Outdoors

Micropteruses and Meleagrises

Someone told me that I asked the same master naturalist question in two different columns. That is what happens when you get hit over the head with a few falling tree limbs out in the woods and sleep too often on gravel bars with a rock for a pillow when you are young. But this

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MDC urges anglers to carefully discard used fishing line

Monofilament fishing line is one of modern angling’s finest tools, but it’s also a hazard to wildlife if old line isn’t recycled or disposed of properly. For example, a barred owl was rescued on March 25 in Platte County after it became entangled in fishing line. Daniel and Debbie Haus of Kansas City are Missouri

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Wanted: Bighead and Silver Carp

MDC biologists are looking at bighead and silver carp (invasive species) to see if they have any impact on our native fish species. Biologists would like to collect all bighead and silver carp caught by anglers on Lake of the Ozarks, Truman, and Table Rock lakes. We will look at captured fish to see if

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Missouri Conservationist now available

The complete April issue of the Missouri Conservationist is available for viewing and/or download at mdc.mo.gov/conmag. This month’s features: Safeguarding Our Glades Dedicated conservation partners help restore and protect Missouri’s unique micro deserts. What’s in a Nest? Scientists monitor nests to study the health of birds and changes to the landscape. After the Harvest Helping

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MDC plans improvements for Schell-Osage wetlands

Changes will improve wetlands and also fishing at adjacent Schell Lake The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is planning major improvements to levees and water supply for wetlands and a lake at the Schell-Osage Conservation Area. New levee placement and design will reduce damage from flooding, saving costs in the long run and providing better

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Rain and Swap Meets

As I have been doing for a while, I will start things off with the master naturalist quiz. Of the several species of hawks found in the Ozarks, which one is known to nest the earliest in the spring? By the way, any master naturalists who bring their master naturalist certificate from the MDC to

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MDC encourages people to Be Bear Aware

Don’t feed bears. Avoid encounters. React right. As blossoms and buds emerge each spring, so do Missouri’s estimated 300 native black bears. As they leave their winter dens this time of year, finding food is their main focus. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reminds people to “Be Bear Aware” by not feeding bears and

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Turf pathologist gives two easy tips for lawn care

One of the most common problems homeowners have with their lawns is that they do not know what kind of grass is in it. “If it’s still light tan now, more than likely it’s zoysiagrass. If it’s green, it’s probably tall fescue with some Kentucky bluegrass,” says University of Missouri Extension turf pathologist Lee Miller.

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Angler from Imperial hooks state-record skipjack herring

MDC congratulates Ben Faulkenberry on breaking the pole-and-line state record by catching a two-pound, 11-ounce skipjack herring on Joachim Creek. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that Ben Faulkenberry of Imperial became the most recent record-breaking angler in Missouri when he hooked a skipjack herring on Joachim Creek in Jefferson County using a rod

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Lela Mae Thomas

Lela Mae Thomas, 81, was born April 19, 1935, near Osceola to Fred and Wilma Murphey. She passed away March 9, 2017. in Kansas City, Lela’s early life was spent in Osceola and she attended school there. On Nov. 14, 1952, she was united in marriage to Harlin Thomas. They moved to Kansas City where

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