MISSOURI'S SQUIRREL, BLACK BASS SEASONS OPEN SATURDAY

If you are one of the many hunters who have already cleaned and put your shotgun away until next fall, you are going to miss out on a unique opportunity to go on a combination hunting/fishing trip.

Saturday is opening day for squirrel season statewide. It is also the first day, since Feb. 28, that anglers on streams in most of Southern Missouri can catch black bass and keep them legally.

Squirrel season runs from May 26 through Jan. 15, 2002. There is a daily limit of six squirrels and a possession limit of 12. A small game hunting permit is required unless you meet one of the following exemptions: 1) you are a resident of Missouri age 65 or older; 2) you are 15 years of age or younger; 3) you meet the definition of landowner or lessee as defined in the Wildlife Code of Missouri.

Legal methods include: archery, rifle, handgun, shotgun, muzzleloader and cage-type traps. Shotguns are limited to a maximum of three shells in the magazine and chamber combined.

Once again, consult the Wildlife Code of Missouri for complete details. We have both fox squirrels and gray squirrels in this area but they tend to exhibit slightly different habitat preferences. If you prefer one species over the other, there are some things that can help you to locate your particular choice of "tree rat."

Fox squirrels derive their name from their fox-like rusty red color. They are the largest of the two species, often weighing up to three pounds. They eat their own weight in food each week.

They are most often found along wooded creek bottoms that adjoin crop fields. The fox squirrel tends to favor mature hedgerows, small woodlots and wooded pastures.

The gray squirrel (gray with white underparts) weighs less than two pounds at maturity.

Individual gray squirrels may consume up to 100 pounds of food per year. They prefer extensive, heavily wooded areas with good ground cover.

If you are fortunate enough to find a flowing stream located near good squirrel habitat, you have the opportunity to maximize your leisure time. By including a cooler full of ice with your other gear, you can go squirrel hunting in the early morning hours and have an easy method of keeping your squirrels fresh. As the day warms up, swap your firearm for a fishing pole and head for the stream.

The daily limit on black bass is six smallmouth, largemouth or spotted bass in the aggregate. All black bass less than twelve inches (12") in total length must be returned to the water unharmed immediately after being caught from the unimpounded portion of any stream.

Experienced stream fishermen use permanent markers (or tape) to place marks (twelve inches apart) directly on their fishing poles for a convenient method of measuring the bass that they catch.

They can hold the fish up with the nose next to the upper mark and if the fish's tail extends beyond the lower mark then they know that the fish is of legal length.

Now let's talk turkey.

Missouri's 2001 Spring Turkey Hunting Season ended one week ago today. The statewide total of 55,302 turkeys fell 1,539 birds short of the all-time record of 56,841 set last year. However, if you add in the more than 2,500 turkeys harvested during the first-ever Youth-Only Spring Turkey Season (April 14-15), then it was yet another record season.

The 16-county area that comprises the Missouri Department of Conservation's Southeast Region checked 4,417 birds excluding the youth harvest. That's a decrease of 295 from last year.

St. Francois County led the way with 642 turkeys checked. Ste. Genevieve (585) and Perry (537) counties were next. Bollinger County checked 502 turkeys and Cape Girardeau County reported 457 birds. Other Southeast Region counties and their totals were: Iron (342); Madison (304); Wayne (272); Reynolds (230); Butler (220); Stoddard (162); Scott (94); Mississippi (37); New Madrid (31); Dunklin (2); and Pemiscot (0).

Gene Myers is a Missouri Department of Conservation agent in Cape Girardeau County.