Enjoy Eagle Days at Duck Creek CA, Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Wappapello Lake
All three areas combine efforts to offer live eagle presentations, eagle viewing in the wild.
Cape Girardeau, Missouri - The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Army Corps of Engineers will host Eagle Days, Feb. 4, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Eagle Days event includes live eagle presentations at Mingo National Wildlife Refuge every hour and wild eagle viewing locations at Mingo, Duck Creek CA and Wappapello Lake.
Pat Holloway, an MDC education consultant, said families and visitors of all ages can expect a fun, adventurous event that will help conquer cabin fever.
“Join us for an outdoor nature experience and discover cool facts about bald eagles, which were chosen as our nation’s symbol in 1782,” Holloway said, adding that visitors are encouraged to dress appropriate for outdoor winter weather.
The Mingo National Wildlife Visitor Center will display items related to eagles. Several outdoor spotting scope sites on Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Duck Creek CA and along Wappapello Lake will provide opportunities to view eagles, ducks and geese in the wild. All three of these locations are expansive areas, so visitors are encouraged to pick up a brochure containing a map of the eagle viewing stations when they arrive.
All Eagle Days activities are free. Mingo National Wildlife Refuge and Duck Creek CA are located along highway 51, north of Puxico.
The Bill Emerson Memorial Visitor Center at Wappapello Lake is located at 10276 Missouri Hwy. T in Wappapello. From Poplar Bluff travel east approximately 5 miles on Hwy. 60, head north approximately ten miles on Hwy. T. The destination will be on the left. From Puxico take Hwy. 51 south one mile, turn right on Hwy. T, travel 9 miles to Hwy. D, turn left, cross the dam, your destination is on your right.
For more information about Eagle Days events, call Mingo National Wildlife Refuge at (573) 222-3589. To learn more about eagles and places to view them in Missouri, visit mdc.mo.gov.
Article and photo submitted. Shown in the photo: In flight, mature bald eagles are relatively easy to identify. They have a dark brown body with white head and tail. In Missouri, they are observed near lakes, rivers, and marshes, particularly in winter. (Credits - Noppadol Paothong)
Pierce receives this award for her coordination of the Southeast Region’s “Day on the River” event. This annual event attracts more than 2,000 people and helps connect them to the Mississippi River and its importance as habitat and as a natural resource.
“While most people in the area see the Mississippi River, many don’t know much about the history and dynamics of the river. Pierce’s efforts with this event fill this void,” said Sara Turner, MDC manager of the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center. “Coordinating this large event successfully is an achievement by any standard.”
Day on the River typically occurs in early September. However, the nature center has regular programs to help people discover nature all year long.
“Conservation agents are a very important piece of conservation in this state,” MDC Interim Director Tom Draper said. “These new agents will be some of the finest this agency has. They will be recognized as the face of conservation. We thank you for that and we thank all of your families for sharing you with us.”
These 10 new agents will be joining the 180 existing MDC agents in serving and protecting Missouri’s fish, forest, and wildlife.
The class of 2016 conservation agents and their assignments are:
Nicholas Bommarito: New Madrid County
Derick Childers: St. Clair County
Sarah Ettinger-Dietzel: Iron County
Christopher Horn: Cole County
Clayton Lewis: Madison County
Parker Rice: Buchanan County
Caleb Sevy: Washington County
Zachary Swindle: Shannon County
Matt Wheaton: Putnam County
Zachary White: Clinton County
Attendees will learn how to field dress and properly care for their harvested deer and how to process the venison for freezer storage at this free program. Regulations and supplies needed for processing deer meat will also be discussed.
Pre-registration is required because space is limited. This program is for ages 16 and up. To register, call the nature center at (573)290-5218.
Information about deer and deer hunting in Missouri can be found at mdc.mo.gov/hunting. Information about this and other nature programs at the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center can be found at mdc.mo.gov/CapeNatureCenter.
Jefferson City, Missouri - With dove hunting season in Missouri opening Sept. 1, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reminds dove hunters of its more than 180 conservation areas around the state that allow dove hunting, including nearly 100 planted in crop fields that attract the popular game birds. Crops include sunflower, corn, millet, wheat, and buckwheat.
MDC is offering hunters 20 more days of dove hunting this fall. Mourning doves, Eurasian collared doves, and white-winged doves may be taken from Sept. 1 through Nov. 29 from one half hour before sunrise to sunset with a combined daily limit of 15 and a combined possession limit of 45 for all three species.
Get more information on dove hunting – including permit requirements, places to hunt, recipes, and more -- online at huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/dove. Information on dove hunting is also available through MDC's "2016 Migratory Bird Hunting Digest" available starting in mid-August where hunting permits are sold.
