This year marks the 75th anniversary of Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac, which is a foundational writing in the conservation movement. Leopold is widely regarded as one of the key founders of the science of wildlife management and had a heavy influence on Missouri’s own conservation movement in the 1930s. He became a trusted advisor to E. Sydney Stephens, who was a prominent leader in the establishment of the Conservation Federation of Missouri and one of MDC’s first conservation commissioners. Aldo’s son, Starker Leopold, was the first manager of Caney Mountain Conservation Area in Ozark County and initiated the early turkey restoration work there and across the Ozarks.
One of the elder Leopold’s most significant contributions to society and the conservation community was his vision of a land ethic. Leopold said, “When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” This points to the simple truth that caring for people and the land are interconnected.
Leopold also famously said, “To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering. There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot.” I fit squarely into that category of those who cannot. So as fall sets in, I hope you’ll join me in the outdoors, enjoying the great diversity of fish and wildlife that call Missouri home and exploring some of our wild places.
Jason Sumners, Director


And More...
This Issue's Staff
Editor - Angie Daly Morfeld
Associate Editor - Larry Archer
Photography Editor – Ben Nickelson
Staff Writer - Kristie Hilgedick
Staff Writer - Joe Jerek
Staff Writer – Dianne Van Dien
Designer - Marci Porter
Photographer - Noppadol Paothong
Photographer - David Stonner
Circulation – Marcia Hale