Iowa Department of Natural Resources

Let's hear it for the best Iowa Master Angler catches of February! ??

Meet the starhead topminnow, a fish species we haven’t seen in Iowa since the 1930s! ?? This featured star was spotted by members of our Multiple Species Inventory and Monitoring team, a crew of young biologists whose work is made possible through the Chickadee Checkoff. Funding from the Checkoff - which you can easily donate to on your State of Iowa tax form - helped our MSIM team tromp through Iowa’s outdoors for 6 months, gathering data on the thousands of species of wildlife that call Iowa home. Since 2006, no single project has added more to our understanding of wildlife in Iowa. Last year, about 5,300 tax payers donated around $134,000 to the Fish/Wildlife Trust Fund via the Checkoff - but that’s an almost $14,000 decrease from the year before. If each Iowa taxpayer donated just $1, it would mean $1.6 million for wildlife! iowadnr.gov/Checkoff Photo: Kaitlyn Mathews

Do your evergreens look not so...green? We're expecting to see moderate to severe winter burn on arborvitae and white pines this spring. What to look for: https://bit.ly/3XaLNn9 Buy a new tree at a distribution event: https://bit.ly/4iaZQBf Order seedlings from the State Forest Nursery: https://bit.ly/43gvpWp

Study now for this weekend's warmup and go burn off some stress!

We're casting the net!

This little wood thrush's crew has declined by almost 50 percent since 1966 - this summer, we were able to radio tag 28 wood thrush thanks to funds from the Chickadee Checkoff! Funding from the Checkoff - which you can easily donate to on your State of Iowa tax form - helped our nongame wildlife staff band and tag the birds, which will be tracked by the multi-state Motus network, so we can learn more about how they live and what's threatening their population numbers. Last year, about 5,300 tax payers donated around $134,000 to the Fish/Wildlife Trust Fund via the Checkoff - but that’s an almost $14,000 decrease from the year before. If each Iowa taxpayer donated just $1, it would mean $1.6 million for wildlife!

Join us in celebrating 83 years of Iowa's premiere outdoors publication! ?? The Iowa Conservation Commission published, 83 years ago on Feb. 15, the first edition of the "Iowa Conservationist." Over time, the news bulletin became a magazine. In 1986, the commission merged with other agencies to become the DNR, and in 2007, we gave the magazine a fresh new look and new name - Iowa Outdoors.

Feeling this good about paying taxes? That’s a thing? ?? Donating to the Fish/Wildlife Trust Fund (aka Chickadee Checkoff) on Line 21 of your Iowa state tax form should make you feel at least slightly better! Your donation helps support thousands of vulnerable wildlife through research, habitat development and education. Last year, about 5,300 tax payers donated around $134,000 - but that’s an almost $14,000 decrease from the year before. If each Iowa taxpayer donated just $1, it would mean $1.6 million for wildlife! www.iowadnr.gov/Checkoff

Iowa State Parks = IRL snow globes ?

HAS THIS EVER HAPPENED TO YOU? If only finding shed antlers was *this* easy…but these tips from DNR Forest Biologist Jim Coffey should make it easier! Video description: a DNR Wildlife Biologist helps an aspiring but frustrated shed antler hunter in the style of a 1990s infomercial