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1. "Look Both Ways" Before Picking Up a Gun
2. Conservation Officials Seek Deformed Frogs
3. Two Forfeit $2,000 Each in Cougar Killing Case
4. MDC Television Show Wins Emmys
5. Conservation News Tips
Special release: Conservation Commission Backs Parks, Soil & Water Initiative
6. Outdoor Calendar
"One panther killed in 1825 where Malta Bend, Saline county, now stands, was nine feet long; another, on Blackwater river, was seven feet in length. The species was still present in Saline County as late as 1838." Daniel McKinley, quoted from historical accounts collected in "The Mountain Lion: A History of Missouri's Big Cat" in The Bluebird magazine, winter, 1961.
1. "Look Both Ways" Before Picking Up a Gun
Hunters need to be as careful in the woods as they are when crossing the street.
JEFFERSON CITY -- Looking both ways before crossing a street has become almost as natural as breathing for most folks. Being struck by a vehicle can very seriously injure or kill us, so we never take lightly the simple act of walking across a street. Missouri Department of Conservation Protection Programs Supervisor Bob Staton wants hunters to develop that same type of dedication to the rules of safety for handling firearms.
Eighty-five percent of last year's hunting accidents in Missouri involved hunters using firearms. Many of those accidents could have been avoided, Staton says, had those involved followed basic rules of safety. The consequences of breaking those rules can be devastating.
Unfortunately year after year hunters prove Staton right. Last year, three hunters died in firearms accidents in Missouri. One of those tragedies was caused by a hunter and his hunting companion's failure to follow several safety rules. The hunt began with the two splitting up after they had reached their hunting destination. While afield, the shooter had seen turkeys and heard them gobbling around him. When he saw what he thought was a gobbler approaching from the rear, he fired, killing his hunting partner.
Those hunters mistakes began when they separated. Knowing where hunting partners are at all times prevents you from mistaking them for game. Another mistake was the shooter s failure to identify his target before firing. Also, the victim was not wearing hunter orange clothing while walking about and he did not shout to identify himself as he approached another hunter.
Staton says the number-one priority for all hunters should be taking actions that ensure safe hunts. He offers the following advice for avoiding firearms accidents:
I hate to see a wonderful activity like hunting marred by accidents, Staton says. Hunting is exciting. When a turkey or deer comes in or a covey of quail flushes, it s exciting. But you must remember hunting also involves decisions that must be made quickly. Let good judgement and common sense be your guide.
MDC offers hunter education courses that teach safe firearms handling and other skills that enhance the hunting experience. Hunter education classes are available at locations throughout the state. Contact the nearest MDC office for information about classes in your area.
-arleasha mays-
2. Conservation Officials Seek Deformed Frogs
The discovery of a five-legged frog in Columbia raises the question of whether it is an isolated case and if it is related to the hundreds of deformed amphibians found elsewhere in the Midwest.
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Brian Dampier, a seventh-grader at Gentry Middle School, had some free time between schoolwork one afternoon in early October, so he took a walk around the pond at nearby Bethel Park, catching frogs along the way. When he took a close look at a green frog he snatched from the water, he found it was no ordinary frog.
"I though, 'Wow!' I didn't know if something in the water had done that to it or if that was just how it was born. It's not every day that you see a frog with five legs."
Indeed, it is not, at least not in Missouri, and not yet. But Dampier's discovery is noteworthy in light of recent events in other states. In recent months, lay persons and scientists in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa have discovered an unusual number of frogs with physical deformities. In some locations, half the frogs of certain species captured in surveys have shown abnormalities ranging from mangled limbs to eyes inside their throats. The discoveries have prompted questions and theories about the causes of the deformities and whether those causes are reason for concerns about human health.
Dampier showed the frog to his science teacher, Mike Bielski. Bielski had read that deformed frogs were being found elsewhere in the Midwest, so he called the Missouri Department of Conservation headquarters in Jefferson City and reported the five-legged frog to Herpetologist Tom Johnson.
Johnson went to Columbia Oct. 16 to see the five-legged frog, which had become a living specimen for Gentry Middle School science classes. After examining the 1.5-inch amphibian, Johnson and Dampier took a walk around the pond it came from. They saw several frogs, mostly cricket frogs. All seemed normal.
"You see this occasionally in normal, healthy frog populations," says Johnson. "Their eggs and tadpoles are in constant contact with the water and are exposed to so many environmental factors. In the 19 years I have worked for the Conservation Department, I have had three or four calls about frogs with abnormal limbs. I haven't made a practice of going to see them in the past."
Johnson made an exception this time because of the recent reports of mass deformities. "If we found half a dozen like Brian Dampier's frog, that might be a significant concern," he says. "The fact that we found cricket frogs at the pond in Bethel Park is a very positive sign. The cricket frog is an important indicator species because it is sensitive to environmental problems. They have almost completely disappeared from southern Wisconsin and northern Iowa."
The cause for the cricket frog's disappearance in some parts of its range -- like the cause of deformed frogs in the upper Midwest -- still is not known. Proposed explanations include chemical pollution, ultraviolet radiation due to the loss of atmospheric ozone, bacterial agents and parasites. But the phenomenon is recent, and time is needed to find out which of these theories may be correct.
"Right now, we're still trying to establish that there is a problem," says Johnson. "It's important for people to report abnormal frogs if they find them. That will help us identify common factors and patterns. Then, we can go to the next step, which is looking for causes."
To report deformed frogs or other amphibians, contact: Tom Johnson, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180. Phone: (573) 751-4115, ext. 201.
-jim low-
3. Two Forfeit $2,000 Each in Cougar Killing Case
Killing a mountain lion proved costly for two Missouri men.
EMINENCE, Mo. -- Do "panthers" still prowl the Ozarks? The resolution of a poaching case shows that at least one did as recently as 1994. Was it a wild mountain lion or an animal escaped from captivity? No one will ever know for sure.
Troy Wayne Norris, 32, of Winona, and Brocki Joe Vermillion, 32, of Bourbon, each chose not to contest the case built against them by state and federal wildlife agents and forfeited $2,000 each in connection with the killing of a mountain lion in December of 1994.
Conservation Agent Kevin Dixon opened the case in March of 1995 when he began hearing persistent rumors that someone had killed a mountain lion near Peck Ranch Conservation Area. That interested him for two reasons.
First, if it was true, the law had been broken. Missouri has no mountain lion hunting season, and the state Wildlife Code grants protection to any animal for which no hunting season is specifically established.
Besides that, the mountain lion, Felis concolor, has been considered extirpated in Missouri since the 1920s. Although reports of "panther" sightings surface in the Show-Me State from time to time, reliable sightings are rare, and have almost always been found to involve animals that escaped or were released from captivity. Extended, methodical efforts to find wild cougars in the rugged mountains of northern Arkansas, have come up empty. Finding a wild mountain lion in Missouri would be akin to locating a flock of passenger pigeons.
So Dixon and Conservation Agent Tom May pursued the rumors, eventually enlisting the help of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Together, they identified a handful of people who had first-hand knowledge about the killing of a 100- to 125-pound adult female mountain lion.
Agents finally obtained a photo of the dead cat on the tailgate of a pickup truck and confronted the two men who were rumored to have been present when it was killed. Vermillion and Norris subsequently admitted killing the cougar and transporting it through part of the Mark Twain National Forest, which violated the federal Lacey Act.
Special Agent Larry Keck said Norris and Vermillion were hunting raccoons with a third man when one of their hounds treed the mountain lion. According to Keck, Vermillion said he told Norris they had to kill the mountain lion, and Norris killed it with a .22-caliber rifle. Killing the cat violated state law. But Keck says that killing, possessing or aiding and abetting the possession of the mountain lion also violated the federal Lacey Act.
Agents had photographs of the dead mountain lion and statements from Vermillion, Norris and others describing how the animal was killed but were not able to recover any of the animal's remains. The carcass was dumped at Peck Ranch Conservation Area after skinning. Because simply possessing the skin was illegal it, too, eventually was dumped in a rural area.
Gary Cravens, Ozark Region protection supervisor for the Missouri Department of Conservation said witnesses described the cat as sleek, with long, sharp claws and no tattoos or other identifying marks that captive cats usually carry. If it had been an escaped cat without experience catching its own food, it probably wouldn't have been so well fed. "We would have loved to know if it was a wild, native mountain lion," said Cravens. "Now we'll never know."
-jim low-
4. MDC Television Show Wins Emmys
Missouri Outdoors netted two of the highest awards for television programming. Individuals involved in producing the show won another three of the prestigious awards.
JEFFERSON CITY -- Two Missouri Department of Conservation television programs were among shows capturing the top honors given by the St. Louis/ Mid America Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).
Missouri Outdoors and the children s special Just Kiddin Around won Emmys in five categories. The shows competed with programs by broadcasters from throughout Missouri and portions of Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Arkansas and Louisiana for the television industry's highest award for outstanding achievement.
During NATAS s annual Emmy Awards ceremonies in St. Louis Oct. 5, Missouri Outdoors" was recognized as the best program in the informational and cinematographer/videographer (other than news) categories. The MDC children s special Just Kiddin Around won Emmys in the children's long form, audio and art director and designer (other than news) categories.
This is the second consecutive year Missouri Outdoors has captured the informational programming Emmy. Kipp Woods, executive producer and MDC broadcast production specialist, says the award is a tribute to his staff's hard work in providing entertaining and informative programs about Missouri's outdoors.
We know that not everyone is a hunter or angler, so we try to give people a variety of topics, locations and profiles to choose from, Woods says. Each year the crew travels a good 25,000 miles around the state, sometimes hiking with their equipment to remote locations to get stories on places to explore, wildlife artists and many other topics.
Woods shares credit for the Emmys with: Barb Brueggeman Missouri Outdoors associate producer and MDC broadcast writer/producer and Missouri Outdoors field producers Debbie Mitchell, Jim Karpowicz, John Baker and Joan Cuthbertson. Employees of Technisonic Studios who were awarded Emmys for their work on the MDC programs are audio specialist Michael Radentz and videographer Tom Newcomb. Vlad Sarkisov of Picket Productions Inc. was recognized for art direction and designing work.
The first place showing for the children s special was especially pleasing for Woods. Just Kiddin Around was MDC's first long-form children's program. The show is designed to acquaint children with the many facets of conservation, from the fish and wildlife inhabiting the state to the duties of a conservation agent.
Woods is optimistic that the Emmys will encourage more stations to broadcast MDC television programs. He says the awards will let stations know that they are getting top notch quality programs. MDC offers its television shows free of charge to stations across Missouri.
Stations currently carrying the 1996 Missouri Outdoors series include: KTVO in Kirksville, 11:05 p.m. weeknights; KHQA in Hannibal, 5 p.m. Saturdays; and KSPR in Springfield, 11 a.m. Sundays. The show aired earlier this year on KODE in Joplin, KCPT in Kansas City, KMOS in Warrensburg and KETC in St. Louis. KMOS currently airs "The Best of Missouri Outdoors." Production of the 1997 Missouri Outdoors series is nearly completed, and will be available to local stations beginning Jan. 1.
-arleasha mays-
Limited time and space won't allow inclusion of the following stories in full. These brief synopses and contact information should enable you to pursue these topics if you consider them worthwhile.
1997 Natural Events Calendar, Crayfish Book Now Available
You can enhance your enjoyment of nature's annual cycle through the 1997 Natural Events Calendar from the Missouri Department of Conservation. And if your childhood fascination with catching crawdads has carried over into adulthood, you'll want to look into the new MDC book, "The Crayfish of Missouri."
The calendar is available at MDC service centers around the state and at MDC nature centers in Springfield, Kansas City, St. Louis and Jefferson City. Some retail book stores also stock the calendar. The price of the calendar at MDC outlets is $3, plus 19 cents sales tax in Missouri. For mail orders of single calendars, add $2 for shipping. For information about quantity discounts, or for correct pricing when ordering more than one calendar, call 1-800-392-4115 or write to: Natural Events Calendar, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180.
The 152-page crayfish reference book covers all 32 species of crayfish native to Missouri. For $7 plus 44 cents tax and $2 shipping, you get color photos, black-and-white drawings, location maps and a scientific key to help identify crayfish.
-jim low-
MDC Adds to Video Offerings
The Missouri Department of Conservation has added to the selection of videos available on loan from libraries statewide or for purchase through MDC offices. One new video, titled "Babes in the Woods," provides suggestions on introducing toddlers to nature. Other recent additions to the MDC video library include a videotape showing how to tie fishing flies, one entitled "Exploring Outdoor Missouri," a tape about where and how to find watchable wildlife and one about fur trapping. A pair of MDC videos -- one about landscaping for wildlife and the other about dealing with problem wildlife -- make a valuable set for homeowners who like wildlife.
-jim low-
Lucky Deer Hunters Win ATV, Rifles in MDC Drawing
A sportsman from Ste. Genevieve will get a brand new Honda all-terrain vehicle and trailer just for submitting an early application for his any-deer permit. Ten others will receive brand-new Remington Model 700 rifles, and another 10 will receive framed wildlife art prints.
The prizes are the result of a drawing by the Missouri Department of Conservation to encourage early applications for any-deer permits. The winners live in Baring, Chamois, Clever, Dixon, Fenton, Florissant, Golden City, Halfway, Jasper, Joplin, Manchester, Marble Hill, Marthasville, Meta, Monett, Oak Grove, Paris, Ste. Genevieve, St. Peters, Tarkio and Theodosia.
-jim low-
Missouri's Big Muddy Among 10 New National Wildlife Refuges
Big Muddy National Wildlife Refuge, established along the Missouri River following the Great Flood of 1993, is among 10 new federal refuges opened recently. Missouri's newest national wildlife refuge currently consists of 3,000 acres at five locations along the Missouri River from St. Louis to Kansas City. Protection and restoration of an additional 60,000 acres is being considered. The diverse fish and game habitat available in the Missouri River floodplain ensures that a wide variety of nature study, photography, hunting, fishing, trapping and other recreation will be available there.
-jim low-
Contact: Jim Low (News Services Coordinator) (573) 751-4115. ext/ 243
Conservation Commission Backs Parks, Soil & Water Initiative
Continuation of programs funded by the one-tenth of a percent sales tax is seen as critical to the future of forests, fish and wildlife.
JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Conservation Commission has voted to throw its support behind Constitutional Amendment 8, a ballot initiative to extend the state sales tax supporting state parks and soil and water conservation programs. At its meeting at Montauk State Park Oct. 21, the Commission voted unanimously to support reauthorization of the one-tenth of one percent sales tax used by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources for soil and water conservation, state parks and historic sites. Voters approved the original initiative establishing the sales tax for parks, soil and water conservation in 1984. It contained a "sunset" clause, meaning that the tax would end unless Missourians extended it with another statewide vote. In 1988, voters agreed to extend the tax for 10 years. On Nov. 5, Missourians will vote on another 10-year extension.
The Conservation Commission resolution supporting the parks, soil and water tax says, in part:
"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 is 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 sales tax for another 10 years as a means of funding these excellent programs."
The Department of Conservation will receive no funds from the tax extension proposed in Amendment 8. Conservation activities are supported by a separate one eighth of one percent sales tax voters approved in 1976, and which does not include a sunset clause. The MDC receives no money from state general revenues. All its funding comes from the one eighth of one percent sales tax, revenues from the sale of hunting, fishing and other permits, and from federal matching funds for fish- and wildlife-related programs.
-jim low-
HUNTING
Bag Limit
Opens Closes (Daily-Possession)
Bullfrogs 6/30/96 10/31/96 8-16 (See Wildlife Code)
Common Snipe*+ 9/ 1/96 12/16/96 8-16
Coyotes 5/ 6/96 3/31/97 Some restrictions during
deer season. (See Wildlife Code)
Crows 11/ 1/96 3/ 3/97 No Limit
Deer/Turkey (Archery) 10/ 1/96 11/15/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
11/27/96 1/15/97 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer (Firearms) 11/16/96 11/26/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer (Muzzleloader) 11/16/96 11/26/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
12/ 7/96 12/15/96 See Regulations, available mid-July
Deer 1/ 4/97 1/ 5/97 Open only to hunters with unfilled
(Firearms & Muzzleloader Any-Deer Bonus Deer Tags for
in units 1-17, 22, 58 & 59) open units. See Regulations
Dove*+# 9/ 1/96 10/30/96 15-30
Ducks and Coots*
North Zone 10/26/96 12/14/96 Five ducks daily with no more
Middle Zone 11/ 2/96 12/21/96 than 4 mallards (no more than 1 female),
South Zone 11/23/96 1/11/97 2 wood ducks, 2 redheads, 1 pintail,
Youth-only Duck Hunting Dates 1 black duck, 1 hooded merganser or
North Zone 10/19/96 10/19/96 1 canvasback. Daily bag for coots is
Middle Zone 10/26/96 10/26/96 15. Possession limits are twice the
South Zone 11/16/96 11/16/96 daily limit.
Furbearers 11/20/96 1/20/97 No Limit
Geese and Brant
Blue, Snow and Ross' Geese*+# Daily bag limits include no more than
North and Swan 10 blue, snow or Ross' geese; 2
Lake Zones 10/26/96 1/19/97 Canada geese; 2 brant; and 2 white-
2/17/97 3/9/97 fronted geese. Possession limits for
Middle and Schell-Osage Canada geese, brant and white-fronted
Zones: 11/ 2/96 11/ 7/96 geese are twice the daily limit. For
blue, snow and Ross' geese, the
South Zone 11/23/96 3/ 9/97 aggregate possession limit is three the
White-fronted Geese and Brant daily limit.
North Zone 9/28/96 10/ 6/96
10/26/96 11/ 3/96
11/29/96 1/19/97
Swan Lake Zone 10/26/96 11/ 3/96
11/29/96 1/19/97
Middle and Schell-Osage
Zones 11/ 2/96 11/ 7/96
11/29/96 1/31/97
South Zone 11/23/96 1/31/97
Canada Geese
North Zone 9/28/96 10/ 6/96
10/26/96 11/3/96
11/29/96 1/19/97
Swan Lake Zone 10/26/96 11/ 3/96 (Unless a quota of 5,000 geese is
11/29/96 12/29/96 reached before Dec. 29; a daily limit
of 10 shot shells.)
Middle Zone 11/ 2/96 11/ 7/96
11/29/96 1/31/97
Schell-Osage Zone 11/29/96 1/ 7/97
South Zone 11/23/96 1/31/97
Groundhogs 5/ 6/96 12/15/96 No Limit
Pheasants and
Gray Partridge 11/1/96 1/15/97 (See Wildlife Code)
Quail 11/1/96 1/15/97 8-16
Rabbits 10/1/96 2/15/97 6-12
(may include only
2-4 swamp rabbits)
Ruffed Grouse 10/15/96 1/15/97 (See Wildlife Code)
Sora and Virginia Rails*+ 9/ 1/96 11/ 9/96 25-25
Squirrels 5/25/96 1/15/97 (See Wildlife Code)
Teal*+ 9/ 7/96 9/15/96 4-8
Turkey 4/21/97 5/ 4/97 1 bearded bird per week
Turkey (Fall Firearms) 10/14/96 10/27/96 (See Wildlife Code)
Woodcock*+ 10/15/96 12/18/96 5-10
FISHING
Trout Parks 3/ 1/96 10/31/96 5-10
Trout Parks 11/8/96 2/ 8/97 Catch & release Fri., Sat.,
(Winter Tag Required) Sun. 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Trout Management Areas Open All No Closed 5-10 (See Wildlife Code)
(Trout Permit Required) Year Season
Trout (Trophy and Wild) Open All No Closed 3-3 (See Wildlife Code)
Trout Management Areas) Year Season
(Trout Permit Required)
Black Bass
(streams, specified zone) 5/25/96 2/28/97 6-12 (See Wildlife Code)
(impoundments) Open All No Closed (See Wildlife Code)
Year Season
Bullfrogs 6/30/96 10/31/96 8-16 (See Wildlife Code)
Paddlefish 3/15/97 4/30/97 2-4 (See Wildlife Code)
Nongame Fish Stream Gigging 9/15/96 1/31/97 20
(See Wildlife Code for creel limits on other species.)
TRAPPING
Beaver 11/20/96 3/31/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
Coyotes 11/20/96 2/15/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
Furbearers 11/20/96 1/20/97 No Limit (See Wildlife Code)
___________
*Hunters of migratory birds are required to have a migratory bird
hunting permit in addition to other appropriate permits (See Wildlife Code).
+Subject to final federal approval
#Complete waterfowl details will be found in the Migratory Bird Hunting Digest,
to be available from permit vendors and MDC offices in early October.
CONSERVATION COMMISSION MEETING
October 21 Montauk State Park, Route 5, Salem, Mo.
(For additional information contact the Department Director.)
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