All Outdoors, July 30, 1999

1. Album & poster feature six-legged singers
2. Apply for deer quota permit drawing by Aug. 15
3. Outdoor Calendar

Available via Internet at: http://www.mdc.mo.gov/news/out

"The youth of nature is contagious . . . "Edward Butler-Lytton, English novelist

1. Album and poster feature six-legged singers

Learn to identify the insect songs that fill summer nights

JEFFERSON CITYMany people pride themselves on their ability to identify birds solely by the songs they sing, but how many people can identify insects by their unique sounds? A poster and tape available from the Conservation Department can help you do just that.

Called "Singing Insects of Missouri," the tape and poster allow you to identify 20 common species of insects. The total includes seven katydids, six crickets, six cicadas and one grasshopper. The large poster includes identification photos of each insect.

Insects are the largest group of animals on Earth. In fact, there are more different kinds of insects than all other species of animals combined. More than a million insects have been identified, but this may only be a small fraction of the total. Yet, most of us are blissfully ignorant of their ways.

Just as bird or frog experts can identify species by their unique songs, so can one identify insects. In most species, only males sing; a few female katydids respond with a click. Male insects call to attract mates of the same species, to defeat competitors and to maintain territory and spacing to prevent overcrowding.

You can order single copies of the tape and poster for $5 from Nature Shop, Missouri Department of Conservation, P.O. Box 180, Jefferson City MO 65102-0180. Add $2 for shipping; Missouri residents add 19 cents sales tax. Ask for a Nature Shop catalog when you place your order; the Conservation Department sells other books, CDs, videos, clothing, nature note cards and pewter wildlife pins.

- Jim Auckley -

2. Apply for deer quota permit drawing by Aug. 15

Deer hunters should pay special attention to permit and regulation changes.

JEFFERSON CITYMark the calendar, tie a ribbon around your finger, or use whatever works best to remember that Aug. 15 is the last day to apply for firearms deer season permits in limited quota units. Only hunters who meet that deadline will be considered for any-deer or bonus-deer permits in those units.
Any-deer and bonus permit sales will be limited in 27 of the state's 59 deer hunting units this year. Lonnie Hansen, Missouri Department of Conservation deer expert, says limited-quota units help maintain a healthy deer herd.

"In some southern Missouri units, deer populations are at, or slightly below where we want them," says Wildlife Research Biologist Hansen. "We created the limited-quota units to give hunters ample opportunities to hunt without jeopardizing the population. We set the quotas at levels that help maintain deer populations in areas where we're meeting our goals and increase the populations where deer numbers are below desired levels."

Drawings will be used to allot permits for limited-quota units. Information on the locations and number of permits available in each unit is included in the 1999 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Information booklet. The booklet is available free at Conservation Department offices and from permit vendors statewide.

The Conservation Department has set limits on the number of any-deer permits that can be sold in units 31, 32, 41, 42, 44, 49, 53, 54, 55 and 56. To enter a drawing for one of those units you must buy a regular firearms, or "bucks only" permit and submit your name, along with the number of the unit where you want to hunt, to a vendor by Aug. 15.

Drawings for bonus permits will be held for units 26, 27, 28, 30, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 45, 46, 47, 48, 50, 51 and 52. Only hunters who purchase an any-deer permit for their unit of choice and submit their names for the lottery by the Aug. 15 will be eligible for the drawing.

All entrants will be notified of the drawing outcome by mail. Successful any-deer permit applicants will receive stickers that convert their "bucks-only" permits to any-deer permits for their unit of choice. Those drawn for bonus permits will receive notices in the mail to go to vendors and purchase the permits. Any-deer and bonus deer permits will be on sale through Nov. 7, the Sunday before the firearms deer season opens.

No drawings will be necessary to obtain permits in open-quota units. In those units, all available deer hunting permits will be on sale over the counter now through Nov. 7 and again from Nov. 24 through January 11. Units 1-17, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 58 and 59 have open quotas for any-deer, first-bonus and second-bonus permits. Units 18, 21, 25, 29, 33 and 35 have open quotas for any-deer and first bonus permits, but no second bonus permits will be issued. Unit 43 has an open quota for any-deer permits but no bonus permits will be sold. Hunting in unit 57 is limited to antlered deer only.

Resident and nonresident muzzle-loading firearms deer hunting permits have been eliminated this year, and the muzzleloading season has been changed to the December Portion of firearms deer season. Only muzzleloading firearms will be allowed during the December Portion of the season, as in the past. The only difference is that buying a firearms deer hunting permit will entitle hunters to hunt with any legal method (modern firearms, muzzleloader or archery equipment) during the November and January portions of the firearms deer season.

Two new permits have been established starting this yearthe Youth Deer and Turkey Hunting Permit and the Managed Deer Hunting Permit. Also this year, Missouri will return to the system of issuing transportation tags separate from deer and turkey hunting permits.

For more information on deer hunting regulations changes, refer to the back page of the 1999 Fall Deer and Turkey Hunting Information booklet, or call a conservation agent or the nearest Conservation Department regional office.

- Arleasha Mays -