http://www.freshare.net/article/ en bobk@freshare.net Copyright 2008 2008-10-10T16:34:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/new_state_park_will_be_donated_by_jefferson_county_mo_resident/ http://www.freshare.net/article/new_state_park_will_be_donated_by_jefferson_county_mo_resident/#When:14:38:00Z The Missouri Department of Natural Resources today announced that the Missouri state park system will receive an additional state park in the future, thanks to a generous donation of a Jefferson County resident. Don Robinson of Cedar Hill approached the Missouri Department of Natural Resources about leaving his estate to the state park system after his death. The… Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-10-10T14:38:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/missouri_governor_proclaims_earth_science_week_oct_12_through_oct_18/ http://www.freshare.net/article/missouri_governor_proclaims_earth_science_week_oct_12_through_oct_18/#When:13:40:01Z Governor Matt Blunt has declared the week of Oct. 12 through Oct. 18 as Earth Science Week to bring awareness to the fact that earth sciences are fundamental to the health, safety and welfare of all Missourians. “No Child Left Inside” was selected by the American Geological Institute as the theme of Earth Science Week 2008 to increase… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-10-10T13:40:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/artists_k_8_sought_for_endangered_species_postcard_contest/ http://www.freshare.net/article/artists_k_8_sought_for_endangered_species_postcard_contest/#When:09:30:00Z Getting discovered has never been easier for budding young artists. All they have to do is send a postcard to the Missouri Department of Conservation. This is the second year for the Missouri Endangered Species Postcard Contest. Youngsters from kindergarten through eighth grade enter art focusing on endangered plants and animals and get recognition through a public display… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2008-10-08T09:30:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/see_rare_flora_and_fauna_on_falll_hike_at_meramec_state_park/ http://www.freshare.net/article/see_rare_flora_and_fauna_on_falll_hike_at_meramec_state_park/#When:09:29:00Z See fall’s golden browns, wildflowers and animals on a guided hike to be held Oct. 18 at Meramec State Park in Sullivan.  Sponsored by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the hike will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Join a park naturalist on a three-mile hike through… Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-10-08T09:29:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/missouri_removes_three_species_from_state_endangered_list/ http://www.freshare.net/article/missouri_removes_three_species_from_state_endangered_list/#When:14:42:00Z The Missouri Conservation Commission has removed two birds and a snake from the state endangered species list, recognizing that the future of all three now seems secure. At its meeting Sept. 26 in Poplar Bluff the Commission voted to declassify the bald eagle, the barn owl and the western fox snake. The action will become effective after a… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2008-10-06T14:42:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/why_do_birds_flock_together/ http://www.freshare.net/article/why_do_birds_flock_together/#When:11:47:00Z Kimberly Smith, professor of biological sciences in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, replies: Vertebrates commonly form aggregations: fish form schools, mammals form herds, and birds form flocks.  In birds, flock formation is generally associated with cooperative food hunting, information exchange and protection from predators.  While there are disadvantages to being in… Nature and Wildlife, Birding 2008-10-06T11:47:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/conservation_easement_increases_amount_of_protected_land_in_the_flint_hill0/ http://www.freshare.net/article/conservation_easement_increases_amount_of_protected_land_in_the_flint_hill0/#When:10:52:00Z The Kansas Chapter of The Nature Conservancy recently closed on a nearly 2,000-acre conservation easement in Chase County, Kansas located in the Flint Hills. The Conservancy acquired the easement from the C.E. and Lonah Birch and the Robert and Linda Mooney families, both of Shawnee, Kansas. Funding was provided in part by the Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) through the… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2008-10-06T10:52:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/join_the_arkansas_wren_survey/ http://www.freshare.net/article/join_the_arkansas_wren_survey/#When:13:31:00Z The Audubon organization has teamed up with Arkansas State University to keep tabs on a rare, declining species of wren in the state known as the Bewick’s Wren (pronounced like “Buick). In that effort, the two groups are requesting Arkansans to become citizen scientists. Dr. James Bednarz, Professor of Wildlife Ecology at ASU, said that residents of the… Nature and Wildlife, Birding 2008-10-03T13:31:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/study_says_windfarms_pose_little_threat_to_birds/ http://www.freshare.net/article/study_says_windfarms_pose_little_threat_to_birds/#When:18:24:02Z Wind farms are beginning to make an appearance all across the United States and more are being planned, including at several sites in Oklahoma and in at least one location in northwest Arkansas. While that could be excellent news for renewable energy and maybe even lower utility bills some day, there has been concern that giant blades swirling… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2008-10-02T18:24:02-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/roughin_it_wireless_internet_connections_now_available_at_5_missouri_state/ http://www.freshare.net/article/roughin_it_wireless_internet_connections_now_available_at_5_missouri_state/#When:14:25:00Z Visitors to five of Missouri’s state parks can now stay connected to the world while visiting these parks, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources announced today. Wireless Internet (Wi-Fi) connections are now available at no charge in certain areas of Bennett Spring, Roaring River, Montauk, Big Lake and Sam A. Baker state parks. Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-10-01T14:25:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/natures_medicine_cabinet_for_plants/ http://www.freshare.net/article/natures_medicine_cabinet_for_plants/#When:18:48:01Z Scientists have stumbled across a discovery they did not expect while conducting research on forest plants. Apparently, the plants respond to stress levels by producing a chemical compound that closely resembles aspirin. While plants do not worry about the economy, paying bills or who the next president will be, they do become stressed during drought conditions, insect invasions or temperature… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-09-29T18:48:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/weather_looks_favorable_for_autumn_color/ http://www.freshare.net/article/weather_looks_favorable_for_autumn_color/#When:14:26:00Z It is starting already. Roadsides are banked with the royal purple of sumac, poison ivy vines ring tree trunks like leafy lava flows, and the edges of dogwood leaves are tinged with scarlet. Missouri’s season of splendor is upon us, and foresters around the state say 2008 is likely to be one to remember. Unlike last year, when… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2008-09-29T14:26:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/putting_the_worms_back_in_bookworms_the_no_child_left_inside_act_by/ http://www.freshare.net/article/putting_the_worms_back_in_bookworms_the_no_child_left_inside_act_by/#When:20:48:00Z Pheasants Forever (PF) and Quail Forever (QF), members of the No Child Left Inside Coalition, applaud the U.S. House of Representatives for its recent passage of the No Child Left Inside Act of 2008. The No Child Left Inside Act of 2008 creates new funding for training teachers in outdoor education, expands environmental education programs and helps states to create… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-09-26T20:48:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/insect_populations_at_their_highest_in_fall_by_kimberly_dishongh/ http://www.freshare.net/article/insect_populations_at_their_highest_in_fall_by_kimberly_dishongh/#When:12:05:01Z LITTLE ROCK - Fall is on its way, but insects are likely to keep bugging you for a while longer in spite of the dropping temperatures. “The basic tenet here is that insect populations increase through the summer, and all insect populations are pretty much at their highest point in the fall,” says Dr. John Hopkins, entomologist with… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-09-26T12:05:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/rediscoveries_ghosts_of_the_grand_prairie_by_michael_d_warriner/ http://www.freshare.net/article/rediscoveries_ghosts_of_the_grand_prairie_by_michael_d_warriner/#When:14:26:00Z As its name implies, the Grand Prairie of eastern Arkansas once contained impressive grasslands - the largest in the state. Over 400,000 acres of tallgrass prairie occurred here prior to European settlement. Only about 500 acres of that original prairie remains today; the rice boom of the early 1900s lead to the conversion of these prairies into agricultural fields. Due… Nature and Wildlife, Conservation 2008-09-25T14:26:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/your_bigfoot_photo_could_make_you_a_millionaire/ http://www.freshare.net/article/your_bigfoot_photo_could_make_you_a_millionaire/#When:16:49:00Z Bushnell, the company famous for making binoculars and other outdoor optical equipment, is ready to hand over a cool $1 million for a photo of Sasquatch. That’s right. The company is teaming up with Field & Stream with an offer to award the prize money to anybody who submits a verifiable photo of the beast by December 15, 2008. … Nature and Wildlife, Nature Photography 2008-09-23T16:49:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/when_leaves_fall_more_is_occurring_than_a_change_of_weather/ http://www.freshare.net/article/when_leaves_fall_more_is_occurring_than_a_change_of_weather/#When:15:17:00Z A falling leaf often catches a poet’s eye, but scientists also wonder about the phenomenon that causes leaves to fall, or abscission in plants. Abscission is the physiological process plants use to separate entire organs, such as leaves, petals, flowers and fruit, that allow plants to discard non-functional or infected organs. University of Missouri researchers have uncovered the genetic pathway… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-09-23T15:17:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/orphaned_bear_cub_is_exception_to_the_rule/ http://www.freshare.net/article/orphaned_bear_cub_is_exception_to_the_rule/#When:14:37:00Z MOUNTAIN VIEW, Mo.—The case of a bear cub found in Howell County illustrates what is at stake when young animals are taken from the wild. Conservation Agent Travis Mills received a call Sept. 9, saying a landowner, Nancy Raith, had found a small, sick bear in her flower garden near Mountain View. Before Mills could get to the… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2008-09-22T14:37:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/visitor_from_michigan_finds_468_carat_white_diamond_at_arkansass_crater_of_/ http://www.freshare.net/article/visitor_from_michigan_finds_468_carat_white_diamond_at_arkansass_crater_of_/#When:14:19:02Z Murfreesboro—Richard Burke and his wife, Carol, of Flint, Michigan, had been visiting Colorado. While there, they went panning for gold and fossil hunting. He then decided to drive 950 miles in two days to visit Arkansas’s diamond site, the Crater of Diamonds State Park. He’d read about Arkansas’s diamond site in a geology book and seen a feature about the… Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-09-22T14:19:02-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/deer_car_accidents_show_patterns_in_missouri/ http://www.freshare.net/article/deer_car_accidents_show_patterns_in_missouri/#When:13:41:00Z Deer running in front of vehicles seems random, but statistics from the Missouri Highway Patrol offer insights that can prevent property damage and save lives. The Highway Patrol recorded 3,419 deer-vehicle accidents in 2007, or about 2.1 percent of all recorded traffic accidents in the state last year. Although deer-vehicle collisions make up only a small part of… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2008-09-22T13:41:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/jodie_little_rock_zoos_oldest_chimpanzee_dies_tuesday_afternoon/ http://www.freshare.net/article/jodie_little_rock_zoos_oldest_chimpanzee_dies_tuesday_afternoon/#When:11:28:00Z The Little Rock Zoo is sad to announce the death of Jodie, the Zoos oldest chimpanzee. Jodie died Tuesday after a medical examination performed by Zoo veterinarian, Dr. Marilynn Baeyens. Jodie, whose age is estimated to be at least 50-years-old, had been showing signs of advanced age for awhile. The medical examination performed by Baeyens showed the chimp… Nature and Wildlife, Wildlife 2008-09-22T11:28:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/forest_service_activates_annual_fall_foliage_hotline/ http://www.freshare.net/article/forest_service_activates_annual_fall_foliage_hotline/#When:14:02:01Z The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has activated its hotline which provides weekly updates on fall foliage on national forests across the country. The toll-free fall color hotline can be accessed at (800) 354-4595. Callers will be greeted with an automated voice system and can hear weekly updates on foliage peak color in different regions… Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-09-18T14:02:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/two_new_bird_species_spotten_in_oklahoma/ http://www.freshare.net/article/two_new_bird_species_spotten_in_oklahoma/#When:15:19:00Z On Wednesday, Sept. 3, seven species of birds that are rare in Oklahoma were spotted at Red Slough Wildlife Management Area in southeast Oklahoma. Two of these – Cory’s Shearwater and Sooty Tern - had never been seen in the state before. The Cory’s Shearwater and the Sooty Tern are both open-ocean species, meaning that they are usually found around… Nature and Wildlife, Birding 2008-09-17T15:19:00-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/arkansas_educator_one_of_two_to_win_fellowship_expeditions_to_antarctica_in/ http://www.freshare.net/article/arkansas_educator_one_of_two_to_win_fellowship_expeditions_to_antarctica_in/#When:18:00:01Z Fellowship Program Established to Honor National Geographic Chairman Gilbert M. Grosvenor Anne Marie Evans, a geography and history teacher at Elko Middle School in Sandston, Va., and Paul Gray, a social studies teacher and department chairman at Russellville High School in Russellville, Ark., are the second recipients of the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowships, established to honor National Geographic Society… Nature and Wildlife, Education 2008-09-16T18:00:01-06:00 http://www.freshare.net/article/unauthorized_road_is_concern_at_current_river_state_park/ http://www.freshare.net/article/unauthorized_road_is_concern_at_current_river_state_park/#When:15:47:00Z An unauthorized road built by Shannon County road crews recently within Current River State Park has created a concern for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. “As administrators of Missouri state parks, it is our job to protect the natural resources of state parks,” said Department Director Doyle Childers.  “This road was built on our land without our… Nature and Wildlife, Parks 2008-09-16T15:47:00-06:00