They will admire all kinds of exhibits, all kinds of products, all kinds of wildlife related services, and the equipment, tools and machinery to manage land for wildlife. It is amazing to me, a student of wildlife sciences and having had a long career involved with conservation work, just how many things related to deer and deer hunting one can get involved with. So pick and choose wisely what works for you.

Every Deer Classic Show brings in a lot of people, and even in the crowded hallways, it never fails that you will meet friends and strike up a conversation revolving around Iowa wildlife — and especially deer. Everyone has a story or two to tell.

All are interesting tidbits of someone else’s time spent outdoors. Each adventure story is a success story even if that story did not result in notching the date lines on an Iowa deer tag license.

We all want to share our stories. What better place to do that than at the Iowa Deer Classic Show. Show hours on Saturday, March 2 are between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday’s hours are from 10 a.m. and ending at 4 p.m.

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I attended our area public informational meeting Feb. 21 hosted by the Iowa DNR wildlife bureau folks. This style of meeting is an opportunity for the hunters and fur takers to listen to information and offer comments on boots-on-the-ground observations to wildlife researchers, managers and administrators.

Our area meeting was held at Otter Creek Lake Park’s Nature Center in Tama County. Upland bird wildlife updates on wild turkeys and pheasants showed graphs of hunting successes and statewide population trends.

This was interesting to see on a statewide map where the population densities exist. Furbearer information was presented with ongoing research into many species, with particular emphasis on gray fox populations, a species that is rare in Iowa. Reptiles got their time to shine also. Information was shared on the four species of venomous snakes of Iowa, along with a distribution map of where they are likely to live. Waterfowl zones are split in Iowa into thirds — west to east — with opening/closing dates for ducks or geese managed accordingly. Drought conditions did play a part in fall migration and availability of hunters to find them.

And of course, there was discussion about deer. Iowa has a lot of deer, and hunters took over 104,000 during the seasons that just ended on Jan. 10. An Iowa deer season begins with youth getting a head start before regular openings for archery or early muzzleloader times.

Then comes gun seasons one and two, during which the bulk of deer harvests take place. The entire deer season ends with second late archery and late muzzleloader times open through Jan. 10.

A bit of not so good news is that during early summer of 2023, one vehicle killed deer was tested for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a purely random sample. That buck deer tested positive for CWD.

Now during the fall of 2023, lots of additional deer were offered for testing. Out of all the negative results, six deer from various places in Marshall County did have positive CWD test results.

This means the disease has a foot hold and it will be hard to manage this elusive biological vector. What can and will be done during the 2024 seasons will be increased testing to help determine the incidence rate within the population.

Hunters will be encouraged to continue hunting, to take more deer as their licenses allow, and to allow more testing by biologists. Nearly 600 deer were taken by hunters in Marshall County in 2023, and most of them were not tested because of time and perceived need.

Now that the need for more testing is evident, 2024 will be a year to gather more data. Of note, the positive testing deer from 2023 did not show any outward signs of ill health. The percentage of positive deer within the entire state population is very low — .but it is still there — and biologists and managers are trying their best to find solutions to hold down and curtail the spread of this disease vector.

As for deer with obvious poor body condition, a lack of body fat, rib distension, or unusual behaviors, the area wildlife biologist would like to be notified. No matter what time of the year a deer in ill health is observed, call him. His name is Steve Woodruff and he can be contacted by phone at 319-330-7013 or via email at steven.woodruff@dnr.iowa.gov.

Another contact person is Conservation Officer Brett Reece at 641-751-0931. Deer testing for CWD will be increased during 2024. Your help will be important. Thanks in advance.

I’ll share more details in the future as those details are made available.

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March is here, that month of the year when anything weather related can and has happened. My personal observation is that Mother Nature got February and March weather flip-flopped in 2024. February is when cold air should dominate, snow should still be on the ground, flower buds should still be dormant and safely tucked under layers of leaf litter.

We all know now that February was more spring-like than winter-like. Only time will tell if the month of March will go down in the record books as “typical” based on good record data from the past century.

Your guess will be as good as mine. We humans need to be prepared for anything and everything that historical March weather systems can bring.

In the meantime, we do know that March days will be getting noticeably longer. We started March 1 with a day length of 11 hours and 15 minutes. By March 31, it will have increased to 12 hours and 40 minutes.

Spring officially arrives on the 19th with a day length of 12 hours and 6 minutes. That first day of spring will have a sunrise at 7:15 a.m. and a sunset at 7:21 p.m.

Biology related March happenings include these things to note: the return of Red-winged blackbirds will be, on average, March 12. I have already seen at least two RWBBs at my bird feeder this week.

The bulk of red-wings will come in a few weeks time. All the waterfowl species can be expected to show up by mid March as they are on their way north.

Robins can show up anytime now. Eastern meadowlarks may arrive at places like the Marietta Sand Prairie and other grassland habitats. Cedar waxwings can make their appearance known. Hawks like the Broadwinged, Red Shouldered, Red-tailed, and Marsh hawks will arrive this month.

Cottontail rabbits will be courting, a scene few see, that involves the male and female jumping straight up as they size each other up. Chorus frogs begin to sing. Owls will be keeping their nestlings warm and fed.

Spring peeper frogs may begin calling to each other in eastern Iowa. Coyote pups may venture outside their den entrance by mid-month.

Wild turkeys will be gobbling. Wildflowers will try to emerge including pasque flowers, Dutchman’s breeches and dogtooth violets. Look for the latter at places like Timmons Grove or Grammer Grove.

During March, take your binoculars and/or camera to places like Sand Lake, Otter Creek Marsh, Hendrickson Marsh (it has lots of water), or the Colo Bogs Complex west of State Center, to look for any arriving waterfowl. Pay attention to all the possible duck species, geese of several types and swans.

Keep your eyes peeled for large skeins of geese high in the air. Listen to their honking sounds and note the differences in calls to help differentiate between species. If you listen carefully you will learn the differences.

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My last bit of news is about a wolf. Near Davenport in the southeast part of our state, a large canine type animal was reported dead in the median of Interstate 80 in Scott County near its intersection with I-280.

Conservation Officer VanDerBeek observed the dead creature and picked it up for subsequent evaluation. It was presumably hit by a vehicle on or about Feb. 19, 2023. It was identified as a young male gray wolf.

Its age was estimated at about two years and the body of this large canine predator was taken to Iowa State University’s veterinary diagnostic lab to confirm cause of death and to assess its overall health. Tissue samples were obtained for future comparison with DNA known sources from wild wolves either from Minnesota or Wisconsin. Each state has wolf populations, so it is possible that this wolf was attempting to disperse away from its known habitat.

Dr. Rachel Ruden is the state wildlife veterinarian, who conducted lab analysis of the canine. She is confident that the animal is a gray wolf. She noted it “was in fair shape physically, with not much fat under its hide but a good amount of fat internally. It was also moderately parasitized by tapeworms which is not unexpected as wild canids are a definitive host.”

Wild wolves are rare in Iowa, but they do rarely show up and may be mistakenly taken by coyote hunters. From a long distance with a scoped rifle, it may not be possible to make a positive identification.

There is a big size difference between an adult wolf and an adult coyote. Side-by-side, it is easily observed. A coyote may weigh 25 to 40 pounds, while a wolf can weigh 70 to 110 pounds.

The Davenport wolf was at the low end at 77.5 pounds and was 62 inches long from nose tip to tail tip.

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Quote: “The wilderness holds answers to questions we’ve not yet asked.” — Anonymous

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Garry Brandenburg is the retired director of the Marshall County Conservation Board. He is a graduate of Iowa State University with a BS degree in Fish & Wildlife Biology.

Contact him at: P.O. Box 96

Albion, IA 50005

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