Wild Webcasts

December 14, 2022

Did you know that some Missouri frogs freeze nearly solid in winter and their hearts stop beating. Then they revive! Some owls start nesting in January and their eggs can survive temperatures of 10 degrees or below freezing! Ground squirrels sleep the winter away from October to April – without waking up! MDC invites everyone to learn more about these and other strange-but-true facts about native animals and plants by joining its online Wild Webcast on Winter Wildlife Survival.

August 22, 2022

Snake Researcher Benjamin Jellen, PhD, reveals the secret life of one of Missouri’s most commonly encountered yet misunderstood venomous snakes -- the copperhead. Copperheads conjure up curiosity, mystery, and even fear. They are one of Missouri’s most intriguing and often least understood venomous snakes. How far do these snakes move?  Where do they go?  What type of habitat do they prefer? How cold do they get over the winter? What do baby copperheads do? What is the greatest danger a copperhead faces in the wild? Learn all these answers and more in this wild webcast.

October 27, 2021
This special Halloween Wild Webcast on Creepy Critters features MDC Urban Wildlife Biologist Erin Shank from the Powder Valley Nature Center in Kirkwood. She shares her insights and expertise on some of the creepy critters that call Missouri home, such as lampreys, spider wasps, robber flies, horsehair worms, bats, vultures, tarantulas, butcher birds, and others.

June 29, 2021

Reina Tyl discusses “Wild Turkeys in Missouri: Population Trends and MDC Management.”

April 21, 2021

Learn about varieties of wild edible mushrooms in Missouri, where to find them, and how to prepare them. Also get important information on poisonous Missouri mushrooms.

October 20, 2020
Learn about aquatic vampires, zombie insects, barfing birds, bizarre bats, spooky spiders, weird worms, and other creepy critters found in Missouri during MDC’s “Halloween Special” Wild Webcast on Creepy Critters.

July 14, 2020

The Missouri Department of Conservation recently completed a multiyear assessment of blue catfish and flathead catfish in Mark Twain Lake. MDC fisheries biologists will share and discuss assessment results and potential options for new catfish harvest regulations at Mark Twain. Fisheries biologists will also be taking questions during the webcast.

July 1, 2020
MDC Urban Wildlife Biologist Erin Shank explains the basics of creating backyard wildlife habitat; the importance of native plants and insects for pollination, wildlife food, and other benefits: planning and designing native plantings; attracting birds; supporting pollinators such as butterflies and bees; and more.

MDC Turkey Biologist Reina Tyl presents and discusses information on wild turkey biology and ecology, the history of wild turkeys in Missouri, the state’s wild turkey population status, and the MDC Wild Turkey Management Plan revision process.

MDC Cervid Biologist Aaron Hildreth and Wildlife Programs Supervisor Lauren Hildreth share how you can see free-ranging wild elk in Missouri and Missouri’s first upcoming elk-season, possibly starting as soon as 2020.

Watch our Wild Webcast on Weird Wildlife to learn about animal oddities in Missouri from MDC experts.

MDC Resource Scientist and Eagle Expert Janet Haslerig and MDC Eagle Days Veteran Dan Zarlenga talk about bald eagles in Missouri and the perennially popular MDC Eagle Days events around the state.

MDC State Ornithologist Sarah Kendrick, Community Conservationist for the City of Columbia Danielle Fox, and MDC Habitat Management Coordinator Nate Muenks talk about attracting birds and other wildlife to backyards large and small through bird feeding, native plantings for wildlife food and shelter, and other habitat help.

MDC Feral Hog Elimination Team Leader Mark McLain and MDC Feral Hog Task Force Coordinator Alan Leary talk about what MDC and partners are doing to combat feral hogs in Missouri along with background on what they are and why they are such a destructive problem for landowners, MDC, and others.

MDC experts talk about what invasive species are, what MDC staff is doing to help control invasive species, and what you can do to help prevent invasive species from spreading.

MDC Furbearer Biologist Laura Conlee and Alan Leary of MDC’s Mountain Lion Response Team provide a brief presentation on these big cats in the Show-Me State and then answer questions from webcast participants to help separate fact from fiction on mountain lions in Missouri.

MDC experts talk about birds in Missouri and share information on the new Great Missouri Birding Trail to find the best places around the state to watch birds.

MDC fisheries staff talk about Discover Nature Fishing classes, rod-and-reel loaner program, MO Fishing app, state record fish, volunteer opportunities through Stream Teams, and more.

Learn about the deadly deer disease CWD, including what MDC is doing to help limit its spread in Missouri and how hunters and landowners can help protect our white-tailed deer.

This webcast features the history of Missouri's black bears, Missouri black bear population, importance of being bear aware, and the Black Bear Research Project.

Learn more on this webcast about butterflies, bees, and other pollinators, what threatens them, and how you can help.

Learn more about feral hogs in Missouri on this webcast.