Missouri Conservationist October 2017

2017·5.8 MB·English

by  Missouri Department of Conservation

MISSOURI
VOLUME 78, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2017
SERVING NATURE & YOU
CONSERVATIONIST
serving
nature and
Wild Jobs
you
Careers
at MDC
This could be you!
A cave biologist studies
bats and other cool stuff.
Check us out online for a
career in conservation.
MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION
Learn more about MDC and our exciting career opportunities
mdc.mo.gov/about/jobs
Text “MDC Jobs” to 468311 to receive alerts when new job opportunities are posted.
MISSOURI
CONSERVATIONIST
Contents
O CTOBER 2017
VOLUME 78, ISSUE 10
ON THE COVER
A white-tailed buck sniffs
the ground in early fall.
 NOPPADOL PAOTHONG
500mm lens, f/5.6
1/160 sec, ISO 800
GOVERNOR
Eric R. Greitens
17
THE CONSERVATION COMMISSION
10 CHAIR Don C. Bedell
VICE CHAIR Marilynn J. Bradford
SECRETARY David W. Murphy
MEMBER Nicole Wood
DIRECTOR
Sara Parker Pauley
DEPUTY DIRECTORS
Thomas A. Draper, Aaron Jeffries,
Jennifer Battson Warren
MAGAZINE STAFF
FEATURES
EDITOR
10 Angie Daly Morfeld
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Visitors Welcome
Bonnie Chasteen
New program creates more outdoor STAFF WRITERS
Larry Archer, Heather Feeler,
opportunities, compliments of Kristie Hilgedick, Joe Jerek
Missouri private landowners. CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Stephanie Thurber
by Jeff Esely
ART DIRECTOR
17 Cliff White
DESIGNERS
Taking it to the Limit Les Fortenberry, Marci Porter
22
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Outdoor enthusiasts take exploring
Noppadol Paothong, David Stonner
nature to the extreme in Missouri.
CIRCULATION MANAGER
by Heather Feeler Laura Scheuler
mdc.mo.gov/conmag
22
Bountiful, Beneficial DEPARTMENTS
Black Walnuts 2 Inbox
Prized for their nuts and exceptional 3 Up Front With Sara Parker Pauley
wood, eastern black walnuts 4 Nature Lab
are a big part of Missouri’s local
traditions and economies. 5 In Brief
by Kristie Hilgedick 28 Get Outside
30 Places To Go Download this
SPECIAL INSERT 32 Wild Guide issue to your
phone or tablet at
2018 Nature Shop 33 Outdoor Calendar mdc.mo.gov/mocon.
Male green-winged teal Download for
Text “MDC Jobs” to 468311 to receive alerts when new job opportunities are posted. Android
Inbox
Letters to the Editor SOLAR ECLIPSE
Submissions reflect I viewed the eclipse at the August A. Busch
readers’ opinions and Memorial Conservation Area. What an awesome, Total solar eclipse on Aug. 21
may be edited for length outstanding, and informative experience it
and clarity. Email
was for this once-in-a-lifetime event! I can’t say accuracy of the content. I read every article word for
[email protected]
enough about the knowledgeable staff on hand at word and am so impressed with the emphasis on
or write to us:
Busch — wildlife exhibits and information, including conservation and recreation. I am learning so much
MISSOURI
eclipse time charts and eclipse trivia, telescope about what we, who are interested in conservation
CONSERVATIONIST
viewing, shady areas, immaculate restrooms, and and ecology, need to understand. Be assured that
PO BOX 180
JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65102 air conditioning if needed in the visitor center. I just I place your publication at the top of my list over
can’t say enough about how great our visit was. NWF, WWF, and National Geographic, although you
Thanks Busch staff! are reaching a smaller audience. You have achieved
Kathy Kruse via Facebook excellence. Thanks so much!
Jim Anderson Batavia, IL
A friend from California joined us to watch the total
eclipse, and we didn’t want to disappoint. Kansas READER PHOTO HASHTAG
City was forecast with heavy clouds, so we went to I love this idea of reader photos [Page 3]. As a
Hart Creek Conservation Area that was right in the dad who spends a lot of time outdoors with kids,
eclipse path and forecast for good viewing. When this gives me a chance to engage. I am sure I am
we arrived, we met A.J. Campbell, an MDC forester. not alone. However, most young parents stick to
He said Hart Creek and Three Creeks conservation Instagram to share their experiences in Missouri
areas were prepared for eclipse viewing. Trails were conservation areas and parks. Your hashtag is just
trimmed, large areas were mowed, and porta potties too long! If you found something shorter and easier
were nearby. Three Creeks is closer to Columbia, to remember, I would definitely tag MDC in photos.
where most viewers went, so we had Hart Creek to Phil Stroessner via email
NEW FORMAT ourselves. What a perfect day! We hiked the trails
The new format of that overlooked the Missouri River and the Katy Trail. With so many hashtags floating around in cyberspace,
the Conservationist We watched the eclipse in clear skies and even had it is difficult to find one that is unique. Our hashtag,
is terrific. It is eye- A.J. join us. He answered our endless questions #mdcdiscovernature, may be long but it gets our
catching and helps about Missouri’s conservation programs and truly message across in one quick package. And the great
sustain interest. made the eclipse trip memorable. thing about hashtags — once you use it, your account
The articles are Thank you MDC and A.J. Campbell for giving us remembers it and it will come up automatically, so
excellent, as usual. great memories. you never have to retype it! —the editors
I especially like Scott and Susan Bennett Kansas City
the Wild Guide PERMITS
feature. TOP-NOTCH PUBLICATION I got an email about the fall hunting permits, and
My daughter, Randi, of Florissant, introduced me I must say, I purchased all my permits in less than
Arlene Segal
K
Gladstone to your publication last year. I subscribed and each three minutes. Thanks for having such a great EVIN
month look forward to the next. I can’t say enough system! Our MDC is awesome! M
U
about the diversity of the subject matter and the Mitchell M. Keithley via Facebook ENK
S
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 | October 2017
Up
Want to see your photos
in the Missouri Conservationist? Front
Share your photos on Flickr at
flickr.com/groups/mdc-readerphotos-2017,
email [email protected],
or include the hashtag #mdcdiscovernature
on your Instagram photos.
with Sara Parker Pauley
_ My love of the outdoors is tied to many things, including
time spent with some of my favorite people. For example,
when I was about 10 years old, my dad took me on “our
own” camping trip, meaning no brothers allowed this time,
which was already a successful trip in my mind. Then Dad
said, “Let’s see how we survive on one fishing pole, one lure
(a Lucky 13 plug), one piece of foil, one match, one bottle of
oyster sauce ...” You get the idea.
We headed to the Little North Fork River in Ozark County.
Along about dark, as I was beginning to panic that my growling
stomach would have to suffice on oyster sauce, a beautiful
1
bass jumped to the surface and grabbed hold of the Lucky 13.
Wrapped in foil, marinated in oyster sauce and roasted over
2 3
an open fire, it was the most delicious bass I’ve ever eaten.
Around the fire that night, my dad regaled me with adventures
from his youth. I remember thinking this was the grandest
adventure ever, and that my dad was pretty cool, too.
It turns out amazing outdoor adventures, even those that
take it to the extreme outdoor limit, don’t have to be a million
miles away. It can be close to home, right out your back door in
Missouri, as you can see from the personal, real-life stories of
4
extreme outdoor enthusiasts (see Taking it to the Limit, Page 17).
In the years since, I’ve had the privilege to travel the world,
live abroad, and enjoy many outdoor adventures of my own.
But the root of this love for the outdoors started simply like
the story above, just my dad and some oyster sauce, without
much in the way of expense or traveling far from home. It’s
value to me? Priceless.
1 | Fall wild turkeys by Cheryl Sloan, via Flickr
2 | Raccoon by Brandon Franklin, via email
3 | Robber fly by ozarkflyfishing, via Instagram SARA PARKER PAULEY, DIRECTOR
4 | Duck Creek Conservation Area [email protected]
by tatooed_countrygirl, via Instagram
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
MISSOURI CONSERVATION COMMISSIONERS OTO 4B1o1x5 1, 8e0x,t .J 3e8ff5e6rs oorn 3 C24it9y., FMreOe 6to5 1ad0u2l.)t MSUisBsoSuCrRi rIePsTidIOenNtSs :( oVnisei tp merd hco.musoe.hgoolvd/c);o onumt aogf s, toart ec a$l7l 5 p7e3r -y5e2a2r;-
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UM (send mailing label with the subscriber number on it) with 60-day notice. Preferred periodical postage
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N age, sexual orientation, veteran status, or disability. Questions should be directed to the Department of
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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.
WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
Rocket-Netting
_ Trapping wood ducks can be tricky. They keep to
the trees, you can’t always see them, and they’re
skittish. “We tried using floating traps with bait,”
MDC Resource Scientist Doreen Mengel said, “but
MDC
predators targeted them.”
researchers
She and her team of wetland managers around set a rocket
the state turned to using rocket nets instead. This net early in the
technology is simply a net with the trailing edge morning to trap
wood ducks.
anchored to the ground and the leading edge attached
to rockets. Once fired, the rockets carry the net over
the baited birds, trapping them.
“If you’re dealing with a hunted species like wood
ducks,” Mengel said, “you need to know something
about their population.” Using rocket-netting,
Mengel’s team catches and bands lots of wood ducks,
helping researchers and managers chart the birds’
population, rate of reproduction, and rate of survival.
Many MDC researchers use rocket-netting. limit the animals’ stress and get them back
This
“Although it was first used to capture wild turkeys over on their way as quickly as possible,” he said.
technology
a half century ago, rocket-netting still remains the Mengel said her team’s best shot to
helps MDC
most efficient way to capture eastern wild turkeys,” date was at Ten Mile Pond Conservation
capture many
said Resource Scientist Jason Isabelle. Area near East Prairie. “The team ended
kinds of wildlife
Staff are highly trained, and they practice strict up catching and banding over 300 birds on
protocols to protect themselves and the wildlife they in order to their first shot of the season,” she said. “It
capture using rocket nets. MDC Resource Scientist monitor their was quite a scramble, but they did a great
Kevyn Wiskirchen uses rocket-netting in two current populations job working up the birds
white-tailed deer research projects. “We work hard to quickly and efficiently.”
At a Glance
3
Species MDC
“Boom nets” have helped MDC for decades
traps using rocket
nets: wood ducks,
1948 69 YEARS 31 wild turkey, and R
O
white-tailed deer CK
Two Swan Lake National MDC Number of ET-N
Wdeivldelliofep eRde ftuhgee r oecmkpelto-nyeetetsin g hroacsk ueste nde ts MtraDinCe sdt atoff use ETTING
method to trap waterfowl rocket nets : DAVID
STO
Learn more at research.mdc.mo.gov N
N
ER
4 Missouri Conservationist | October 2017
In Brief
News and updates from MDC
Chronic wasting disease
has the potential to greatly
reduce deer numbers and
deer hunting over time for
Missouri’s .5 million deer
hunters and almost 2 million
wildlife watchers.
DEER HUNTERS: Department staff will collect tissue samples
to test the animals for CWD.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
Counties where mandatory testing will
occur include: Adair, Barry, Benton, Cedar, Cole, Crawford, Dade,
TO KEEP CHRONIC WASTING
Franklin, Hickory, Jefferson, Knox, Linn, Macon, Moniteau, Ozark,
DISEASE (CWD) FROM SPREADING
Polk, St. Charles, St. Clair, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve, Stone,
TO MORE DEER IN MORE AREAS
Sullivan, Taney, Warren, and Washington.
OF MISSOURI, WE NEED TO FIND
We also are offering voluntary CWD sampling opportunities
WHERE IT ALREADY EXISTS.
throughout the deer season at more than 50 participating
taxidermists and at designated MDC offices in and
ATHERT an yH oufn ttheer s2 w5 hcoo uhnatrivees sint d theee rC inW D aroFuinndd sthaem CplWinDg sMtaatnioangse amnedn gt Zeot mneo.re
R
M Management Zone during the information on CWD in our 2017 Fall Deer & Turkey
DEER: JI opening weekend of the fall firearms Hunting Regulations and Information booklet,
D deer season (Nov. 11 and 12) must available where permits are sold and online at
WHITE-TAILE ponrees oenf 5t 6th CeiWr hDa rsvaemstpeldin gd esetar taiot ns. mdc.mo.gov/cwd. CWD sampling continued on Page 6 »
mdc.mo.gov 5
In Brief
CWD SAMPLING (continued) Got a Question for Ask MDC?
Send it to [email protected]
Know Before You Go or call 573-522-4115, ext. 3848.
• Sampling locations will be open from
7:30 a.m. until at least 8 p.m.
• Deer must be presented by the hunter Q: Last summer, I had seven Q: I usually see one or two
who harvested the animal. baby owls that kept jumping bats flying around at night,
• Hunters will be asked to identify the out of the nest, with no sign but I want to attract more
location where the deer was harvested. of adults. If this happens of them. Do bat houses
• Deer may be field dressed before being again, what should I do? actually attract bats? And,
taken to a sampling station.  The mother may have where can I get plans to
• Hunters can present just the deer head abandoned the nest. That build one?
with about 6 inches of neck attached. happens sometimes. However,  Location, temperature, and
• For deer bound for taxidermy, the cape to avoid attracting predators, design are the key factors that
may be removed before sampling as female birds do not sit on the attract bats to a bat house,
long as about 6 inches of the neck is left nest 100 percent of the time, according to Kathryn Womack,
attached. so the possibility exists that the resource scientist.
• Hunters will be given information on mother is still tending to her Wherever bats live, they must
getting free test results for their deer. young. It’s also possible the find enough insects to eat, which
birds are fledglings, and leaving explains their preference for
Time-Saving Tips the nest is what they do. They roosts near aquatic habitats. And
• Telecheck deer prior to arriving at a sometimes rest on the ground if you live near a cave or mine?
sampling station. as they figure out how to fly, Bonus points!
• Have completed permit information ready. making them vulnerable. Known as “The Cave State,”
• Be prepared to locate the harvest location According to the Cornell Lab Missouri is home to 14 kinds of
on a map. of Ornithology, usually there bats, all of which feed exclusively
• Position deer in the vehicle so the head is no reason to intervene. The on flying insects, including
and neck are easily accessible. parents may be tending to agricultural pests and mosquitos.
• Have the detached head or cape with four or five young scattered in Because insects are not available
about 6 inches of neck ready for sampling. different directions, but they will as food during winter, bats
return to care for them. You can survive Missouri’s cold winter
watch from a distance to make months by hibernating or
AUCTION SET FOR OCT. 21 sure the parents are returning to migrating to warmer locales.
In the market for a used vehicle or equipment? care for the fledglings. Unfortunately, many bat
Come to the MDC public auction Oct. 21, at 10 The real answer to your populations are declining at
a.m. at the Salem Maintenance Center, located question is let nature take its alarming rates, in part due
at the junction of Highway 72 and Highway course. to white-nose syndrome, a
32. The auction will include boats, outboard fungal disease
motors, tractors, trailers, farm equipment, Baby great-horned owls that affects
vehicles, and more. bats during
View auction items Oct. 20, at the Salem hibernation.
Maintenance Center from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Bat houses
with auction preregistration starting at 9 a.m. help by giving
Registration the day of the sale begins at 7:30 these mammals
a.m. A complete lot listing and terms of sale protected places
will be available at the registration desk the to roost the rest
day of the auction. of the year. For
Cash, check, and credit/debit cards will bat house plans
be accepted. As required by state statute, the and information,
department must charge a processing fee to visit batcon.org.
all customers who pay by credit or debit card.
For more information, including a list
of auction items and procedures, visit mdc.
mo.gov/auction.
6 Missouri Conservationist | October 2017 BABY OWLS: NOPPADOL PAOTHONG; JELLY MUSHROOM: TIMBER MCCASLIN
AGENT
ADVICE
from
Jeremy Edwards
DADE COUNTY
CONSERVATION AGENT
With firearms deer season
a little more than a month
away, many hunters have
visions of white-tailed deer
dancing in their heads. Before
the season arrives, be ready
to safely pursue the deer of
your dreams. A deer hunter’s
safety checklist should
Jelly mushroom
include the following:
 An operational deer rifle
Q: What kind of feel like jelly or rubber. They that has been sighted in.
mushroom is this? may have short stalks and
 Appropriate clothing to
 This appears to be one grow mostly on wood, but can
suit the unpredictable
of the jelly fungi, possibly sometimes be found on the
Missouri weather.
Dacryopinax spathularia, known ground. A few jellies are edible.
for its fan- or spatula-shaped Some jelly fungi have  A hunting plan, left at
appearance. It tends to form appealing colors and amusing home or at deer camp, that
dense rows as it fruits through names — such as the bright- contains your hunting
cracks in wood. yellow witches’ butter (Tremella
location, your contact
A diverse and complicated mesenterica), a mushroom that
information, the names
group, jelly fungi are translucent, resembles the one pictured here,
of people in your hunting
irregular blobs that look and but reproduces differently.
party, if applicable, and
when you expect to return.
 A tree stand that has been
properly secured, and a
harness system to prevent
accidental falls.
Remember, always enter
What and exit your tree stand
with an unloaded firearm.
IS it? Permits are available now,
so buy them early.
Can you They are available
guess this
through the MO
month’s
natural Hunting app, at
wonder? local vendors,
or online at
The answer is
on Page 9. mdc.mo.gov/
permits.
mdc.mo.gov 7
In Brief
 by Cliff White
8 Missouri Conservationist | October 2017