Maybe it was the cool mornings we had last week or the fall hunting catalogs arriving in the mail, but something has certainly got our hunters excited about the upcoming season. They have been bringing in soil samples to the Extension office to be tested for wildlife food plots, and have increased their requests for other researched-based information on wildlife management.

If you go

The Warren County Extension Service is located at 1100-C Grove St. The phone number is 601-636-5442. Upcoming events include:

• Habitat Management for Private Landowners — 6:30 p.m. Tuesday; free.

• Homemaker Volunteers’ Cultural Arts Exhibit Day — 8 a.m. Thursday; public may enter homemade items for judging.

• Using Infrared-triggered Cameras to Survey White-tailed Deer in Mississippi —6 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21; $5, register by Sept. 18.

This group will undoubtedly be happy to note the Extension Service will be hosting a couple programs this month to help them perfect the skills of their sport and be much more knowledgeable wildlife land managers.  

At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Extension office, Scott Edwards, a private lands biologist with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, will present Habitat Management for Private Landowners via our interactive video network. This presentation is the second in our monthly Wildlife Seminar Series, which are scheduled through January 2010.  

Edwards will discuss the history of land management in Mississippi, some wildlife habitat management principles and review common habitat management practices. Edwards will also discuss funds available to assist landowners in the cost associated with wildlife habitat management. The free presentation will last about an hour.

Another program this month that deer hunters and wildlife lands managers will not want to miss will be from 6 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21 at the Extension office. Area Extension agent Bill Maily will present a program called Using Infrared-triggered Cameras to Survey White-tailed Deer in Mississippi.  

The Mississippi State University Forest and Wildlife Research Center, after years of research, has developed a practical and economical way to accurately estimate buck populations and deer population characteristics. In addition, the method provides a photographic record of bucks potentially available for harvest. Developmental work on this research was conducted by Dr. Harry Jacobson and Randy Browning — acclaimed wildlife experts and university scientists and professors.

Maily will teach participants how to conduct a camera survey and, more importantly, how to analyze the data gathered from the photos. As Maily puts it, “It is guaranteed to add a new level of knowledge and element of excitement to the experience associated with deer management and hunting.”  

The Warren County Forestry Association is co-sponsoring this educational program and there will be a $5 fee, which will help fund the WCFA Forestry Scholarship program. Participants are asked to register at the Extension office no later than Sept. 18.

Also, don’t forget, the Warren County Extension Service’s Homemaker Volunteers’ annual Cultural Arts Exhibit Day will be at 8 a.m. Thursday at the Extension office.

 The public is invited to enter handmade items, such as quilts, paintings and woodwork, as well as jams, jellies, pickles and fresh fruit and produce. Items will be judged and blue ribbon entries will be exhibited at the Mississippi State Fair in October.  For rules and other information, contact the Extension office.

John C. Coccaro is county Extension director. Write to him at 1100-C Grove St., Vicksburg, MS 39180 or call 601-636-5442. E-mail him at jcoccaro@ext.msstate.edu