In the back of the March 23 issue of the Missouri Conservationist magazine there's an item stating we now have a late trapping season. It's private land only, for Coyote, 'Possum, Coon and Striped Skunk only, from 1 March thru 14 April. No other details given.
First I've heard of it. Phone number for Busch Wildlife, the E Mo Headquarters is 636-441-4554, don't waste time talking to a volenteer phone answerer, mostly they are worthless.

Unless your getting paid why do it. Fur value will be worthless, and I'd imagine you could trap year round with a damage control license. MDC has relegated those species to be worthless ,or why trap during birthing seasons This might hurt you guys in the long run.

Sounds like that's to help the turkeys a little bit.

Yes it’s true.
Starting a coon job on a big hunting club in 2 weeks.
It sucks that that’s where we’re at, but I think it’s the future. Populations need to be managed, and it ain’t happening with the current fur market.
The guvment made it official. Coon are vermin.

You're spot on as I just sold fur to a local fur buyer here in Missouri and was paid $1.50 per coon. Otter went for $25 and beaver averaged $10, but I just couldn't believe the $1.50 per coon. Isn't worth your time.

Just depends what your doing it for, I have a lot of farms that allow me to hunt I'll gladly take out coon and whatever raids the best on those properties to help manage the turkeys numbers.

If you need the practice, have at em. Unless you’re getting payed you’re gonna lose money. They are not gonna get any significant turnaround in predator control until they put a 15-25 dollar bounty on the nest robbers like the Dakotas has. Then you might see a lot of trappers take notice of it. It ain’t like the Mo. conservation doesn’t have the money to do that either. I don’t think they wanted anything to do with this extended season and the early season, but got pressured into it by deer, quail, turkey, and duck organizations to do something about the animals.
Clay is right about in the very near future ( or now) that if you want problem animals controlled, you gonna have to pay to get it done. If fur prices go up it will alter this equation, but that probably ain’t gonna happen in the near future.

I am using the extended season to take the opportunity to knock back some predator and nest raiders. Its also allowing me to hone my skills ,so maybe just maybe, I will be ready for the next mini fur-boom

The extended season is indeed targeted for nest raiders,,, I don’t remember whereabouts I read it,,, but the upland bird population including turkey has taken a massive hit,,, 50 percent loss in some places. With lower numbers of trappers and coon hunters,, there’s not much to keep the nest predator numbers in check

Likely won't do much good (except on a very local basis) as there are few trappers that will participate and even fewer landowners that are willing to pay for a trapper's services. Here in Ga, coon and possum are now allowed to be trapped and hunted year-round. Coyote take has always been allowed year-round.

Any little bit is better than nothing.

You can trap all the nest predators you want but at the rate of habitat loss it ain't going to matter in a few years. Lease holders plant food plot but don't do any habitat work. Less habitat =less carrying capacity=less animals

X2

That’s the thing though, the landowners that want nest predators gone do have the habitat. It’s already been stated to help the population, it will come through private landowners. I can tell you and provide names and numbers of landowners that will testify to trapping working for both quail and turkeys. And if it’s making a difference on their land it’s helping the surrounding properties as well.
Now I won’t trap for free, but I’ve shown several folks how to use traps. Heck one landowner just bought a dozen DP’s and is acting like a little kid texting me every time he catches a coon or possum. I’ve told them if they buy the traps I’ll show them how and where to use them. If I can get as many folks as possible to buy just 6 DP’s and catch 20 coons/possums a year then eventually it will make a difference. What I’ve found is once they start catching, they want more of it. When folks see the benefits, it starts catching on!

MO conservation is a joke.crooks

This

FACT!

Farmers and ranchers are tearing out wood lots, fence rows, draining ponds, etc. Turkey and quail populations are noticeably smaller anywhere this has/is occurring in my area.

I trap managed properties. Those with habitat continue to have good healthy populations. Their neighbors who removed habitat are begging (and paying) for a place to hunt.

fact

FACT!!! Tied with democrats as the most corrupt and dishonest group in the state.

Did they steal from you or something?

Please expand on Missouri Conservation Dept. I'd like to hear your stories....

Facts only please.

Sorry, but you have been mislead. As a trapper, yeah the $ is good, but in truth they’d be way farther ahead investing the money’s doled out into habitat reclamation projects. Ya ou can trap all the “nest raiders” you want, but without proper nesting and brooding habitat there will never be many nests for them to raid. Fact.. came to the Dakotas and see for yourself. Living here my entire life, pheasant and partridge numbers always fluctuated, but always had a lot, just an awful lot some years. Now, with intensive agriculture and big farming practices we get a few on some years and very few most of the time compared to what it once was. Partridge are all but gone, and real pheasants are in isolated pockets. The only change is farming practices of today, with no cover you have no game period. I know people will say we went there to a place and saw hundreds if not thousands, hate to burst your bubble, but you were more than likely paying to shoot colorful pen raised glorified chickens. I miss the days of thousand wild bird flushes, sadly they are a thing of the past.

I like sending memes like this to a friend of mine who is a conservation agent, he gets a good laugh out of it

I think the extended season is more about ADC than fur. With the collapse of the fur industry, landowners need relief from the damages caused by high population of varmints.

Fact - The MDC utilizes millions of dollars of state tax dollars and then pays the federal govt to attempt to control hogs and have eliminated that opportunity for the public on state and federal lands. Fact. If you think the federal govt is more efficient at spending money than a state govt - please go get your 4th booster......
Fact - Leadership from MDC failed numerous audits and utilized the state plane for private trips.
Fact - Leadership from MDC has shifted from hook and bullet mentality to butterflies and diversity and sensitivity training
Fact - MDC no longer assists private landowners with fishery stocking or food plot assistance like they used to
Fact - Agents can no longer enforce the code without fear of being over ruled or having their actions belittled - example baiting

Fact - MDC has had many excellent agents quit due to frustration and the changes they have seen and observed. I do not believe MDC leadership supports the agents or conservation of resources like they did historically. Leadership and direction has greatly changed.

I recone that was meant for myself, I follow all fish and game laws. What a joker we live here and complain about our state government and people automatically trust the government, that's probably 80 percent of the trouble. No loyalty to fellow sportsman.

Landowners need to pony up some money and pay to have said predators removed.

boots on the ground is good people. johnny morris run the mdc

I laughed at treedablackdog the sentivity training. My brother in law works for the conservation and him and one of his co workers got into it at the shop, he was wrote up and had to take a 3 hour on line course about how words hurt lol. I laughed when he told me that...

And you need a college degree work or them, from usually libtard schools!

Unfortunately nearly every state wildlife agency is heading down same road as mentioned above.

Let me add to that:

A special conservation tax in Missouri is added to all fishing and hunting equipment sold, (guns, ammo, rods reels etc). This tax is to be used for rifle ranges for the public and launch ramps at the rivers. The launch ramps on James River is SW MO. are overburdened and all but taken over by the canoe rental people. We've bee promised ramp upgrades for years but nothing has happened.
Public shooting ranges are few and no new ones built lately in this country. With all the guns and ammo bought in the last few years this should have generated a LOT of tax revenue for a place for people to shoot. I'm lucky to belong to a private range. There is money to build nature paths and bike paths for people to 'observe' nature though. Maybe Missouri ought to have a tennis shoe tax for people that use these nature paths. Calls to the Missouri Conservation Commission don't go well. They'll tell you how they need these paths for the children.

And yes, they sold the plane idea to Missouri sportsman with the idea that they were to be used to to ferry turkey and deer and such around the state. They are used for executive transport for people that feel they are too important to have their time wasted on automobile transportation. Missouri ain't that big. You can drive across the state in less than a day.

Sorry but johnny isn't running anything.

Here's one simple fact the clowns put out:
The topic was why was the songbird population on decline, there explanation was that hobbyist people were killing them and selling there feathers on the black market, that was extent of the explanation.

Fact: for several years I wrote documentations trying to get our season moved toward the 1st of November, by the 15th our creeks r froze the coon and skunks have partially holed up and you have 10 days of deer season right during the opener. At the time I had it all documented and KS, TN,AR, and other states south of us opened before we did. There response was the fur buyers didn't want the season to open up any earlier. There was more to the letter and response but that pretty much summed it up.

I was wondering how/why they are crooks.

I heard mo legalized weed.

True Marty

upinsmoke

Swamp wolf I'll pm you tonight with info.

I’d venture to say that advice from Grant Woods spurred the MDC to extend the season. Grant is a very knowledgeable, down to earth guy with a good idea of what does and doesn’t work when it comes to animal populations. The states own biologists can’t figure out how to manage our resources, so at least they were smart enough to listen to outside advice. Make no mistake though, the state cares very little about doing the right thing for our wildlife. They want to continue to be a hotspot for nonresident hunters. All about that cash.

If you haven’t heard of Grant, just look up Growing Deer TV on YouTube. It would be nice if the state had a guy like him at the helm instead of what we currently have. Maybe then we could see some real change on improving habitat for all wildlife.

Grant Woods is a sharp old boy. He's done wonders with that place he's got. He'll be the first to tell you you've got to keep the predators, (skunks, coons, weasels, coyotes etc.....) cropped back if you want the small animals, turkeys and fawns to live.