Missouri Conservationist March 2018

2018·9.1 MB·English

by  Missouri Department of Conservation

MISSOURI
VOLUME 79, ISSUE 3, MARCH 2018
SERVING NATURE & YOU
CONSERVATIONIST
Ey e!
Bull ´s-
Nearly everyone — regardless of age, size, or physical
ability — can succeed at archery. The Missouri National
Archery in the Schools Program (MoNASP) helps build
stronger, more confident, and accomplished kids by
teaching the basics of archery as part of school curriculum.
School archery programs:
h Improve school attendance
h Increase self-esteem
h Increase physical activity
Bring the h Appeal to all students
program to your
Plus, an Archery Equipment
school! Learn more at
Rebate program and maintenance
mdc.mo.gov/monasp grants are available.
MISSOURI
CONSERVATIONIST
Contents
MARCH 2018
VOLUME 79, ISSUE 3
10
ON THE COVER
A young eastern cottontail
rabbit peeks outside its
nest in early spring.
: NOPPADOL PAOTHONG
100mm macro lens
f/4, 1/160 sec, ISO 800
GOVERNOR
Eric R. Greitens
THE CONSERVATION COMMISSION
CHAIR Don C. Bedell
VICE CHAIR Marilynn J. Bradford
SECRETARY David W. Murphy
16
DIRECTOR
Sara Parker Pauley
DEPUTY DIRECTORS
Thomas A. Draper, Aaron Jeffries,
Jennifer Battson Warren
MAGAZINE STAFF
EDITOR
Angie Daly Morfeld
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Bonnie Chasteen
STAFF WRITERS
FEATURES Larry Archer, Heather Feeler,
Kristie Hilgedick, Joe Jerek
10 CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Stephanie Thurber
The Kindest Care
ART DIRECTOR
Cliff White
Focus your love for wildlife
DESIGNERS
on improving habitat and 22 Les Fortenberry, Marci Porter
preventing conflicts. PHOTOGRAPHERS
Noppadol Paothong, David Stonner
by Bonnie Chasteen
CIRCULATION MANAGER
16 Laura Scheuler
mdc.mo.gov/conmag
Nature Staycations
DEPARTMENTS
MDC’s regional media specialists
share their top picks for getting into 2 Inbox
nature without going far away.
3 Up Front With Sara Parker Pauley
by MDC media specialists
4 Nature Lab
22
5 In Brief
The Best Woman
28 Get Outside
for the Job
30 Places To Go Download this
MDC seeks qualified women 32 Wild Guide issue to your
to serve as agents. phone or tablet at
by Kristie Hilgedick 33 Outdoor Calendar mdc.mo.gov/mocon.
Download for
Eastern redbud Android
Inbox
Letters to the Editor ANNUAL REVIEW
Submissions reflect The January issue literally had me happy crying. Elk
readers’ opinions and herds are recovering, and 91 percent of adult elk
may be edited for length cows were found to be pregnant. More than half of Eastern screech-owl
and clarity. Email
the yearling cows were also pregnant. Black bears
[email protected]
are making a comeback. Our wetlands are recovering SCREECH-OWLS
or write to us:
and aiding in the recovery of marsh birds. Prairie- I enjoyed February’s Missouri Conservationist,
MISSOURI
chickens are making a comeback. Feral hog numbers especially the article about owls [Page 16]. Went on
CONSERVATIONIST
are down, and chronic wasting disease in deer is a fishing trip to Canada years ago. We hired a guide,
PO BOX 180
JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65102 being held at bay. Not to mention, we are feeding who mimicked a barred owl in broad daylight and
people in need through Share the Harvest, where got a reply back. I started calling after dark. After the
hunters donate meat from their hunts. This is what third or fourth call, we heard a fast flapping of wings
I’m hoping to see nationwide. To anyone who cares as the owl landed in the tree right above our cottage.
about conservation, this is great, joyous news. Great Enjoy your great magazine!
job, Missouri Department of Conservation! Gary and Gina DeHaven via email
Myrna Elise Fridley via Facebook
One glance at the cover of the February issue
I just read the January issue with the annual report brought back memories when I was a research
[Page 11]. Do not let anyone or any state say or biologist with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service at
think that Missourians do not care enough or are Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland. I was
not willing to commit the resources for wildlife involved in research using a large colony of captive
conservation. In comparison, Missouri is light years eastern screech-owls on the effects of environmental
ahead of other states in this regard, and Missourians contaminants. I recall occasionally receiving slight
are entitled to the credit and the respect for our wounds to the back of my head from their needle-
efforts and accomplishments. sharp talons. I greatly enjoy your excellent magazine.
ANNUAL REVIEW Joseph B. Gibbs, PE Columbia Keep up the good work.
Learned so much Stanley Wiemeyer St. Joseph
reading the MIGHTY MONARCH
January 2018 For several years, I have let volunteer milkweeds PRAISE FOR THE CONSERVATIONIST
issue of Missouri grow. This year, we had a great hatching. It was a Every time I receive a copy of your magazine, I read
Conservationist. great sight to see the small monarchs flying around it from start to finish, particularly the photos. Well
in my flower garden. What a thrill! done! In my youth, I hunted and fished, but after
Cheryl Whatley
via Facebook Wanda Teter Fayette my service in the Army, I stopped hunting and only
“catch and release,” taking great care to return the
GIGGING fish in pristine condition so someone else can have
Many thanks to Mr. Blake Stephens and Mr. Jim the thrill and pleasure of the catch. Thank you again
Wiggs and family for what they are doing for our for all your efforts. Man needs the balance between
youth [January, Page 8]. We, too, have introduced the city and nature, and your efforts go a long way in JIM
numerous youth to gigging. keeping that balance. R
ATH
Junior McSwain Ava Harry McClure via email ER
T
Connect With Us! Conservation Headquarters Have a
573-751-4115 | PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180 Question for a
/moconservation Commissioner?
Regional Offices
@moconservation Send a note using
Southeast/Cape Girardeau: 573-290-5730 Southwest/Springfield: 417-895-6880
our online
@MDC_online Central/Columbia: 573-815-7900 Northwest/St. Joseph: 816-271-3100 contact form at
@Nature_Videos 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 | March 2018
Up
Want to see your photos
in the Missouri Conservationist? Front
Share your photos on Flickr at
flickr.com/groups/mdcreaderphotos-2018,
email [email protected],
or include the hashtag #mdcdiscovernature
on your Instagram photos.
with Sara Parker Pauley
_ Oh, the complexity of March! Not yet sure if she is winter
or spring, one day warm and sunny, the next day cold and gray,
we’re left wondering how best to navigate Mother Nature in
order to get outdoors and shake the wintery chill from our
bones. But with spring, comes the much-anticipated event for
anglers — the March 1 trout opener. I love each of the four
trout parks with their uniqueness of character and the passion-
ate anglers so loyal to each one. I’m fortunate to see the season
1 opener from Roaring River State Park this year, and as a serious
coffee drinker, I’m always grateful to the Cassville Chamber of
Commerce volunteers who deliver hot java to chilled anglers
2
lining the stream banks. The closing of schools for this annual
pilgrimage, including the busing of young anglers to the park
1 | Bumble bee by
Bruce Paneitz, via email for opening day, pulls at my Ozark-heritage heartstrings.
I also love the stretches of Missouri streams hosting wild
2 | Raccoon by
trout. Last year, my husband and I, along with some friends,
Dave_Adams_Images,
via Instagram headed to Newburg, south of Rolla, to fish a stretch of Mill
Creek for a remnant strain of the famed McCloud River Red-
3 | Rue Anemone by
D Tyler, via Flickr band Trout. In the crystal-clear water, we found the trout to be
elusive and shy, but we finally managed to catch a few that day.
While I’ve traveled far and wide, exploring wild Missouri
remains at the top of my list. There is nothing better than an
outdoor adventure close to home, especially to unwind from
3
busy lives and hectic schedules (see the nature staycation ideas
on Page 16). Missouri proves to me over and over again that
close-to-home adventures are far from ordinary!
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 © 2018 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 Conservation, PO Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102, 573-751-4115 (voice) or 800-735-2966 (TTY), or
Bedell Bradford Murphy to Chief, Public Civil Rights, Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW,
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.
RESOURCE SCIENCE
Making Ecological
Data Useful
_ One morning in 2015, Ivan Vining got a call from
Jasmine Batten, an MDC deer biologist.
“We’ve found a CWD positive in Franklin County,” she
said. “How soon can you get me a reliable sampling goal?” Biometricians Leah Berkman (left), Sherry Gao
(center), and Ivan Vining work as a team to
“Give me a few hours,” Vining said and started writ-
advise on research topics ranging from forest
ing code. A few hours later, he sent Batten the number:
management to grotto sculpin to turkeys.
about 300. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is fatal to
deer, and Vining’s work helped Batten’s team determine
the sampling goal, or the number of deer to cull to keep
the disease from spreading. may receive throughout a typical workday. Aside
Vining has extensive training and experience in from responding to field requests for analysis,
designing mark-recapture studies, in which animals are MDC’s biometricians advise on the design and
Biometricians
captured, marked, and released, for population analysis. methods of staff research proposals. In a given
He is one of three biometricians who work for MDC. As help ensure year, they may advise on 18–30 proposals on
biometricians, Vining, Leah Berkman (a geneticist) and the quality topics ranging from plants to fish to wildlife.
Sherry Gao (a statistician) help ensure the reliability and of MDC’s They also advise adjoining states, which may
define the scope of the information MDC can get from its research not have staff biometricians.
statistical analyses and research efforts. methods Sometimes, the biometricians join other
“We translate biology and natural processes into math- and results resource scientists in the field, but most days,
ematical concepts that you can work with,” Berkman said. they’re at their computers, crunching data. “We
Vining agreed. “We make ecological data useful.” enjoy the satisfaction of writing code, pressing
Batten’s call is just one of many requests biometricians enter, and getting an answer,” Berkman said.
A Recent 10 a.m. 1 p.m.
Get a call from Forestry Advise intern on
Workday in
Division staff who analysis for a mourning
the Life of needs help ASAP! dove manuscript
Biometrician
Sherry Gao
8:30 a.m. Noon 4 p.m.
Start work on Lunch Start reviewing
creel survey at desk Human Dimensions
for Fisheries project proposal (no
Division time to finish it today!)
D
AVID
STO
N
N
ER
4 Missouri Conservationist | March 2018
In Brief
News and updates from MDC
BE BEAR
AWARE
LEARN MORE ABOUT
MISSOURI'S BLACK BEARS
AND RESEARCH UPDATES
AT NEW WEBSITE
h MDC recently
launched a new website
all about black bears in
Missouri. Browse research
summaries and updates,
photos, videos, interactive
story maps, and more at
short.mdc.mo.gov/ZTb.
“The new story maps
show interesting black bear
movements, such as how
far a bear can disperse,
and maps of our collared
bears,” said MDC Furbearer
Biologist Laura Conlee.
Conlee added that
spring is the time when
black bears emerge from
their winter dens and
start searching for food,
including from people. She
encourages you to be bear
aware and not feed them.
“Feeding bears makes
them lose their natural fear
of humans, and teaches
them to see humans as
food providers,” Conlee
explained. “A bear that
has gotten used to getting
food from humans may
become aggressive and
dangerous. When this
happens, the bear must be
destroyed. Remember: A
G
N
OTHO A black bear fed bear is a dead bear.”
PA searches for food. Learn more about
OL
D being Bear Aware at
OPPA mdc.mo.gov/BearAware.
N
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: Can you please tell
me what kind of snake
TWO-HEADED SNAKE AT this is? My daughter and
SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS HATCHERY I were walking near a
The thousands of rainbow trout housed at Shepherd of creek when I spotted it.
the Hills Hatchery may have to take a temporary back- h This is a midland
seat to one very unique-looking reptile: a two-headed brownsnake — a small,
young western ratsnake. secretive species that prefers a
Found by curious teenager Terry Lowery last October moist environment.
under the deck of his family’s home in Hurley in Stone Midland brownsnakes range Midland brownsnake
County, the snake is on display at the hatchery’s con- in color from gray-brown to
servation center. reddish-brown, with a white or
Polycephaly, the condition of having more than one yellowish belly. Each snake has eliminated, from Missouri and
head, is extremely rare throughout the animal king- a distinct tan stripe bordered by seven surrounding states.
dom, but it occurs more frequently in snakes than in two rows of small, dark-brown Individual wolves
other animals. In most documented cases, two-headed spots. The top of the head is occasionally wander into
snakes have lived only a few months, but some live full usually dark. Adults range in Missouri from other states,
lives in captivity and even reproduce. They include a length from 9 to 13 inches. particularly the upper Midwest.
two-headed western ratsnake found in 2005 on display Brownsnakes eat Since 2001, three gray wolves,
at the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center in earthworms, slugs, land snails, probably from the Great Lakes
southeast Missouri. and soft-bodied insects. states, have been confirmed in
Get directions and more information about the One study found their diet Missouri. (The one discovered
hatchery at short.mdc.mo.gov/Zk7. For more informa- was 75 percent slugs and 25 in 2001 was wearing a radio
tion about the Cape Girardeau Nature Center, visit short. percent earthworms. Other collar and ear tag linking it to
mdc.mo.gov/ZT9. researchers suggest the blunt Michigan’s Upper Peninsula,
head and elongated teeth of more than 600 miles away.)
this snake helps it grip and tug Although apparently secure
WILD WEBCAST ON FERAL HOGS persistently on a snail's body globally, the gray wolf is a
Get the latest on what MDC and our partners are doing to until the snail tires and can be federally endangered species
combat feral hogs Wednesday, March 21, from noon to pulled from its shell. in much of the United States
1 p.m. during Wild Webcast: Feral Hogs. Mark McLain, south of Interstate 80, including
feral hog elimination team Q: Do gray wolves Missouri.
leader, and Alan Leary, live in Missouri? Wolves are protected as an
wildlife management coor- h Although gray wolves endangered species in much of
dinator, will share updates once ranged across several the U.S., including Missouri.
and provide background on continents, including North
these destructive animals America, you’re not likely to Q: I took these photos on
and why they are a problem see one in Missouri. a rock bluff along Truman
for landowners and oth- The gray wolf (Canis lupus), Lake. It appears to be
ers. Register at short.mdc. also known as the timber lichen, but I’m having
mo.gov/ZTn. wolf, is listed as extirpated, or trouble identifying it.
To watch previous MDC
Wild Webcasts, visit short.
mdc.mo.gov/ZTX.
TWO-HEADED SNAKE: JOHN MILLER; FERAL HOG: DAVID STONNER;
6 Missouri Conservationist | March 2018 MIDLAND BROWNSNAKE: JIM RATHERT; LIVERWORT COURTESY KARA ENTROP
AGENT
ADVICE
from
Zebulon Jordan
ST. CLAIR COUNTY
CONSERVATION AGENT
Snagging season for
paddlefish, the state’s
official aquatic animal,
opens March 15. Before
you take to the water in
Liverwort search of this ancestral
fish species, keep these
tips in mind to increase
The leaves are 1 to 2 inches flattened moss.
long. Can you please help me? Liverworts are nonvascular, which your chances of success.
h Although this specimen appears means they lack the structures Concentrate on deep holes
to be a lichen, it’s actually a needed to transport water, nutrients, in rivers and staging areas
liverwort, possibly Preissia quadrata, and sugars between the roots
in the lakes until the water
which often features dark-purple and the leaves. Instead, they rely
temperature rises and
edges and tends to grow on vertical on simpler tissues specialized for
flow increases. Statewide,
rock surfaces. internal transport of water.
It is estimated that 9,000 species Thallose liverworts — which legal-sized paddlefish
of liverworts are found on the planet. are branching, like this one — must be at least 24 inches
Considered plants, some of the grow commonly on moist soil or from the eye to the fork
more familiar ones grow flattened damp rocks. Lacking stems and
of the tail. If you are on
and leafless — such as the one you leaves, their main body is flat like
Truman Lake, Lake of the
discovered — but most species are a green pancake, often with lobes
leafy with a form very much like a resembling the thumb of a mitten. Ozarks, Table Rock Lake,
or any of their tributaries,
paddlefish must be at least
34 inches. The head and
tail must remain attached
to paddlefish while on the
water or banks thereof.
Snagging paddlefish or
What operating a boat while
snagging requires a valid
IS it?
fishing license. The daily
limit is two paddlefish.
Can you
For more
guess this
information,
month’s
natural visit short.mdc.
wonder? mo.gov/ZTz.
The answer is on
Page 9.
mdc.mo.gov 7
In Brief
CONSERVATION
WWEE AARREE Spotlight on
people and partners
Ukko Devos
An Eagle Scout from
Union, Devos enjoys
taking on outdoor
projects that improve
the environment.
His career goal
is to become a
park ranger.
h In 2016, he approached
MDC Wildlife Damage
Biologist Tom Meister
for projects he could
do to qualify for the
William T. Hornaday
medal, a coveted
scouting award that
recognizes outstanding
efforts to conserve
natural resources.
He Took the Lead
“Ukko jumped right in,”
Meister said. “He got 15
people, many of them
from his scout troop,
to help him pull nearly
50 old tires out of the
Bourbeuse River.” This
stream is habitat for the
winged mapleleaf, an
endangered freshwater
mussel. Devos also led
a project to stabilize the
streambank with tree-
plantings, Meister said.
In His Own Words
“If you care about
conservation, go and
talk to people who
work at MDC or parks.
See if there’s anything
you can do to help.”
: by Cliff White
What’s your conservation superpower?
8 Missouri Conservationist | March 2018