ShareNEOSHO–Jeff Richards was hunting deer north of Neosho Monday night when he heard what he thought might be an injured hunter calling for help. When he went to investigate, he was amazed to find a pair of whooping cranes.
Whooping cranes are endangered, with fewer than 500 left in the wild. They also are spectacular, with [...]

ShareOne of the first signs of spring is the return of migratory birds. After a cold, often mostly silent winter, the chatter from the trees is most welcoming. We’ve got two bird stories here for you. -Jo

Albatross found with new chick at age 60
According to US Fish and Wildlife and the US Geological [...]

ShareAfter the Feb. 1 blizzard, Matt and Deanna Owsley noticed an uncommon sight in two cedar trees near their home — a dozen or more short-eared owls gazing back at them.
A school bus rumbled past a few days later and the noise sent the owls flying back and forth over their snow-covered lane southwest of [...]

ShareBy Jo Schaper
In the course of Traveler business today, I spoke with my contact and friend at the Mark Twain National Forest in Rolla, Charlotte WigginsAfter we did business and chatted, she sent me a link to her personal blog at www.bluebirdgardens.com, where she shares her interests in nature and crafting. The bluebird photos she [...]

ShareThe 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 [...]

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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 [...]

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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 [...]

ShareUsually, 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 [...]

ShareBetween 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 [...]

ShareUpdated.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 [...]