Iowa Hunting, Fishing Licenses Now Available on the Internet

DES MOINES - The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) began selling hunting and fishing licenses on its website on April 19, and so far, sales have been steady.

"The process is real simple and only takes a few minutes to complete," said Rich Smith, with the DNR's license bureau. "You can now buy your license at 11 p.m. or 2 a.m. from the convenience of your own home."

Any licenses that is available from a point-of-sale vendor is now available at www.iowadnr.com. Click on the hunter orange "Buy Your Hunting and Fishing License Here" icon. If the license has a tag, the tag will be mailed within five to seven working days. Internet sales of licenses with tags is closed 10 days before the season begins.

People who purchase a license online will be charged a convenience fee of $2 plus 2.5 percent of the total sale. The Iowa DNR accepts MasterCard, Visa or e-check only for Internet sales. Once a license is purchased, the DNR will send the license as an electronic file. Computers will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free on the DNR website, to view and print the license.

Tipster Helps DNR Catch Five Poachers in Monroe County

ALBIA – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources busted a five man poaching ring Tuesday night after an anonymous call was made to a conservation officer earlier in the evening.

The investigation began when conservation officer Randy McPherren received a call about poaching activity near Lovillia, in Monroe County. McPherren, along with fellow officer Lon Lindenberg, responded and stopped a pickup in the area with Oklahoma license plates.

Inside the truck was Kevin J. Riding, 20, Hinckley, Utah, Clint D. Kelly, 21, Payette, Idaho, Joseph C. Evano, 23, Rancho Cucamaonga, Calif., and Dustin P. Aguillared, 20, Youngsville, La., with a turkey Riding had shot illegally.

“They were leaving an area where they were hunting and they had part of a turkey in the truck they had just taken illegally,” McPherren said. “From our standpoint, everything was right there and it gave us a good place to start the investigation.”

McPherren and Lindenberg interviewed the four men and learned about other turkeys and a deer that had also been shot illegally. Two of the individuals admitted they had used rifles to shoot at pheasants out of their vehicle window. The officers drove to a nearby residence where they retrieved the skinned and partially de-boned deer. The deer was shot on May 2.

Officers then headed to Oskaloosa to search each of the suspect’s residence.

Officer Mike Ryan met Lindenberg and McPherren to help with the search. McPherren said the search found little remains of the turkeys. “They were eating those turkeys as fast as they were shooting them,” he said. The officers also searched the residence of Cisco J. Cole, 27, Blair, Neb., who was identified as part of the group.

The five men used public and private land in Keokuk, northern Monroe and Mahaska counties for their illegal activity.

Cole, Evano and Kelly pleaded guilty in Monroe County Court Wednesday morning to possession of an illegal turkey/failure to tag and received a $347 fine. Riding pleaded guilty to taking a tom turkey without a valid license and for taking one buck out of season. He received a $1,994 fine. Aguillared has two charges pending. The DNR seized four shotguns and one rifle used by the men.

The men all students at William Penn University and part of the 2003 – 2004 wrestling team.

“I can’t tell you how important it is for people to call us as soon as they hear about some type of illegal activity,” said McPherren. “That is the number one reason we can make these big cases. We appreciate and investigate all the anonymous tips that come in.”

The Turn In Poachers hotline is a great way to get information to the DNR to protect fish and wildlife from poachers. Call 1-800-532-2020 and leave as much detailed information as possible. Callers can remain anonymous.

Iowans Preparing for Free Camping Weekend

DES MOINES - Campers across the state are getting ready for free camping weekend at Iowa state parks, recreation areas and forests, May 14 to 16.

Free camping weekend offers Iowa residents the opportunity to camp and participate in interpretive programs offered at DNR managed land at no cost. Camping in Iowa state parks is on a first-come, first-serve basis and reservations are not accepted. Campers will need to register as usual with the exception of paying for the campsite. All campsites and additional hook-ups are included free of charge. If Iowans show up on Thursday before the free weekend to register, they will need to pay for Thursday night. Nonresidents will need to pay the appropriate campsite fee during the weekend.

If the weather forecast is good, many of the popular park campgrounds will fill quickly.

"Free camping weekend will be handled just like any other busy holiday weekend in state parks," said Sherry Arntzen, with DNR state parks bureau. Arntzen suggested that campers either call the park before heading out to make sure there are sites available or consider trying a new park.

"Some of our best kept secrets are the out-of-the-way parks. Free camping weekend offers a great reason to visit a new park," she said.

There are a number of interpretive programs offered in participating state parks throughout the weekend. Programs include wildflower walks, Dutch oven cooking, a fishing clinic, and Lewis and Clark presentations. Campers and local area residents interested in attending the interpretive programs, should either call the park office directly or visit the state parks website for information on the program content, times and locations.

All DNR managed state parks, recreation areas and forest campgrounds with the exception of Lake Ahquabi, Nine Eagles, and Pine Lake are participating. Springbrook will be offering camping, but there are no interpretive programs planned. Campground electric projects are in progress at Lake Ahquabi and Pine Lake. Nine Eagles, Pine Lake, and Springbrook have paving work and road construction in the park. For a complete list of state parks, recreation areas and forests and other information about free camping weekend, visit the state park website at www.exploreiowaparks.com .

Crappies and Mushrooms
by Joe Wilkinson

It's a tough time of year to be a crappie fishing morel hunter. Or a morel hunting crappie angler. So many spots. So little time.

For a couple weeks each spring, both pursuits can be red hot. The weather - particularly the temperature - dictates the length and quality of the crappie bite or the morel season. More often than not, though, they hit at the same time. That same warm air that heats up the soil also raises water temperatures. That triggers crappies to spawn and morels to fruit from the nearly microscopic mycelium network just under the soil.

The Morel Issue 

"I was out Monday in Polk County and found the little grays and a couple yellows. In central and southern Iowa, we are in the early stages of the morel season," reports Dr. Lois Tiffany, botany professor at Iowa State University. Tiffany is considered 'the mushroom expert' in Iowa and the Midwest and fields lots of inquiries in late April and May. In southern Iowa, the morels are popping. "One of our campers found a half pound of the bigger yellow morels on Monday," reports Mike Godby, park manager at Honey Creek State Park, near Moravia. "I've been seeing more vehicles parked along the road, too."

My own maiden voyage into the woods this week yielded none of the fungal treasures. I thought it might be early yet, but the neighbors had found some on three different days for the last week within a few miles of the shady Solon hillside I hunt two or three times each year. My more productive forays, though, have been in northeast Iowa on the way out from turkey hunting. Turkey hunting. Another good excuse to stay outside. It's a wonder I get any work done this time of year.

For these early days, Tiffany suggests going where the sun is. "South facing slopes, the lower part of them; especially if they're not heavily timbered (shaded) are the best places to look early," she offers. "It takes several days of soil temperatures in the 50s (for morels to develop). Once that daytime air temperature gets into the 70s, morel hunting is not too far off."

Most morel hunters-and experts-agree on elm trees as a great starting point. An extensive study published a decade or so ago noted that morels were found in the proximity of elms at least half the time. And dead elms are even better. After the devastation of Iowa's stately elm trees through the 50s, 60s and 70s, they are hard to find. But they are there. "A lot of bottomland and fencerows have elms," points out Tiffany. "As they age and become canopy trees, the beetles carrying the elm wilt fungus find them and infect them. We find that elm trees dead two or three years are best for finding morels.

Scientists argue that the microscopic network of fibers that 'grows' morels senses that it's host (the elm) is dying and produce the fruit (morels) as a survival reaction. Most hunters don't argue. They just pick them.

There is conflict, though, over the difference in morels. Over the years, three different names have been connected to the springtime mushroom. Morchella deliciosa refers to the small gray/white ones. The bigger yellow/tan ones are tagged Morchella esculenta. Find one of the giants; and scientists say you're holding Morchella crassipes. "Enzyme analysis and other research shows a relationship between the three," underscores Tiffany. "Is it one species with different varieties? Is it three species? To a mushroom hunter, it doesn't matter. All are equally edible."

Spoken like a true morel hunter.

The Crappie Bite

The same warm weather that makes morels pop causes crappies to spawn. And that means anglers are in for several sensational days of crappie catching. A week ago, anglers were still finding them in deep water; as the fish 'staged' before moving into the shallows to lay and fertilize eggs.

"With water temperatures in the mid 50s, upper 50s, they start spawning," observes Paul Sleeper, fisheries management biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. Even then, Sleeper emphasizes that temperature is the key. "On a warm, windy day, it might be two to three degrees warmer in the shallows that the wind is blowing into. That can make a big difference in crappie fishing."

A small jig and a minnow or either one alone works well for pre-spawn and spawning crappies. Sleeper reminds anglers that the cooler pre-spawn water still has fish moving a little slowly, so presentation should slow down. Spring crappies are an equal opportunity fish, too. You don't need a boat or expensive fish-finding gear to lock in on a spot. "Almost everybody can do it," says Sleeper. "They're going to come into the shallows, usually around brush or rocky shorelines to spawn. You can walk up and down the shoreline and catch a lot of fish in a short time."

And a skillet of crappie filets goes great with breaded, fried mushrooms... despite what your heart doctor says.