Wildlife management course to be offered in Cape County

Private landowners, farmers, sportsmen, outdoor enthusiasts can learning more about wildlife biology in course scheduled for Feb. 4 to March 18 at the Cape Girardeau County Extension office in Jackson.

The 2003 Master Wildlifer shortcourse is designed to provide information about managing wildlife resources on private lands. The program features regional and national experts.

More than 90 percent of Missouri lands are privately owned, according to Robert Pierce, MU Extension wildlife specialist.

"Our wildlife resources in Missouri are dependent on the decisions of private landowners," Pierce said. "They might want to manage their land for their own use, whether it's improved hunting or bird watching or any wildlife viewing."

The Master Wildlifer course will feature sessions on an introduction to wildlife management concepts; managing major game species, including white-tailed deer, eastern wild turkey, bobwhite quail, cottontail rabbit, mourning dove and waterfowl; managing aquatic resources such as wetlands, streams and farm ponds; managing property for a diversity of wildlife, including threatened and endangered species; as well as developing wildlife recreation opportunities.

Understanding life cycles

The foundation of wildlife management is "to understand the life cycles of plants and animals. There has to be an ecological and biological basis for management decisions," Pierce said. "Participants will be learning the biology of species like white-tailed deer and wild turkey: What do they eat? Where do they nest?"

Seven three-hour sessions will be broadcast live from 6 to 9 p.m. each Tuesday between Feb. 4 and March 18 from Clemson University in South Carolina. A comprehensive reference manual and speaker notes will be provided to participants. Opportunities to ask questions of the experts will be available via a toll-free phone number and special features on the Internet at www.masterwildlifer.net.

Cape Girardeau County is among 32 sites hosting this wildlife program in Missouri. Contact Gerald Bryan at 243-3581 or bryang@missouri.edu for more information and a registration form. Classes will be held at the Cape Girardeau County Extension Center, located at 684 West Jackson Trail in Jackson.

The cost is $75 for individuals ($110 for two family members) for all seven sessions if registered by Jan. 28. After this date, the cost is $100 or $135. Single sessions cost $15 each. Seating is limited so register early to ensure a spot, Bryan said.

Lease-hunting or fee-hunting can be profitable for farmers, according to Pierce. "If your goal is to enhance the recreational opportunities on your farm and also enhance your farm income, this would help you to do that," he said.

Refreshments will be served each evening. Participants attending five of the seven sessions will receive a certificate and Master Wildlifer cap.

The Master Wildlifer shortcourse is co-sponsored in Missouri by the School of Natural Resources at the University of Missouri-Columbia, University Outreach and Extension, the Missouri Department of Conservation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service, as well as local farm and conservation organizations.