The Conservation Commission voted earlier this year for an emergency closure of the ruffed grouse season, which was to run from Oct. 15 through Jan. 15. Low grouse population numbers were cited as the reason for the emergency closure. The action supersedes information printed in the 2010 Summary of Hunting and Trapping Regulations, which were [...]

In a ruling late last week, the Environmental Protection agency said it did not have the jurisdiction to ban lead ammunition under the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976. Subchapter IV, Lead Exposure Reduction is the general legislation under which lead hazard and lead abatement rules and regulations resulted in the phaseout of leaded [...]

Nature photographer Jim Rathert will headline the Missouri Bluebird Conference Sept 24-25 in the Cedar City Room at the North Jefferson City Multipurpose Building in Jefferson City. Anyone interested in Missouri’s colorful state bird is welcome to attend.
Rathert is the retired wildlife photographer for the Missouri Conservationist magazine. He is a founding Board Member for the Missouri Bluebird [...]

Usually, Traveler Country news waits until after breakfast, but not so this morning. This news item wafted over the air while Jo was waking up:
EPA sued over Missouri streams.
The Coalition for the Environment, a St. Louis based environmental activist group, had been working with EPA and Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources to enact water [...]

Between Emery and Jo, Traveler gets at least a half a dozen news releases a day from which we select items (or not) considering the interests of our online and print readers.
Jo just couldn’t pass up this one from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, since the story managed to combine Jimmy Buffett, Gulf [...]

Updated.The Natural Resources Conservation Service, a division of the USDA, has announced a pair of programs aimed to help Mississippi Flyway migratory birds, who are being negatively impacted by conditions along the Gulf due to the Deepwater Horizon oil leak. The Migratory Bird Habitat Initiative Project is designed to lessen the pressure on species affected [...]

Who-Who-Whooo is out there?” Owls have fascinated mankind for centuries, from the wise owl of the Greek goddess Athena to Winnie the Pooh’s friend.
To learn more about these creatures of the night, join rangers from Ozark National Scenic Riverways on an Owl Prowl. The [...]

Missourians have five weekends to attend organized eagle-viewing events, or they can strike out on their own.
Five events starting in December offer Missourians a chance to see bald eagles in the wild and indoors.