Environmental Echo

Images: E.J. Thias / Show Me … Natural Wonders

By Don Corrigan

If you’ve spent any time in Columbia, Mo., you know it can be a base for visiting nature sites and more. Like many J-school grads, this writer took advantage of many opportunities while living in COMO.

Stephen Paul Sayers, a Mizzou research professor, recently authored, 100 Things To Do In Columbia Before You Die, by Reedy Press.

No doubt, many Mizzou grads thank their lucky stars that they can already check off some of his bucket list items. However, Sayers also has “to-do” ideas that alumni may have missed on their COMO stays.

Sayers’ book will undoubtedly inspire some return trips for the former residents of Missouri’s premier university town.

Among the Sayers’ outdoor/nature sites that this writer also would heartily recommend:

• Eagle Bluffs – a perfect spot for hiking and bird watching. You can watch bald eagles gliding on the breezes below you.

• Three Creeks – there’s so much to take in here. Don’t be shy about getting off the trail and examining sinkholes, caves, and rocky bluffs.

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By Don Corrigan

In mid-March, Californians welcome their famous cliff swallows back to Capistrano. In late February, Missourians welcome their infamous turkey vultures to the Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery with an annual Vulture Venture.

Missouri’s turkey vultures are infamous because they are considered ugly and repulsive by many. However, the dark-colored birds deserve a better reputation because these large birds perform an invaluable service in nature.

Turkey vultures do valuable clean-up duties by ridding the landscape of dead animals. They thoroughly enjoy a meal of rotting flesh and odorous carcass. Where others fear to tread, the turkey vultures are always ready to chow down.

Technically, the vultures do not actually return to the Branson area in late February. They are present in great numbers in the vicinity of the hatchery all winter. However, they become more visible as the winter cold recedes in late February and the air gets warmer.

The increased sunlight as spring approaches will prompt the turkey vultures to begin stirring. As the air warms, the birds are once again able to ride the thermals and scout the ground below for potential breakfast, lunch and dinner as they fly.

Vultures can be viewed around Lake Taneycomo throughout the year, but in winter the trout-fishing spot attracts these birds by the hundreds. Resident and migrating vultures love the canyon-like topography that can give the birds protection from cold winds. Plenty of large shoreline trees also offer vultures sturdy roosting sites.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) invites people to view these misunderstood birds at its annual Vulture Venture program. The program is always located at Shepherd of the Hills Hatchery on the west end of Lake Taneycomo, just below Table Rock Dam.

Vulture Ventures have been happening since 1994 and can include a number of activities, such as displays of a captive vulture with a handler, usually from Wonders of Wildlife in Springfield; children’s activities with spotting scopes for viewing vultures in the wild; and, a children’s vulture roadkill game.

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Flooding from 2019. City of St. Charles’ Frontier Park. Photos by Holly Shanks.

by Don Corrigan

St. Louis and its suburbs have experienced drought, but also extreme precipitation events. That includes record-shattering rains this summer that delivered a “Year of Flash Floods” for 2022.

Thunderstorms in July delivered devastating flooding, including one on July 26 and another on July 28. The storms hit especially hard in Kirkwood, Webster Groves, Rock Hill, Brentwood and University City.

Area waterways such as the River Des Peres, Shady Creek, Deer Creek and Gravois Creek “flashed” out of their banks. The water receded in a matter of hours, but left mud, trees, home debris and thousands of dollars in damage.

The one-in-1,000 year rain events prompted national news coverage. Sean Hadley, spokesman for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD), summed it up for the Washington Post: “It was just too much water.”

“What happened was way more than the system – any system – can handle,” said MSD’s Hadley. He said one storm dumped more than 9 inches of rain in a matter of hours, shattering the previous daily record in St. Louis from 1915.

Fire fighters rescued more than a dozen people trapped in their homes by floodwaters in north Webster Groves. On North Forest Avenue, 11 people were rescued from five residences. One East Pacific Avenue, more stranded residents were rescued.

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Terry Says: “Let’s All Be Safe on Roadways”

Q & A: Session with author Don Corrigan

Q: Why a coloring book for kids with a main character that’s a turkey vulture?

A. Turkey vultures are the “Eagles of the Ozarks.” I learned this from my Ozarks expert and book producer, Jo Schaper. She said turkeys can be a dimwits and  vultures can be scoundrels, but combined you get Missouri’s Ozark Eagle.

Q: That’s a stretch. But why an Ozark Eagle to talk road safety?

A. No creature keeps its eyes on the road like turkey vultures. They witness car collisions with squirrels and raccoons, with possums and armadillos, with pet dogs and cats. Turkey vultures are scavengers wanting an easy meal – roadkill. They’re always in search of highway fast food. Unfortunately, Ozark Eagles get run over, because they don’t pay attention to oncoming traffic when dining.

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