Refuge Wildlife Festival 2008: "The Call of the Wild!!"

The refuge will be holding its sixth annual White River Wildlife Festival on October 4th, 2008 at the refuge visitor center in St. Charles. This year’s festival theme is “The Call of the Wild” and the refuge is revamping the entire festival with all new activities and programs that will offer something for nature enthusiasts of all ages.

Our refuge forester will teach us how to use a GPS and will be setting up an electronic treasure hunt to allow people the chance to use a GPS to guide them through the woods to locate marked objects. We will also have a compass orienteering course to teach traditional compass use. Participants will learn about bird calls, have a chance to dissect real owl pellets, and listen to the language of herps and amphibians.

The Arkansas Bow Hunters Association will have an archery demonstration area set up for children to learn about archery safety and techniques. The 4-H will have a treestand safety course setup for participants to walk through and learn about safe and effective treestand placement for deer hunting.

For the sportsmen, we will have professional turkey and duck callers demonstrating calling techniques and styles. Jim Ronquest, World Champion duck caller and producer of RNT production will be there as will John Stephens 3 time World Champion Duck caller and owner of RNT calls. Hallie Horton ,Jr. world Championship and Women's World Championship ( Duck calling) will be presenting as well. The programs will focus on developing skill levels for all ages including teaching youth how to begin calling for the first time. Bring your calls with you to practice if you have them or you will be able to use calls provided by instructors.

At the end of the festival, four teams with up to four members each will be able to challenge the refuge managers to a trivia game called, “Are you Smarter than a Refuge Manager.?” Questions will come from information taught during the wildlife festival and general biology and wildlife management information. If you or your organization wishes to be a team to challenge the managers, call the refuge to sign up ASAP before these spots are filled.

The Friends of White River NWR, Inc. will be selling refreshments, books, and gift items and proceeds go to help pay for the festival so please come hungry and buy gifts for all your friends and family. Volunteers are needed to help run the event so please contact the refuge or Friends of White River to help make this community event a huge success!

In-door Presentation Schedule:

• 9 – Birdwalk
• 9:30 – Using a GPS
• 10- Owl talk
• 11 - Birding by ear
• 12 - Herp Talk
• 1 - Talking Turkey
• 2- Youth Duck Calling
• 3- Are you smarter than a refuge manager?
• Outdoor activities that will be open from 9 am – 3 pm.
• Find the lost researcher: Compass orienteering course
• GPS treasure hunt
• Speed waterfowl id. (Identifying waterfowl correctly in a timed contest). There will be a competition for youth (15 and under) and adults. Winners announced at 3:00 p.m.
• Silent auction
• Treestand skills course
• Animal Olympics
• Archery Workshop for youth

Special Hunts at Cook's Lake

White River National Wildlife Refuge, the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, and the Arkansas Game & Fish Foundation are proud to announce three special hunts that will be taking place at Cooks Lake during the 2008 hunting season. The following is a list of logistics and deadlines that apply to each event. Please read them carefully and if you have any questions contact Matt Conner at 870-282-8249.

Youth Deer Hunt

A special youth only deer hunt will take place on December 6 th and 7 th , with a mandatory orientation on November 29 th . Only 10 permits will be issued to youth 15 years of age and younger (as of December 8 th , 2008). Those selected for past hunts will not be selected for this year's hunt unless there are not enough applicants to fill ten slots. Each selected participant will be required to have an unarmed chaperone 21 years of age or older. If the youth does not have a gun and/or chaperone, either or both will be provided. All participants will be required to have completed a hunter education course prior to the hunt.

To apply, please print or type the youth applicant's complete name and phone number on the back of an Official US postcard addressed to White River National Wildlife Refuge, c/o Matt Conner, P.O. Box 205 , St Charles , AR , 72140 . Applications must be postmarked by October 1, 2008.

Mobility Impaired Hunt

This event is scheduled for December 12 th , 13 th , and 14 th . To qualify applicants must be mobility-impaired. Mobility-impaired is defined as a permanent physical condition that severely impairs your mobility, which requires the assistance from a wheelchair, braces, crutches, or other similar aids of mobility. Applicants must also provide a letter from a physician to verify the applicant's physical condition that severely impairs their mobility without proper assistance. The level of impairment must be stated in a letter to verify the extent of the applicant's condition. The physician's letter must be on an official letterhead with the physician's original signature. To apply for this hunt contact Matt Conner at White River National Wildlife Refuge for an application. Applications must be postmarked by August 15, 2008.

Mobility Impaired Hunt for Women

This event is scheduled for November 14 th , 15 th , and 16 th . To qualify applicants must be a woman with a mobility-impairment. Mobility-impaired is defined as a permanent physical condition that severely impairs your mobility, which requires the assistance from a wheelchair, braces, crutches, or other similar aids of mobility. Applicants must also provide a letter from a physician to verify the applicant's physical condition that severely impairs their mobility without proper assistance. The level of impairment must be stated in a letter to verify the extent of the applicant's condition. The physician's letter must be on an official letterhead with the physician's original signature. To apply for this hunt contact Matt Conner at White River National Wildlife Refuge for an application. Applications must be postmarked by August 15, 2008.

Earth Day Refuge Cleanup

On April 21st from 9:00am – 1:00 pm , the Friends of White River NWR, Phillips Community College, DeWitt Bank and Trust, City of St Charles, Entergy Power Company, and the White River National Wildlife Refuge partnered together to help clean up the Refuge and roadways in St. Charles Arkansas. Participants arrived at the Refuge at 9:00am to sign up and were assigned to cleanup crews. The crews picked up litter along the Refuge roads and highway areas through St Charles .

Several different crews were assembled and each group had a specific area to clean-up on the Refuge. Refuge staff served as support for the crews by collecting bags of trash and providing the volunteers with cold beverages and snacks.

Everyone met back at the Refuge Visitor Center at 12:00 for slow cooked pulled pork and hotdogs. After lunch the Refuge conducted an environmental education program entitled “Who Polluted the White River NWR?”. Prizes were also awarded for those that found trash with a “winner” sticker attached to certain pieces of litter along their routes.

The funding for the festival and cleanup came from Entergy Power Company by providing the Refuge with a stewardship grant. The additional grant money will be used to create a community awareness program in cooperation with Phillips Community College and the Refuge. The program will consist of presentations at schools, community pride signs, and “Refuge Refuse Reduction Signs” at the Refuge entrances.

Like most special events, the day took several hours of planning and setup time, but the work produced at this event made that small investment pay off. Many miles of Refuge roads are now litter free and the absence of litter reduces the future amounts of trash when potential polluters see that people care about keeping the Refuge clean and that littering is taken seriously.

Through this grant and partnership we hope continue to engage the public in cleaning up the Refuge and with education install a since of stewardship in our public lands. The partners have named this effort “S.A.C.C. IT” which stands for South Arkansas County Cleanup and all participants were provided a S.A.C.C. It T-shirt with the new logo designed for this initiative.

Join us next April, 2009 on the 25th to partcipate in the event next year!

Youth Fishing Rodeo

The refuge kicked off National Boating and Fishing week this year by hosting a youth fishing rodeo on June 7th of this year. Over a hundred youth 12 years of age and under came and hooked dozens of stocked catfish. At the conclusion of the rodeo, registered participants gathered under the rodeo tent for a random drawing of prizes and a free hotdog lunch provided by the Friends of White River NWR. Next year's event will be held on June 6th, 2009. For more information, contact the refuge office.