offering a limited and do not feed. But they do use following summer.
season once the herd of about 175 animals their strong flying skill to locate
reaches a minimum of 200 with an annual new places to lay their eggs, which Q: How many meals a week
herd growth rate of at least 10 percent and hatch as small caterpillars in 7–8 do eastern copperheads eat?
a herd ratio of at least four cow elk for every days. A variety of deciduous trees —  Copperheads in captivity
bull elk. An inaugural hunt may be sched- apple, basswood, birch, cherry, elm, generally eat one to two mice
uled as early as fall 2020. hawthorn, hop hornbeam, poplar, weekly. Wild copperheads tend
Elk hunting would be limited to Missouri willow, and more — host the leaf- to dine far more sporadically.
residents at least 11 years old who have their eating caterpillars. After eating their They are best described as
hunter-education certification or are exempt fill, the caterpillars pupate in loose opportunists, capable of eating
from hunter education by age (born before soil and emerge as moths. Up to a wide variety of foods, not only NG
O
Jan. 1, 1967). Hunting permits would be three generations of blinded sphinx warm-blooded prey. OTH
assigned through a random lottery of all moth occur in Missouri each summer. Growing young copperheads OL PA
applicants. MDC will require a $10 applica- Cleverly camouflaged, these will eat as much and as frequently OPPAD
N
tion fee to be eligible for the limited hunt moths hide from the hot summer as they can, dining often on HER:
wtdhoirtmohu lago ht$t t5ehr0ey ptlooet rotmenreiyt . afMepepD lCifco awrt iitlohl noli mspeei trs tephleeer csrtoaennd-, spliufreensf teoyrnlre itn.r geB elti nobd akeerdke posp ra hd nienoaxcd mt uleornathavesl sl,i ve risnonvdaeielrsnt,et asb,n roadtt ehwseo rsr umrecsph.t Cialesic sia,n dbseaircsd tass,r, ea nd HEINZLER; FLYCATC
M
per year with a 10-year “sit-out” period for in open forests, along woodland especially nutrient-rich, said H: TI
those drawn. The hunting zone will be lim- edges, near shrubby areas, and even Missouri State Herpetologist Jeff MOT
NX
ited to Carter, Reynolds, and Shannon coun- in backyard gardens. They also are Briggler. Young copperheads HY
ttiieosn, obfu Pte wckil lR eaxnccluhd Ceo tnhsee rsvpaetcioianl Arerfeuag we hpeorre- athttermac flteydin tgo ferolemc tlraicte l igJuhntse. tLhorooku gfohr uatster atchte s tmipa lol ff rtohgeisr aynedllo liwza tradils to HILDRETH; SP
N
elk Fwoerr em ionrieti ailnlyfo rreminatrtioodnu, cveidsi.t short.mdc. ebalirnldy eSde psptehminbxe cr.a Atesr pfailllla arsp pseroeakc hes, wit’hs oa mcaigtehrtp bilela rf.ooled into thinking ELK: AARO
mo.gov/ZYU. A public comment period
on Missouri’s proposed elk season is open
through Aug. 31.
6 Missouri Conservationist | August 2019
Great crested flycatcher
Kevin Lockard
Adult copperheads tend to eat their wings, nestle their chests
SHELBY COUNTY
larger meals less frequently. Mice as flat as possible, and turn CONSERVATION AGENT
form the bulk of their diet, but their heads toward the sky with
offers this month’s
other rodents — such as shrews, their mouths open. Can you
AGENT
moles, voles, and chipmunks — tell me what they are doing?
are also prey. From spring to  These birds are sunbathing.
fall, a copperhead eats when the While it may seem counterintuitive ADVICE
opportunity presents itself. If a during hot weather, birds are
copperhead were to come across a thought to do this to distribute
nest of young mice, it may eat all of preening oil across their plumage,
them and not have to dine again for or to get rid of pesky parasites that
As the summer comes to an
a month. It’s typical for wild snakes infiltrate a nest and find homes
end, many people’s thoughts
to go weeks between meals. in their feathers. They stand in a
posture that allows the sun to hit as turn to fall firearms hunting
Q: I recently noticed several many feathers as possible, usually seasons. Whether you
great crested flycatchers stretching their wings and tail
dream of harvesting a bird
exhibiting strange behavior on feathers and flattening themselves
or a buck or you just enjoy
our deck. The birds land, spread on the ground or a perch.
shooting sports, now is a
good time to visit one of
MDC’s shooting ranges. The
department has five staffed
shooting ranges and several
unstaffed shooting ranges
located at conservation areas
What
across the state. To find
one near you, visit short.
IS it?
mdc.mo.gov/ZZF. Don’t go
into the season unprepared.
Can you
guess this Make sure your firearm is
month’s in proper working order or
natural
familiarize yourself with a
wonder?
new firearm. The more time
The answer is on
you spend shooting, the
Page 9.
more proficient you will be
afield. See you on the range!
mdc.mo.gov 7
In Brief
INVASIVE
INVASIVE CARP
SPECIES
Invasive nonnative species destroy habitat and
compete with native wildlife. Do what you can
to control invasive species when you landscape,
farm, hunt, fish, camp, or explore nature.
What Is It?
Native to Asia, bighead (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis), silver
(Hypophthalmichthys molitrix), black (Mylopharyngodon
piceus), and grass (Ctenopharyngodon idella) carp were
introduced in the United States to clean algae from
commercial fish farms and sewage treatment plants.
They’ve spread in recent decades due to releases or escapes
caused by flooding and now thrive in many bodies of water.
Common carp (Cyprinus carpio), also native to Asia, were
purposefully stocked in the wild beginning in 1879 because
of its popularity as a food fish.
Where Is It?
Invasive carp are found in reservoirs, ponds, and deeper parts
of large rivers and lakes throughout Missouri – the Mississippi
and Missouri rivers and lower reaches of their major
tributaries (such as the Osage), and tailwaters of Bagnell Dam
(on the Osage) and Cannon Dam (on the Salt River). They are
occasionally found in nearly any stream in the state, but most
of these are the result of escape from impoundments.
Why It’s Bad
Both silver and bighead carp are aggressive, long-lived
efficient plankton consumers that can outcompete native
simpepcoiertsa fnotr ftohoeds es ovuarlcuea bfoler preasdodulrecfiessh. ,P glaiznzkatrodn s ihsa adn, bigmouth waAtse ar gangdre usspirvoeo at npdla ancttsi,v ael toemrinngiv ohraebsi,t acatsr pa’nsd f eimedpiancgt iancgti pviotipeusl aclro fiusdh ethriee s.
buffalo, and others. Black carp feed on mussels, many of
which are declining to the point of being endangered. In
How to Control It
addition, black carp prey on algae-eating snails. Without
Ķ LEARN TO ID YOUNG INVASIVE CARP
snails, the composition of an aquatic community can be
There’s a close resemblance between shad and silver and bighead carp when
radically altered. Grass carp can eat the equivalent of their
they are 2 to 6 inches long. When casting nets for small fish, like shad, for catfish
body weight in plant matter in a day. And at 50 pounds or
bait, know your catch. For help with fish identification, get a free copy of MDC’s
more, that’s a significant amount of foliage and potential
Know Your Catch by emailing [email protected] or calling 573-522-0108.
habitat removed from the water. Where overpopulated,
common carp compete with native fish for food and space.
Ķ DON’T USE LIVE CARP AS BAIT
It is illegal to use bighead, silver, and black carp as live bait, but all anglers
can help prevent the spread of invasive carp by not using any as live bait. It is
recommended that netted bait fish be placed on ice in coolers. The temperature
shock kills the carp in 15–30 minutes but keeps them fresh for use as bait.
Ķ DON’T DUMP UNUSED LIVE BAIT
Anglers should use caution when using live bait in any lake or river, including
small community lakes. Unused bait from any source should be contained and put
into the trash rather than dumped into the water.
A silver carp and
bighead carp.
For more information, visit short.mdc.mo.gov/ZfQ.
8 Missouri Conservationist | August 2019