Letters

Good chips

I just read my February Conservationist, and I can’t thank you enough for including the requirement of owners of bears, mountain lions, wolves and their hybrids to microchip the animals [Regulations Update; Page 26].

This will certainly help in convincing the state and county to follow the lead and require this on all dangerous carnivores. I am sure the sheriffs in all the counties appreciate this in helping them to identify animals.

Rosella Baller, via Internet

Cover bird

I just finished the February issue. The magazine now is the best it has ever been! This month’s cover is terrific. It could be the cover every month!

Bob Ginther, Lee’s Summit

Fish School

I am an avid fly fisherman, and I have thoroughly enjoyed trout fishing at Bennett Spring State Park for the past 40-plus years.

What a great surprise when I found out the Department of Conservation had teamed up with Missouri Western State University to stock rainbow trout in the Everyday Pond on the MWSU campus.

The trout were placed in the pond on Oct. 31, and I was fly fishing on Nov. 1 at 6:30 a.m. (typical whistle time at Bennett). What a great day! The trout were beautiful and were very receptive to the flies presented to them. I have since been fly fishing another six to eight times and have caught/released several rainbows each day.

It is truly fantastic to be able to not only fly fish, but to catch trout on different flies that I have personally tied for MWSU pond. A great big thank you to the Department and MWSU for their partnership allowing us northwest Missourians the opportunity to enjoy our passion right here in our own backyard!

Mike Buckler, St. Joseph

A to Z and Tywappity

About “Tywhoppety,” [November 2007; Trail Guide: Tywappity Community Lake] you might be interested in the entry in A to Z Missouri which gives origins and meanings of Missouri towns. In part, it says: “This name is very old, and probably harks back to a Native American word; it appears on old maps, sometimes spelled Zewapeta. Many explanations have been given. (1) In Shawnee, elk were called ‘wapiti,’ literally ‘white rump.’ (2) ‘Ty’ in Shawnee means ‘chief.’ (3) The Shawnee name means ‘place of no return,’ perhaps signifying that it was halfway between two important places. (4) A modern nickname is pronounced (teye WOP) with this interesting explanation: This comes from railroad times, and the name is a pronunciation of the main activity in the area—this is where people whopped railroad ties from the timber.”

Hazel M. White, Shawnee, KS (Place of no return?)

Editor’s note: A to Z Missouri: The Dictionary of Missouri Place Names by Margot Ford McMillen is available from Pebble Publishing Inc. & Missouri Gold Booksellers at 205 Central Street, Rocheport, MO 65279, or 573-698-3903.

Hunting heavy?

Your February issue has a large helping of ways and means of killing wild animals.

The front and back covers give us a glimpse of songbird appreciation, but between the covers it is quite bloody. Even when you write about nurturing quail or other birds or animals, it is with a view to eventually killing them for our own enjoyment or consumption. I can understand that many of your readers relish articles on killing or trapping, but you may be underestimating how many there are of us who disagree quite strongly.

Please try for better balance in the future.

MaryAnn Salo, Stockton

Submissions reflect readers’ opinions and may be edited for length and clarity.