Rare bison breed coming to NW Missouri

MARYVILLE, MO (KXCV) - Northwest Missouri will soon be home to an extremely rare breed of bison.

The Dunn Ranch is nearly 4 thousand acres north of Bethany owned by the national Nature Conservancy.

In late October the group is getting 30 head of bison from South Dakota for the ranch.

They come from one of just two herds in the nation with pure bison genetics…. having no cattle genes in them.

Randy Arndt is the site manager at Dunn Ranch and says the bison will help conserve the grassland birds and thousands of acres of tallgrass prairie in the preserve.

“We’re using bison instead of cattle because bison graze differently than cattle do. They focus on different plants. Cattle will stay in ponds, when we get heat like we’re having now they’ll concentrate in the water, they’ll stay in the shade, where bison will- even in the heat- will drink and move on. And they’re continually moving so the impact to the prairie is totally different,” Arndt said.

Besides the 30 head arriving this fall, 30 more are expected next year.

Conservationists hope in about five years nearly 350 head will live at the north Missouri site.

Kirk Wayman, KXCV

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Prescribed fires bring ecological advantages

DAISY, MO (KRCU) - Birds chirping, dogs barking, sun shining, breeze blowing; spring had finally arrived at Ed Graves' farm just outside of Daisy, Missouri.

Listen to the story.


Graves is originally from the St. Louis area where he worked in law enforcement for 30 years before moving to Southeast Missouri five years ago when his wife retired. After searching all over the state, they finally decided on Southeast Missouri to enjoy retirement and a past time they've shared for years.

"For 30 years we've been running bird dogs, Brittanies,” Graves says. “And I field trial them and train them, so we were looking for an area where we could help out the quail population and in turn help the dogs."

Graves and local private lands conservationists had been watching weather patterns and forecasts for weeks, trying to find a day with ideal temperature, humidity, and wind to safely conduct a prescribed burn. Finally that day presented itself in the form of a beautifully balmy, typical Southeast Missouri April day.

Before the burn was to be conducted, Graves and the conservationists put together a burn plan, which is basically a short, how-to document on how to conduct a burn, according to private lands conservation David Hasenbeck with the Missouri Department of Conservation.

“It's based upon the management goals we want to achieve and it basically lists safe weather parameters and safe conditions that we want to burn under to accomplish the goals of the fire,” Hasenbeck says.

The burn plan for the Graves' farm was fairly simple: Remove all unwanted vegetation, allowing new, more desirable vegetation to take its place which would foster an ideal habitat for quail.

Prescribed fires destroy undesirable species of grass such as fescue and debris such as leaf liter while helping native grasses to flourish.

Wildlife benefit from prescribed burns, according to Hasenbeck. Quail, deer, and turkeys are just a few species that thrive in areas that practice prescribed burns periodically. That’s why Graves decided to conduct a burn on his land.

“It’s a necessary thing to do,” Graves says. “It was done long before we ever got here.”

Fire gets rid of leaf liter and dead plants that can be found on the forest floor. Removing dead ground cover exposes seeds and nuts, allowing wildlife better access to these food sources. Fire also helps eliminate hardwood saplings, allowing more light to penetrate to the forest floor which encourages native grasses to grow.

Hasenbeck, is a firm believer in the effectiveness of a prescribed burn but he believes that a healthy level of respect fire's power is essential.

“Prescribed fire is probably the lowest cost and biggest bang for your effort management tool that you can do in the Southern Ozarks,” he says. “It's applicable to a lot of different situations but once again it just comes with some risk and you need to be aware of those risks prior to conducting the burn.”

While prescribed fires are excellent management tools, they can also become dangerous very quickly. Burning on days when the weather conditions are not ideal or burning without enough resources or people can cause a prescribed fire to become a wildfire.

Joe Garvey is the Forestry Supervisor for the Missouri Department of Conservation and he knows all too well about the possible dangers of a prescribed burn.

“A prescribed fire is just a wildfire kind of contained,” Garvey cautions. “Sooner or later one could get away from you and that’s a humbling experience. Once you light that thing extreme caution and respect is paramount.”

Fortunately, all the proper precautions were taken and the burn at the Graves' farm was successful. No one was injured and fresh new grasses and wildlife should be enjoying the newly cleared land in just a few weeks time.

Katie Long, KRCU

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Conservation agents struggle with over-zealous fishing at Rotary Lake

JACKSON, MO (KRCU) - Conservation agents are dealing with anglers who take far more than their fair share of trout from Rotary Lake in Jackson.

The Missouri Department of Conservation and the city of Jackson jointly stock the lake with 1800 trout in November. Trout season began on February 1st.

Agent supervisor Russell Duckworth says that on February 8, an angler was caught with what he calls “a massive over-limit” of trout.

"This is something that goes on fairly frequently at the lake by a few individuals. We’re not exactly sure who that is. But we do get complaints from other anglers that are trying to do the right thing and stay within their limit," Duckworth said. "But they will see people catch and keep more than they are supposed to."

Licensed anglers may keep four trout per day. Even at that rate, the population is greatly diminished within four to six weeks of the beginning of trout season.

Those who pull out more than four fish per day receive a one-hundred dollar fine for the first over-limit fish, plus 15 dollars more for each additional fish, as well as court costs.

Jacob McCleland, KRCU

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