Outdoors

MDC thanks hunters for help in collecting 19,200 tissue samples for CWD testing

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that it collected approximately 19,200 tissue samples for chronic-wasting-disease (CWD) testing from this past weekend’s mandatory sampling efforts at 75 stations in 29 counties in and around where the fatal deer disease has been found in northeast, central and east-central Missouri. The Department’s goal was 18,000 – 20,000

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Venison in the Freezer

My old “Fred Bear” compound bow must be 30 years old. It has put many pounds of venison on the table here on Lightnin’ Ridge, but due to something called a frozen shoulder I cannot pull the thing back as easily as I once did. So I bought a crossbow at the local Wal-Mart sporting

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Using more advanced traps could rid Missouri of feral hogs

by Eli Chen The invasive feral hog roams in more than 30 counties in Missouri, decimating farmland and wildlife areas in its path. This summer, state officials banned feral hog hunting on public lands in their latest effort to eradicate the pest from Missouri. They’re also beginning to use new technology to trap the animals.

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Firearms Deer Season opening weekend harvest totals exceed 96,000+

Last year hunters checked 93,896 deer during the opening weekend of the 2015 November portion of firearms deer season. Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that deer hunters in Missouri harvested 96,131 deer during the opening weekend of the November portion of the fall firearms deer season Nov. 12 and 13.

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November Missouri Conservationist available online

The complete November issue of the Missouri Conservationist is available for viewing and/or download at mdc.mo.gov/conmag. This month’s features: Forest and Woodland Conservation Local partners sustain Missouri’s diverse forests for people, plants, and animals 2016–2017 Seedling Order Form George O. White State Forest Nursery Hunters, Help Us! Sampling of harvested deer for chronic wasting disease

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Buy native trees and shrubs from MDC State Forest Nursery

Native trees and shrubs can help improve wildlife habitat and soil and water conservation while also improving the appearance and value of private property. The Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) George O. White State Forest Nursery offers a variety of low-cost native tree and shrub seedlings for reforestation, windbreaks, erosion control, wildlife food and cover,

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Never Seen it Better

by Larry Dablemont, outdoor writer, photographer What a strange October… the largest mast crop I have ever seen and the latest fall colors I can remember. Mast, for those of you who do not know, is a woodland term for a “variety of nuts.” So that means it can be used in place of “politicians.”

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Camdenton angler catches state-record hybrid striped bass

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that Mark McArtor of Camdenton became the most recent record-breaking angler in Missouri when he caught a hybrid striped bass on the Lake of the Ozarks. The new “alternative method” record hybrid striped bass caught by McArtor on Oct. 31 weighed 9-pounds, 1-ounce with a length of 27

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Craft squeaks out win

First and 2nd place were close at the American Bass Anglers November tournament on Stockton Lake. Kansas angler, Eric Craft, took 1st place with a 5-fish limit that weighed 13.98 lbs, anchored with a 5.85 lb big bass of the tournament. Second place, Mike Dill weighed in 13.83 lbs. his big fish was 4.49 lbs.

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Hunters check 3,698 turkeys during Missouri’s fall firearms turkey season

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) announced that hunters checked 3,698 turkeys during Missouri’s fall firearms turkey season, Oct. 1-31. Last year’s fall firearms turkey harvest total was 6,158. Top harvest counties for the 2016 fall firearms turkey season were Greene with 128, Franklin with 96, and Wayne with 92. MDC’s turkey biologist says this

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