Category Archives: Outdoor/Nature

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From Pocket Parks to Our Beloved Forest Park Author Carver Chronicles 600 Parks of St. Louis

A new book by Nancy Carver, Discovering Public Parks in St. Louis, Missouri, has put hundreds of St. Louis County and St. Louis City parks in one combined reference place. The details of each park are included and readers get a glimpse into elements, such as the history, sculptures, amenities, special features, size, location, and little-known facts about each park. The book is comprehensive and incorporates all parks, whether federal, state, city, county, or neighborhood.

“Only three other major cities have more parks than St. Louis City and County combined. Only three other major cities have a signature park with more visitors than our Forest Park.”

Carver shares insights with Don Corrgian about her new book, and how St. Louis parks and the parks system developed, and why St. Louis should be considered a premier city with access to numerous local parks and green spaces.

Listen to the interview below.

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Suburban Memories Of The New Year’s Eve Twister

Photo courtesy James Kramper, NWS. (Tornado in the photo does not represent the Fenton, Crestwood, or Sunset Hills 2010 twister.)

Environmental Echo’s Editors Note: Starting the week of May 22, Environmental Echo will begin a series of weekly podcasts about the most destructive tornadoes to ever hit Missouri. The stories will be based on the research by Don Corrigan for his book, “Show Me … Nature’s Wrath,” and he will be interviewed by Holly Shanks of Environmental Echo. Stay Tuned.

The first tornado covered will be the half-minute hurricane that beat down St. Charles. We hope you will add to the conversation by posting your own observations about Missouri’s tornadic tales. Should Missouri be included in Tornado Alley?

Read about the New Year’s Eve Twister that hit Fenton, Sunset Hills and Crestwood below…

Missouri marked its annual Severe Weather Awareness Week this past March. Residents of Fenton,  Sunset Hills and Crestwood, who recall the New Year’s Eve tornado of 2010, don’t necessarily need a “heads up” that the skies can turn deadly in an instant.

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Live Web Cam: Unique Peek At Peregrine Falcon & Five Falcon Eggs In Nest At Ameren Sioux Power Center

Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

Anyone with access to a computer, tablet or smartphone and an internet connection can eavesdrop into the secret lives of the fastest creatures on Earth, thanks to the Falcon Watch partnership between the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), Ameren Missouri and the World Bird Sanctuary (WBS).

Access the Falcon Watch live stream HERE.

Read more from the MDC release below.

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Missouri’s Paddlefish Season Opens March 15

MDC is in its third year of a five-year tagging project to help monitor paddlefish numbers and improve species management. Department staff are placing metal jaw tags on up to 6,000 paddlefish netted in Lake of the Ozarks, Truman Lake, and Table Rock Lake and up to 1,000 netted from the Mississippi River. Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

MDC is in its third year of a five-year tagging project to help monitor paddlefish numbers and improve species management. Department staff are placing metal jaw tags on up to 6,000 paddlefish netted in Lake of the Ozarks, Truman Lake, and Table Rock Lake and up to 1,000 netted from the Mississippi River. Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

Missouri’s annual spring paddlefish snagging season starts soon! The season is a popular pastime for thousands of anglers in the state. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is in its third year of a five-year tagging project to help monitor paddlefish numbers and improve species management. If you head out to Missouri lakes to enjoy the spring paddlefish season, don’t forget to help out by reporting tagged paddlefish and to NOT remove tags from undersized or released paddlefish.

The state’s major paddlefish snagging waters include Lake of the Ozarks, Truman Lake, and Table Rock Lake, according to the MDC. The paddlefish snagging season for these and most other waters in the state runs March 15 through April 30. The season for the Mississippi River is March 15 through May 15 with a fall season of Sept. 15 through Dec. 15. (Read more from the MDC’s press release below.)

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Fenton Resident Catches Record-Breaking Shad

Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports Riley Nolan of Fenton became the recent record-breaking angler in Missouri when he gigged a gizzard shad on the Big River in Jefferson County.

“Believe it or not, that shad was the only fish my dad and I got that evening,” he said.

See more of the MDC story below.

 

 

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Missourians Encouraged To Participate In Severe Weather Awareness Week & Statewide Tornado Drill

Picture courtesy James Kramper, National Weather Service.

Picture courtesy James Kramper, National Weather Service.

Missourians are urged to participate in this year’s  Severe Weather Awareness Week coming up March 6 -10, and the statewide tornado drill on Tues., March 7, at 10 a.m., to be prepared for the deadly hazards posed by tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, flooding and lightning.

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Learning To Reload And Safety With Lead Shot

Len Patton (left) and Bob Campbell (right), Missouri Department of Conservation instructors, at the shotgun shell reloading seminar held at Jay Henges Shooting Range & Education Center, Feb. 21, 2017.

Len Patton (left) and Bob Campbell (right), Missouri Department of Conservation instructors, at the shotgun shell reloading seminar held at Jay Henges Shooting Range & Education Center, Feb. 21, 2017. Photos by Holly Shanks.

Event coverage by Holly Shanks

A small group gathered at Jay Henges Shooting Range and Outdoor Education Center recently to explore the basic techniques of shotgun shell reloading. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) seminar, led by Bob Campbell and Len Patton, offered a hands-on learning experience. Both men have been reloading for decades and have extensive first-hand knowledge of procedures and best practices.

Lead safety procedures were included in the seminar. Also, how the MDC handles toxic lead clean-up at Jay Henges Shooting Range are included in the story. See more of the story below.

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Confirmed! Mountain Lion In Missouri

Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) recently received DNA results from a confirmed mountain lion in Shannon County. Those results indicated the mountain lion was a female with a probable origin in the Black Hills of Wyoming and South Dakota, and Northwest Nebraska. This is the first definitive confirmation of a female mountain lion being present in Missouri since 1994.

More from the MDC press release below:

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PROJECT IDEA: Kirkwood School’s Ultimate Outdoor Learning Lab

All photos provided by Dr. Meredith Spiekerman Byers.

All photos provided by Dr. Meredith Spiekerman Byers.

In 2013, Kirkwood School District’s Keysor Elementary opened the PROJECT IDEA outdoor natural learning space. The nearly one acre of space offers a natural play area and an outdoor lab for enhanced STEM learning. The area is an all-inclusive area for students, families, and the entire community.

Dr. Meredith Spiekerman Byers and husband Derek, kids Wyatt (12), Shiloh (8), and Ryder (7).

Dr. Meredith Spiekerman Byers and husband Derek, kids Wyatt (12), Shiloh (8), and Ryder (7).

 

Dr. Meredith Spiekerman Byers, co-chair of Kirkwood School’s PROJECT IDEA, is the guest on Behind the Editor’s Curtain with Don Corrigan.

Byers shares the story behind PROJECT IDEA outdoor space, the community and professional partners of the project, the learning opportunities for students and the community, the STEM emphasis, and the future goals of the project.

Click “continue reading” to hear the podcast with Byers below.

 

 

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Don Robinson State Park Opens

Don Robinson State Park.

Don Robinson State Park.

Gov. Nixon announces the opening of Don Robinson State Park. The land donated to the state in 2012 features sandstone cliffs, diverse forests and a significant tributary to the Meramec River

Read more from Gov. Nixon’s press release below…

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