http://freshare.net/nature en bobk@freshare.net Copyright 2012 2012-05-18T16:36:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/never_a_dull_day_fishing/ http://freshare.net/article/never_a_dull_day_fishing/#When:16:36:00Z I hadn’t wet a line in a while, so my plan was to ply the waters of Capps Creek for a couple of hours in search of a few rainbow or brown trout. Capps is a location where I’ve either had great success catching fish, or left without as much as a nibble. Yesterday, it was the latter. … Nature and Wildlife, Wanders 2012-05-18T16:36:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/tips_to_help_manage_property_for_turkeys_in_oklahoma/ http://freshare.net/article/tips_to_help_manage_property_for_turkeys_in_oklahoma/#When:13:15:00Z It won’t be long until their eggs hatch and poults will be leaving their nest sites to start their lives as wild turkeys in Oklahoma. These birds will have a large home range so their management can be a bit tricky. However, Dwayne Elmore, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension wildlife specialist, has some good advice for proper management of the… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2012-05-15T13:15:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/more_elk_for_missouri_restoration_to_arrive_mid_may/ http://freshare.net/article/more_elk_for_missouri_restoration_to_arrive_mid_may/#When:15:23:00Z The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) will soon add 35 wild elk to the Show-Me state’s recently restored herd at Peck Ranch Conservation Area. Peck Ranch is part of a 221,000-acre elk-restoration zone that covers parts of Shannon, Carter and Reynolds counties. The elk are scheduled to arrive at the refuge area of Peck Ranch on May 18… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2012-05-08T15:23:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/warm_temperatures_continue_through_april_may_rainfall_uncertain/ http://freshare.net/article/warm_temperatures_continue_through_april_may_rainfall_uncertain/#When:15:12:00Z It’s too close to call yet, but April temperatures this year look to be cooler than March’s. “It’s rare, but occasionally it occurs where March is warmer than April,” said Pat Guinan, extension climatologist with the University of Missouri Commercial Agriculture Program. “The numbers are indicating it’s going to be very close, with both months averaging about 58… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-05-08T15:12:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/one_million_observations_to_natures_notebook/ http://freshare.net/article/one_million_observations_to_natures_notebook/#When:14:18:01Z Thanks to citizen-scientists around the country, the USA National Phenology Network hit a major milestone this week by reaching its one millionth nature observation. The millionth observation was done by Lucille Tower, a citizen-scientist in Portland, Ore., who entered a record about seeing maple vines flowering. Her data, like all of the entries, came in through USA-NPN’s online… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-05-04T14:18:01-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/new_hope_arrives_for_endangered_prairie_chickens/ http://freshare.net/article/new_hope_arrives_for_endangered_prairie_chickens/#When:14:08:01Z Greater prairie chickens, missing for some years among the grasses at Wah-Kon-Tah Prairie, strutted and boomed again this spring in an eons-old mating ritual. Biologists, digging deep in grassland ecology to save the species in Missouri, brought them back. Now, they watch to see if this iconic but state-endangered member of the grouse family can be restored longterm to prairies… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-05-04T14:08:01-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/shrew_not_normally_from_arkansas_found_in_the_ozarks/ http://freshare.net/article/shrew_not_normally_from_arkansas_found_in_the_ozarks/#When:14:00:00Z In a recently published research paper in the Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science, researchers announced the identification in the Arkansas Ozarks of a species of shrew not previously known to exist in the state. The northern short-tailed shrew, which is generally distributed in the northern United States, was found in Madison, Newton, Pope, Sharp and Van Buren counties.… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-05-04T14:00:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/earbones_accurately_record_a_fishs_life_travels/ http://freshare.net/article/earbones_accurately_record_a_fishs_life_travels/#When:15:05:00Z Studying the earbones of trout can reveal their lifetime movements in a large river system, according to a study released in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. Researchers correlated the natural variation in strontium isotopes found in stream waters against those recorded in the earbones (otoliths) of cutthroat trout. This enabled the scientists to examine fish movements during… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-05-02T15:05:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/bear_awareness_extra_important_in_springtime/ http://freshare.net/article/bear_awareness_extra_important_in_springtime/#When:14:41:00Z Resource Scientist Jeff Beringer has a piece of advice for Missouri outdoors people and landowners: Be bear aware. Beringer is the bear specialist for the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). When someone sees a bear somewhere in the Show-Me State, they call him. His phone rings more often each spring, and this year is no exception. … Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-05-02T14:41:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/do_genes_rule_behavior/ http://freshare.net/article/do_genes_rule_behavior/#When:18:50:01Z Age determines stereotypical roles worker honeybees assume. When they are only a few days old, they take on the tasks of feeding the brood and producing beeswax to seal cells in the hive where larvae develop. After a week, she moves on to other tasks, such as grooming other bees and packing pollen in the nest. Only as her life… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-04-26T18:50:01-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/68_million_birds_die_each_year_at_communication_towers/ http://freshare.net/article/68_million_birds_die_each_year_at_communication_towers/#When:14:47:00Z Nearly 7 million birds die every year as they migrate from the United States and Canada to Central and South America, according to a new study published by the Public Library of Science. The birds are killed by the 84,000 communication towers that dot North America, some rising as high as 2,000 feet skyward. “This is a tragedy… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-04-26T14:47:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/antibiotic_resistance_flourishes_in_freshwater_systems/ http://freshare.net/article/antibiotic_resistance_flourishes_in_freshwater_systems/#When:14:36:00Z Dr. Seuss may have been on to something when he imagined that microscopic communities could live and flourish on small specs of dust, barely visible to the naked eye. In fact, such vibrant communities actually exist in a material with a delightfully Seussical sounding—yet scientific—name: “floc.” McMaster University researchers discovered that floc, a “goo-like” substance occurring suspended in… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-04-26T14:36:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/fight_against_cancer_may_hold_lessons_for_battling_aquatic_invasive_species/ http://freshare.net/article/fight_against_cancer_may_hold_lessons_for_battling_aquatic_invasive_species/#When:14:02:00Z Lessons learned from the medical community’s progress in fighting cancer can provide a framework to help prevent the introduction and spread of harmful aquatic invasive species, according to a study released in American Scientist. With more than 6,500 harmful non-native species causing more than 100 billion dollars in economic damage each year in the United States, more effective… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-04-25T14:02:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/talking_with_the_animals/ http://freshare.net/article/talking_with_the_animals/#When:01:43:00Z When Dr. Doolittle longed to converse with animals, I’m not sure he had worms in mind. But a team of California Institute of Technology scientists got down in the dirt to discover a communication technique used by nematodes, one of the most abundant animals on Earth. Scientists already discovered that many other animals display means of communicating within… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-04-20T01:43:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/pining_for_economic_opportunity/ http://freshare.net/article/pining_for_economic_opportunity/#When:23:52:00Z On a sunny, spring morning, Ray Glendening and his crew at CAFNR’s Horticulture and Agroforestry Research Center (HARC) harvested a little-known crop in Missouri—pine straw. The harvest is the result of successful research breeding pitch pines, which have cold tolerance, with loblolly pines, which have long needles necessary for good mulch. Pitch/loblolly hybrid pines offer a market to… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-04-19T23:52:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/searching_for_the_scissortail/ http://freshare.net/article/searching_for_the_scissortail/#When:18:03:00Z Now is the time to start searching for the scissor-tailed flycatcher on its way north from the tropics to spend the summer throughout Oklahoma, and in western Arkansas as well as south central and southwest Missouri. This area includes three of the seven states in which the bird nests. Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife, Birding 2012-04-17T18:03:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/scientists_discover_how_plants_escape_shade/ http://freshare.net/article/scientists_discover_how_plants_escape_shade/#When:17:59:01Z Mild mannered though they seem, plants are extremely competitive, especially when it comes to getting their fair share of sunlight. Whether a forest or a farm, where plants grow, a battle wages for the sun’s rays. A plant’s primary weapon in this fight is the ability to grow towards the light, getting just the amount it needs and… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-04-17T17:59:01-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/bats_save_energy_by_drawing_in_wings_on_upstroke/ http://freshare.net/article/bats_save_energy_by_drawing_in_wings_on_upstroke/#When:13:06:00Z Whether people are building a flying machine or nature is evolving one, there is pressure to optimize efficiency. A new analysis by biologists, physicists, and engineers at Brown University reveals the subtle but important degree to which that pressure has literally shaped the flapping wings of bats. The team’s observations and calculations show that by flexing their wings… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-04-13T13:06:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/a_bit_touchy_plants_insect_defenses_activated_by_touch/ http://freshare.net/article/a_bit_touchy_plants_insect_defenses_activated_by_touch/#When:16:01:01Z A new study by Rice University scientists reveals that plants can use the sense of touch—from humans,animals or other sources—to fight off fungal infections and insects. The study finds that plant defenses are enhanced when plants are touched. “From previous studies, we knew that plants change their growth in response to touch but we didn’t know how these… Nature and Wildlife, Science 2012-04-10T16:01:01-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/calming_the_storm_water/ http://freshare.net/article/calming_the_storm_water/#When:15:40:00Z Using 777 willow trees, a University of Missouri research team is beginning a two-year study to determine best methods to reclaim flood plain land damaged by development, keep waterways free of potential pollutants, and develop a cash crop for farmers. The research looks to mitigate the impact of storm water runoff. Rain runoff from hard surfaces like parking… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-04-10T15:40:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/schools_trash_litter_through_no_more_trash_contest/ http://freshare.net/article/schools_trash_litter_through_no_more_trash_contest/#When:14:34:00Z Almost 285 students from 20 Missouri elementary and middle schools helped fight litter by participating in the 2012 “Yes You CAN Make Missouri Litter Free” trashcan-decorating contest. The annual contest is sponsored by the Missouri Departments of Conservation (MDC) and Transportation (MoDOT) as part of their ongoing “No MOre Trash!” campaign to raise awareness about litter and to… Nature and Wildlife, Environment 2012-04-06T14:34:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/researchers_say_us_students_need_new_way_of_learning_science/ http://freshare.net/article/researchers_say_us_students_need_new_way_of_learning_science/#When:14:33:00Z American students need a dramatically new approach to improve how they learn science, says a noted group of scientists and educators led by Michigan State University professor William Schmidt. After six years of work, the group has proposed a solution. The 8+1 Science concept calls for a radical overhaul in K-12 schools that moves away from memorizing scientific… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation, Education 2012-04-06T14:33:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/online_information_can_help_with_war_on_feral_hogs/ http://freshare.net/article/online_information_can_help_with_war_on_feral_hogs/#When:14:22:00Z When you go to battle against a formidable enemy, it helps to have all the knowledge you can find. Feral or wild hogs are a foe to most Arkansans, especially owners and managers of land with sizeable amounts of woods, pastures and agricultural fields. The destructive hogs are hard to get a handle on, and it… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2012-04-06T14:22:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/three_cases_of_bat_disease_discovered_in_missouri/ http://freshare.net/article/three_cases_of_bat_disease_discovered_in_missouri/#When:21:12:00Z The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) recently received confirmation that a deadly disease in bats called “White-Nose Syndrome” (WNS) has been found in three bats from two caves in Lincoln County. The name describes a white fungus, Geomyces destructans, typically found on the faces and wings of infected bats. WNS spreads mainly through bat-to-bat contact and has not been found… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-04-02T21:12:00-06:00 http://freshare.net/article/honey_bees_have_ability_to_self_medicate/ http://freshare.net/article/honey_bees_have_ability_to_self_medicate/#When:17:15:00Z Researchers at North Carolina State University recently discovered that worker honey bees became healers when the bees’ hives were attacked by a harmful fungus. The fungal infection triggers bees to increase levels of antifungal plant resins. “The colony is willing to expend the energy and effort of its worker bees to collect these resins,” says Dr. Michael Simone-Finstrom,… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2012-03-30T17:15:00-06:00