Projects

Opened to the public in 1993, Runge Conservation Nature Center (RCNC) has 3000 square feet of indoor exhibits, 112 acres, and 5 trails. Programming at RCNC is targeted at all age groups. As part of a visitor use survey at RCNC focus groups were held with lapsed visitors to explore past visitation patterns, attitudes, reasons attendance had lapsed, and what might entice them to return.

Data form to be used by volunteers working on the Missouri Eagle Watch program.

An overview of the current status of Bald Eagle protection and things to be aware of when observing and approaching eagles to reduce disturbance.

A guide to the general habitat of where Bald Eagle nests are commonly found, the physical characteristics of the nests and a timing of nest activity.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) has developed this Bat Habitat Conservation Plan to address the potential for covered forest management activities to cause incidental take of five listed or otherwise at-risk bat species over a period of 50 years. The following bat species are covered in this HCP:

• Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis). Federally listed as endangered.
• Gray bat (Myotis grisescens). Federally listed as endangered.
• Northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis). Federally listed as threatened. 
• Little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus). Under status review by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) with the potential to become federally listed. 
• Tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). Petitioned for listing with the potential to become federally listed. 

Appendices to the MDC Bat Habitat ConservationPlan

An overview of the proper calibration and use of binoculars and spotting scopes for doing bird monitoring.

Natural environments and green spaces provide ecosystem services that enhance human health and well-being. This review describes mechanisms and evidence of effects of biodiversity in nature and green spaces on human health.

Advances in research concerning the brain-related influences of the microbiome have been paradigm shifting, although at an early stage, clinical research involving beneficial microbes lends credence to the notion that the microbiome may be an important target in supporting mental health (defined here along the continuum between quality of life and the criteria for specific disorders).

In 2008, MDC developed a printed survey asking horse riders how often they rode on public land, where they rode, how much they spent, and additional questions about their attitudes regarding equestrian trails. The survey was printed in two versions. One was sent to a randomly selected sample of riders, the other was a convenience sample distributed to saddle clubs, trail rides, and other interested parties. The Random Sample was to provide unbiased statewide information, while the Convenience Sample was to meet the desire of the riding public to provide input.

A convenience sample is much more likely to be completed by avid users, who have more opportunities to see it, and by users with stronger opinions about the issue addressed, who are more motivated. A random sample should statistically represent the whole population from which the sample is drawn, in this case all Missouri landowners with horses. With a convenience sample, it may never be known how many people received it, only how many were sent in. By contrast, with a well-constructed random sample, which includes a database of names and addresses and numbered surveys, the response rate is known.