Page 1, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

First Quarter, March 2013

A partnership of the Missouri Department of Conservation and University of Missouri ExtensionTo engage Missourians in the in the stewardship of our state’s natural resources

through science-based education and volunteer community service.

To many people, springtime means new

beginnings. I personally love all four

seasons for different reasons; but

undoubtedly I love springtime because of

the of many plants and because of

the of many of nature’s babies.

Living lakeside in the Ozarks often means

savanna-like or glade-like property, and

we Billingtons have our fair share! One

benefit is that glades produce some

beautiful spring natives—one of which is

the Hoary Puccoon. There is a spot on our

hilltop that takes my breath away each

spring. It is awash in buttery yellow

blooms.

Most are

Hoary

Puccoon;

some are

Ground

Plum. Two

summers ago there was another precious

yellow bloom that I was not familiar with;

however, before I could take my “Ozark

Wildflowers Field Guide” up there, two

“precious” little children proceeded to pull

up (yes, pull up) my Hoary Puccoon and

the unidentified plant making several

bouquets. I didn’t spot my “new” plant

last spring, but perhaps I will this year.

Three years ago, one of my sons made a

wood duck house for me and installed it

on the shoreline of the lake a few feet

into the water. Almost instantaneously

the wood ducks were there checking out a

possible new nest. After MUCH juggling

and jostling, landing on top of the house

and looking over the side into the

opening, and botched attempts to enter,

a few females were successful. I think in

the end only one female laid eggs—one

each day for several days—before finally

incubating the eggs. I say “I think only

one female” because I understand wood

ducks are famous for “dumping” their

eggs and letting another female incubate

them!

Unbelievably that very first spring I

happened to be walking through the

bedroom and look out the window in

time to see what I first thought was

someone throwing something out of the

duck house! Obviously in the next split

second I realized that couldn’t be—so I

stopped to watch. There in the water at

the base of the duck house was mamma

duck looking up and coaxing her new

babies to take a leap of faith—all 13 of

them! What a heartwarming sight!

Last summer that same son constructed a

second wood duck house and installed it

near the first one. It took a while for all

the females to realize they didn’t have to

fight over one house; that they had

another one to argue over. Both houses

were eventually used though, and each

summer I have had the opportunity to

watch at least one flock of ducklings

emerge!

New Beginnings……………How appropriate

then that in the spring of the year the

Lake of the Ozarks Chapter of the

Missouri Master Naturalist program- has

its first Newsletter! Thank you to the

Communications & Outreach Committee

for this initial foray into virgin territory

for our Chapter. I know we will all learn

to look forward with anticipation to each

issue.

By the way, speaking of babies, do you

know whose baby is called a or

whose is a , or whose is a ?

Joann Billington

From our President

Page 2, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Heather Durbin of theCitizens Against DomesticViolence (CADV) shelterin Camdenton acceptsitems delivered byMonique Martinson (right).The donations werecollected from our chaptermembers at the 2012Christmas party.CADV is an emergencyshelter and outreachcenter for domestic andsexual violence servingCamden, Miller and Morgan Counties. Find out more about CADV on their website : http://www.cadv-voc.org/about.asp

� Jodi Moulder and EdThompson for the IdentifyingTrees in Winter outing at Lake ofthe Ozarks State Park. Theweather was cool but sunny,perfect for a winter hike. Theevent was well attended, veryinformative, and fun!

� Tim White for the excellenttraining on astronomy at theJanuary meeting. Unfortunatelythe cloudy weather did notcooperate to let us go outsideand look at the sky through thetelescope, but the nimble ATcommittee quickly adapted, andthe indoor program wasinteresting and informative!

� Lillie Smith, ProductionManager, Lake AreaIndustries, Inc. and KathieBishop for their presentations onrecycling at the Februarymeeting. Thanks also to BonnieWhite and Ted Windels for theirhelp in organizing the AdvancedTraining and for bringingmaterials to share.

� Carolyn Solomon, DennisReed, Laura Toombs, KathieBishop and Sam Jeffcott forrepresenting the Chapter at theFebruary 23 LeadershipConference in Jefferson City.

� Ted Windels for organizing thetour to Laclede Industries inLebanon! The on-again, off-again “weather” made this a trick!

� Jerry Barnabee of Meramec HillsChapter for sharing the computerprogram he designed forrecording volunteer/AT hours withthe Lake of the Ozarks Chapter.

� Paul Johnson, MDC ResourceForester for his presentation onselecting the right tree for thelocation at the March meeting.

� Lauri Peterson for her donationof bare root trees for six luckyMaster Naturalist members at theMarch 14 meeting.

W elcome to the first edition ofthe Lake of the Ozarks Chapterof the Missouri Master

Naturalist program newsletter! We areplanning for this to be sent quarterly byemail, coming out in March, June,September and December.

Having a newsletter has been a long timehope of our chapter, and we aredelighted to finally get one started. Abig thanks to everyone thatvolunteered to be on our “staff”, gaveadvice, and contributed articles.

There is one person in particular that Iwould like to thank for making thispossible, her name is Carmen Santos.Carmen is with the Confluence chapter,and is the editor of their news letter. Iwas introduced to her last Fall at our

State Conference where she got my emailaddress and contacted me to offer tohelp us get our newsletter started. Shetook the time to meet with me and showme some of the basics. The format of thisnewsletter has been copied directly fromher very fine newsletter. Thank youCarmen!

This newsletter is still evolving, and wewill always be looking for contributionsfrom our members. We expect thecontent will change from issue to issuebased on these contributions. The morepictures, stories, quotes and ideas thatwe get from all of you, the better thiswill be.Please email any contributions to BrettBillington(brett_billington@yahoo.com).

During Eagle Days on January 5th and 6th we were lucky tohave the enthusiastic support of 39 of our members whocontributed over 425 volunteer hours to the event. 14 ofthose volunteers were new to our group.Through our efforts, along with local Boy Scouts, anadditional activity was added this year at the BagnellDam Access Site. Using all natural materials, weconstructed life-sized replicas of bald eagle nests. Visitors wereencouraged to take part in the nest building process over the 2 day period.Many visitors crawled in and out of the nests for photo ops.Also new this year was the Owls of Missouri presentation. Along with theEagle presentation at Osage National there were plenty of opportunities forvolunteer hours as well as training.

Linda Burns

Eagle Days 2012

Page 3, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

2012 MISSOURI MASTER NATURALISTSTATE CONFERENCE

at the beautiful Lake of the Ozarks

The 2012 state conference, held at the WindermereConference Center, had over 230 attendees. Thenumerous workshops, whether in the classroom orhands on learning in the outdoors, were veryinformative.

The Silent Auction was a great success.

The dragonfly artcontest showcasedsome incredible talentfrom across the state.

All in all, it was ahuge success. Thankyou to all who helpedmake it such awonderful experience.

Cave exploration,canoeing, naturephotography andentomology werejust a few of thechoices foradvanced training.

The Saturday evening Italian banquet wasdelicious, and Marideth Sisco's Ozark folklorewas spellbinding.

The evening events includedstar gazing, owl prowls,bonfires (with s'mores) andplenty of networking.

Photos courtesy of Eric Davisand Lauri Peterson

Page 4, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Initial certifications� Brett Billington� Jo Anne Gitchell� Carl Rast� Susan Neal� Suzanne Kercher� John Kester� Bill Nelson

1. Flexibility - In the volunteer world we can spend hours planningand organizing something just to have it unravel in a few minutes.It takes someone with the ability to adapt and be flexible in thosesituations that really makes or breaks the outcome of the situation.

2. Energy - Volunteering can take a lot of energy.  Know yourselfand know your limits, and take time to pick projects that are goodmatch for your physical and emotional energy level.

3. Creativity & Imagination - We can probably all agree thatpeople who are creative and have good imaginations are great tobe around.  The level of passion and excitement they bring doesn’tallow the craziness of the unknown to overwhelm them or thedrain of the mundane bring them down.  Volunteering doesn’tneed to be a solemn or straining thing.  When individuals use theirtalents, passions, and humor they bring life into the tasks at hand.Allow yourself to dream; bring your creativity into whatever you dobecause it leaves your own personal and sincere mark.

4. Integrity - As a volunteer, people trust you with their facility,community, and organization–which is an extreme responsibility.

Relationships between organizations can be hindered by anindividual’s thoughtless acts. One of the most helpful things I’veseen in our volunteers and something we look for in future internsis integrity.  When people are sincere in their everyday life itenriches their volunteer work in a way that speaks louder thanwords. The way you serve really shows how much you care- andthose you serve see it.

5. Selflessness - Volunteering is just that- sacrificing of one’stime, energy and services without expecting anything in return.Although it is exceedingly rewarding, the reality is the passionbehind volunteering can wear thin at times.  Sometimes there aredays when it seems you’ve given all of yourself, and it’s not fun,it’s not exciting, it’s just sacrifice. It’s at this point when we have toexamine what we are doing- is it worth our time and effort?Because when we realize what’s important, living for ourselves isnot so appealing anymore.

Jackie Rasmussen - MU Advisor

5 Qualities That Make a Great Volunteer

Recent Achievements and CertificationsCongratulations to our members that have achieved milestonesin January, February and March!

Re-certifications (for 2012)� Ed Thompson� Cindy Gum� Jean Knoll� Dustin Koeninger� Deana Bennett� Adair Bennett

250 hours (bronze)� Ed Thompson� Dennis Reed� Lucy Silliman� Linda Burns

500 hours (pewter)� Joann Billington

December: Chuck Mason, Carol Bullard, NancyShaul, Jean Knoll, Vickie Brown, Sam Jeffcott

December: Lauri Peterson, Ed Thompson,Cindy Gum, Laura Toombs, Sally Bauder, CarolBullard, Greg Koenig

March:DustinKoeninger, CarolineToole, Ted Windels,John Kester, SusanNeal, Carl Rast

February: Jo Anne Gitchell, Joann Billington, LucySilliman, Dennis Reed

November:Kathy Bishop,Dave Fosnough

November: Bonnie Kester, Kathy Bishop,Lucy Silliman, Marvin Silliman, Al Kitta, Don

Koeninger, Sandy Nelson

Page 5, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Naturalist NotebookTaking a closer look at the wondrous world around us

This is the time of year when it seems like if you blink you might misssomething! After we finally got some snow (yes, I’m one of those people), andit just recently melted away, I realized, “Holy cow, it’s mid-March!” Any daynow the white blooms of service berry and wild plum will be dotting the forestunderstory. Just two days ago I was reminded to go out in search of one of myfavorite springtime novelties: salamander and frog eggs!

A couple of guys on our work teamcame in from their shed with twospotted salamanders – unfortunately,dead. (Trust me - - I made sure,rinsing them off and keeping them in ashallow pan of water all day. I swearone of them moved his little leg acouple of times.) How they got inthere is a mystery, but it was afterthose nice rains we had. Thesesalamanders live in the woods, underrocks or logs, under piles of leaves,

even in burrows of other small animals (shrews, mice). On those earliestspring evenings, with temperatures above 50 and a good little rain, spottedsalamanders head to woodland ponds in search of a mate. They lay theireggs in clumps that look like big globs of clear jelly with little black dotsthroughout.So, out I went, to the little ‘pond’ downthe road to see if there were eggs. Theshed where these 2 salamanders werefound is really close to our lagoon, but Ihad no desire to check that location.Across the gravel road is a small puddleof a pond and that’s where I headed.Sure enough, I found several clusters ofeggs; each was about 3-4 inchesacross. I also noticed several whitishindividual eggs attached to leaves onthe bottom of the pond. I’m guessingthey could be from the spring peepers I heard calling the other day. Theseeggs looked different from any I’d ever seen, so that was a new discovery forme!If you want to hunt for eggs yourself, look in puddles that stay around a while.If you’ve ever driven down the road and hear frogs calling from floodedditches, go check there. It doesn’t have to be a permanent body of water forthe eggs, but it does have to be free of fish that would eat the eggs or larvae.Take your time and look closely, from all sides of the pond. The sun can makethem hard to see from certain angles; algae also starts to grow in the mass sothey may have a greenish color. Sometimes these puddles dry up before theeggs hatch, or before the tadpoles or larval salamanders are grown and out ondry land. I’ve been known to push egg clumps out to deeper water as I seepuddles drying up.So there’s your excuse to get outside this month. You have to look closely tosee the egg clumps. If you don’t know where to go come see me and I’ll showyou the place I described. It’s right by the road, easy to get to for that quick‘nature fix’ you might be looking for. What a great thing to share with your kidsor grandkids, or the neighbors, or just treat yourself!

Jodi Moulder — MDC Advisor

New on-line timereporting is coming!Cindy Gum, Linda Burns and JoannBillington traveled to the home of aMeramec Hills Master Naturalistmember on March 11. Jerry and PamBarnabee live several miles south ofRolla in the COUNTRY in a beautifulhome they have designed and prettymuch "handcrafted" themselves. Jerryhas also designed a computer programthat the Meramec Hills Chaptermembers have used for several years.The program, among other things,allows members to record theirvolunteer and AT hours on line. Hevolunteered to share the program withthe Lake of the Ozarks Chapter!The day was spent not only sharinghow to use the program butexchanging ideas for involving Chaptermembers in Master Naturalist activitiesand overcoming challengesencountered in maintaining successfulChapters. Pam was kind enough toprepare a scrumptious lunch foreveryone and both Jerry and Pamdisplayed true "Ozarks hospitality." Abig THANK YOU to both of them!Watch for more to come for the Lake ofthe Ozarks Chapter to streamlinerecord keeping!

Joann Billington

� President - Joann Billington� Vice President - Carolyn Solomon� Secretary - Lauri Peterson� Treasurer - Marvin Silliman� Projects & Volunteer Services -

Donna Foster� Hospitality - Monique Martinson� Fund Raising - Dennis Reed� Advanced Training - Sandy

Nelson� Communications and Outreach -

Laura Toombs� Web Site - Cindy Gum� Certifications - Linda Burns� MDC Advisor - Jodi Moulder� MU Advisor - Jackie Rasmussen

OurLeadership

Page 6, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Saturday, February 16, was the mostrecent work day for the clean-up ofGoodwin Sinkhole and Cave south

of Camdenton and marks one year sincethe first work days. Thesinkhole is the collectionpoint of a ninety-acrewatershed and has beenused as a trash dump forsixty years. Storm waterdrains through the trashinto the cave then exitsinto Lake of the Ozarksfrom Ha Ha Tonka springten miles away. Becausethe watershed iscomposed of cowpastures and hayfields,and because the cave isclogged with trash, naturaldrainage has beenseriously disrupted.The initial goal of the clean-up is to restorenatural drainage by removing the trash.Removing the trash should also result inthe water being less contaminated when itenters the Lake. The project is conductedby the Missouri Caves and KarstConservancy.

Around twenty volunteers participated,including cavers from as far away as St.Louis, ten Army officers in training from Ft.Leonard Wood, and one arthritic but

determined MissouriMaster Naturalist. Whileprevious work days havebeen devoted toremoving trash and tiresfrom the sinkhole, thefocus on Saturday wasto remove trash fromthe cave.Cavers and soldiers inthe cave filled bucketswith trash and soil. Thebuckets were handedout to other workerswho carried andemptied them at a greatenough distance from

the cave that the fill would not wash back inagain. When a tire was encountered, arope was attached and it was tug-of-waruntil the tire was out of the cave. A truckload of trash was bagged and, along withthe stack of tires, was hauled out of thesinkhole at the end of the day.

Totals since last February are� 43,760 pounds of trash� 2,500 pounds of metal which was

recycled� 738 tires which were removed last

spring� around 200 are tires stockpiled on site

for eventual removal.

Additional work days were held March 3, 9,10.

Ted Windels

Goodwin Sinkhole Update

Photo by Jonathon Beard

Photo by Klaus Leidenfrost

On February 23, 2013, KathieBishop, Dennis Reed, CarolynSolomon, Jodi Moulder, Sam

Jeffcott, and Laura Toombs traveled to theConservation Department headquarters inJefferson City to attend the Missouri MasterNaturalist Leadership Academy.

This event was very well attended, despitethe iffy weather and all chapters wererepresented well. Syd Hime (MDC) andBob Pierce (MUE) hosted the event andwere very gracious, as always. After agetting acquainted exercise and a generaloverview by Syd our day’s lectures began.

Bob Pierce (MUE) spoke about our MasterNaturalist chapters acquiring effectivepartners. Other Master Naturalists aroundthe state have linked up with organizationsincluding Audubon Chapters, NatureCenters, Cultural Centers, "Friends of..."groups etc. There was also groupdiscussion that included partnering withlocal press, school districts, and 4H Clubs.

Jenny Flatt (4H Youth developmentspecialist) encouraged us to contact ourlocal Extension Service 4H leaders to

provide greater opportunities to work withthe youth in our communities. This mightbe a good opportunity for a Kids Club forolder kids, help with Eagle Days, to giveone day programs on chapter membersarea of expertise, or assist with SummerCamps.

Joe Jerek (News Services Coordinator,MDC) spoke on the importance of involvinglocal media in our chapters events, buildingand maintaining good relationships withmedia professionals, using social media toour fullest advantage, how to compose awell written media release and deliverengaging interviews.

Other selected highlights :

● Member appreciation, a possiblemonthly spotlight on a member that iscontributing to the chapter.

● Posting signage at all projects thatidentified MMN involvement was asubstantial factor in recruiting newmembers raising communityawareness of MMN programs.

● Finding effective partners eliminatedthe need to be constantly trying toraise funds.

● Most successful projects were chosenwith both a sponsors needs andmember interest taken into account atthe very beginning. The immediateinvolvement of a partner sponsoreliminated road blocks such asfunding, provision of equipment etc.

● Mentors assigned to graduating classmembers to help bridge the transitionfrom student to chapter member.

● A special joint meeting at the end of anew class, a "getting to know us" eventfor graduates.

Laura Toombs and Sam J. Jeffcott

Missouri Master Naturalist Leadership Academy

Page 7, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Orangethroat Darter

DescriptionThis small darter is mottled yellow-brown on the back with indistinct browncrossbars and several vertical bluestripes on the sides. The males arequite colorful while breeding with redblotches on their sides and brightorange under gills.

SizeThe average size of an adult is 1.2 to 2inches with a maximum of 2.6 inches.

HabitatThis darter is found in slow movingriffles in streams with gravel and rockbottoms and clear to moderately clearwater.

FoodThey feed on midge larvae, otheraquatic insects and small crustaceans.

Interesting Facts� The swim bladder in darters is

lacking or much-reduced. Thisallows them to sink and holdclosely to the bottom of the streamwithout much effort.

� Shortly after hatching,orangethroat darter fry sometimesinhabit the nests of smallmouthbass. It is believed that theybenefit from the protection of themale bass guarding the nest.

� Recently scientists have separatedthe orangethroat darter group inMissouri into three distinct species:brook, Current River andorangethroat darters.

Upcoming Events

� April 11 chapter meeting 6:30 PMAdvanced Training topic will bebats.

� May 4 “27 acre yard sale” at theLaurie Fairgrounds. Clean out yourhouses and donate excess itemsto this fund raiser. Contact DennisReed if you have items that needto be picked up.

� May 9 chapter meeting 6:30 PM� June 7-9 Offshore Super Series

races at Bagnell Dam. Thechapter may be calling forvolunteers to help with parking asa fund raiser.

� June 13th chapter social at Ha HaTonka lake side shelter. Socialhour starts at 5:30, potluck at 6:30.

� For the most current listing ofupcoming events visit:http://www.lakeozarkmasternaturalist.com/LOMNCalendar.html

Our chapter has an impressive 25% to30% of our members interested inmonitoring water quality as Stream TeamMembers. The steam team effort is a jointMissouri Department of NaturalResources (MDNR) and MDC program.Monitoring water quality involvescollecting and recording chemical,biological and physical stream data andproviding that data to a statewide database maintained by MDNR in JeffersonCity.The chemical data collected is streamwater PH, conductivity,dissolved oxygencontent and nitrates. Other chemicalschecked include ammonia and phosphate.The physical data collected is made-up ofthe stream bed and riparian areacomposition, stream flow in cubic feet persecond, water temperature and waterclarity.The most challenging and interesting datacollected is the variety and number ofmarco-invertibrates (bugs) present in thewater and stream bed. We look for andcount about 15 variety of bugs. We makethree sets with our net and identify andcount the marco-invertibrates from each

set. The challenge and fun is the bugidentification. We monitor the Niangua and LittleNiangua Rivers that flow into the NianguaArm, Mill Creek that flows into the GrandGlaize Arm and one small stream thatflows into the Main Channel of the LOZ.We need to expand our efforts to covermore streams that flow into the MainChannel, at least one stream site on theGravios Mills Arm and one additional siteon the Big Niangua and Grand GlaizeArms. We check each site at least twiceper year.Formal training for a Stream TeamVolunteers includes:� One day Introductory Course (stream

side)� One day Level I Course (stream side)� Level II classroom course.� Level III designation where individuals

successfully demonstrate all of theprocedures and techniques learnedup to that point.

Please note you don't have to have anyformal training to participate in a stream

team exercise; just accompany a trainedStream Team volunteer(s).Being a Stream Team Water QualityMonitor is a very interesting endeavor andone that serves a valuable purpose.Come join us!

Billy Backues

Upcoming Introductory Level StreamTeam Training:� Columbia, Saturday April 20, You

must register by April 3� Joplin, Saturday April 27� Kansas City, Saturday May 4

You can register for the workshop on theStream Team Web Pagewww.mostreamteam.org/wqintro.aspBring a sack lunch. Wear outdoor clothingand bring boots or "river shoes" to wade ina stream. Any questions about theworkshop, call Susan Higgens at 573 5261002

2013 Certification Pin

Stream Team Water Quality Monitoring

Page 8, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Seventeen members of our chaptertraveled to Lebanon, Missouri to tourthe Laclede Industries recycling

center on Monday, February 25. The tourwas conducted by Jim Butcher, a retiredmanager of the facility.The tour took an hour and our group askeda lot of questions about recycling and about

theoperation ofthe facility.The centeris aworkshopfor thedisabled

and handlesnumerousmaterials forrecycling,includingplastics,paper, metalsand glass.

The employees are screened by theMissouri department of education, are heldto industry standards of safety, and theyare paid in proportion to theirproductivity. The workshop hasthe most employees of anybusiness in Lebanon.Our group learned about theeconomics of recycling. Whilethe workshop receives somesubsidies, to stay in business itmust still make a profit on thematerials it processes andsells. For example, LacledeIndustries also manages theWaste Watchers collection

center on Valley Road below the BagnellDam strip in Lake Ozark. The low return onrecyclable glass has meant that it is nolonger feasible to transport glass from theLake Ozark site to Lebanon for processing.Consequently, glass is no longer acceptedby that site. However, the Lebanon facilitystill takes glass.Article and photos by:

Ted Windels

Lebanon Recycling Center Tour

Our second year of Kids Club is goingalong GREAT! We learned a lot in our firstyear of existence and we are constantlyretooling our efforts to better serve ourkids.

This 2012-13 year of Lake OZ-someConservation Kids Club started withthe introduction of a theme that will runthroughout the entire year. Each Clubmember was given a Nature Journal fromthe Missouri Department of Conservation.Members were encouraged to write, drawand take pictures to fill their journals withtheir outdoor experiences. This has beenvery popular with the kiddos! We dedicatethe beginning of each meeting to a Show &Tell type format with members sharingpictures, stories, and found objects with thegroup. We have had some reallyinteresting contributions!

Every month our meeting has an individualtheme and we use that theme as the focusfor Talk time, Game time and Activity timeduring the length of the meeting. InOctober we talked about Bats and flewblind through the halls of the school. InNovember Gerry Williams talked aboutTurkeys, constructed our own bird, andgobbled around the room. During theDecember meeting we created differentdevices to feed our feathered friendsduring the winter months, and got way outthere! And this January GROSS NIGHT

was a huge hit! We learned about dungand burying beetles- GROSS! We madeedible poop cakes GROSS! and played areally PUKEY Turkey Vulture game!

Wonders of Wildlife will be bringing liveanimals in March and leading an activitythat will create a plaster animal foot printto take home. OZ-some! During theMarch meeting club members who haveattended five meetings will be getting theirClub T-shirt as well!

In April we will bring the NatureJournaling message home when guestspeakers Cindy Gum and Mark Armstrongwill talk to our group about writing what yousee and feel and taking a photo of what'saround you.

And hopefully in May, we will get to do theOwl Pellet dissection we have beenhoping to do for a long while now!

The School has been doing a fine job thisyear getting the word out about meetings,sending out parent reach reminders and-unfortunately-weather cancellations, andadding new kids to our roster.

Another key factor that we think lends tothe success of our club is parentalinvolvement. Parents are required toattend the meeting with the children. WEhave a great group of "Big People" that areactively involved with their junior person ingames and crafts and learning, and

judging by the results of show and tell,continue the discussion and interactionthrough out the rest of the month!

We are very lucky to have a dedicated,creative, and FUN crew of kids clubleaders that are always there with a goodidea and to lend a hand helping make ourmeetings a success! We greatlyappreciate the support and encouragementthe chapter and it's members have givenus.

Kids Club meets on the 3rd Thursday ofeach month on the lower floor of theHawthorne Building in the CamdentonSchools campus. Big kids are there from5-8 and club members are present for themeeting 6-7:30 pm.

Come see foryourself howmuch fun we canhave learning.

Laura Toombs

Page 9, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

From Joann Billington--This poem was read on Animal Adventures one Sundaymorning by Jack Hanna. He said it touched their hearts…and it certainly touched mine...Written by "Michael" from New Hampshire:

When animals become extinct,Some people just shrug and say "so?"But if anything has to leave,We should be the ones to go.

That's because they were here firstBefore you and me.And they would probably live longerIf we would just let them be.

So that's why we need everyoneOn our planet Earth;And we should celebrate when aTree grows and when animals birth.

2012 Photo RecapPhotos from Eric Davis

Page 10, Missouri Master Naturalist - Lake of the Ozarks Chapter First Quarter, March 2013

Organized in the spring of 2009, the Lake of the Ozarks Chapter of the Missouri Master Naturalist programserves the residents of Camden, Miller & Morgan counties. The Missouri Master Naturalist Programis an adult, community-based, natural resource education and volunteer service program.Visit us at: http://www.lakeozarkmasternaturalist.com for calendars and volunteer opportunities.

Like us on Facebook for up to the minute postings on the chapter and what its members are doing:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-of-the-Ozarks-Master-Naturalist/153968454647217?ref=ts&fref=ts

Newsletter Staffand Contributors:� Publisher - Lauri Peterson� Editors - Brett Billington, Terri

Thompson� Articles: Joann Billington, Laura

Toombs, Ted Windels, BillyBackues, Linda Burns, JodiMoulder, Jackie Rasmussen,Linda Burns

� Other Contributionsfrom: Eric Davis,Marvin Silliman, TedWindelsPlease send submissions for this newsletter of stories, pictures, quotes, or

any other ideas or feedback to: brett_billington@yahoo.com

Webraved the cold overPresident's Day weekend on a troutfishing trip to the White River inArkansas. We stopped counting aftercatching 200 nice rainbow trout!!! Alsohad a wonderful trout wulf saucedinner on Saturday evening. Who saysfishing can't be awesome in the winter?

Marv & Lucy Silliman

The communications committee always welcomes information from chaptermembers on what they have been doing under the Missouri MasterNaturalist Flag. Is is very important that we keep submitting articles to thepaper, and promote our organization’s good works! The Lake area needs toknow that we are out there doing good stuff! Please submit your who, what,where, when, and why to Laura Toombs - zachman_mom@yahoo.com inorder to get out the good word! A photo always helps!

Identifying Trees inWinter hike at LakeOf the Ozarks StatePark SaturdayFebruary 2

Photos: Eric Davis

In October Chuck and Linda Churannounced that they wereresigning from our chapter tomove to Minnesota. In additionto being very active on numerousvolunteer activities, both wereserving as chapter officers at thetime. We celebrated their manycontributions to our chapterwith a cake. Pictured from leftto right: Joann Billington, ChuckChur, Linda Chur, Cindy Gum.