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Missouri Mountain Men Newsletter Deadline - - - - - IN MEMORY Wally Schmieg, long-time friend and co-founder of the Missouri Trappers Association, died on June 28, 2008. A life-long advocate of trapping, Wally started the Fur Takers of America in 1958. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Pauline, his daughter Donna, and all his family and friends. He was buried in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, St. Louis MO. Memorials are requested to Jefferson Memorial Hospice, Crystal City, MO and Peace Tabernacle United Pentecostal Church, Hillsboro, MO - - - - - Raccoon Trapping on Public Lands I trust that everyone has had a productive summer and is at least starting to think about fall hunting and trapping adventures. Here is some good news: This past summer the Conservation Department liberalized trapping opportunities on public lands. I want to let folks know the details so you can take advantage and plan ahead. MDC manages over 600,000 acres of land in the state and most of this land is now open to raccoon trapping. There are a few details of which you will need to be aware: - Trappers will be required to obtain a special use permit to trap on a public area - Special use permits are free and can be obtained by contacting the area manager or calling the regional office nearest the area you wish to trap (Regional office phone numbers are below) - Special use permits should be applied for 30 days prior to use. - Some areas can accommodate multiple trappers but others will be limited to 1 permit - Trapping methods are limited to raccoon selective traps (e.g. Griz getters, Duffer's, Egg traps, and cage traps) Trapping on MDC grounds at this scale is a great opportunity for trappers to take numbers of raccoons without a great deal of driving. I encourage everyone to consider this option when planning your fall routes. And, like always, do your best to represent trapping and trappers in the best light you can while helping to manage the states furbearers. If you decide to trap raccoons on one of the many MDC areas, I would be interested to hear your thoughts and experiences. Send me an email if you have time. Jeff.beringer@mdc.mo.gov -------- Fur Forecast & Etc. I was asked to write something on the fur market for the 2008-2009 season. So I will make an attempt. There are others in Missouri who are more qualified than I am, but here is what I think. What trappers and hunters need to understand is that the fur market is one of the most volatile or liquid markets in our economy. If you look in the dictionary under volatile, definition #3 says, "readily vanishing or disappearing; transient". Look at the otter market several years ago and the muskrat market two years ago. The grey fox market was at a standstill for a decade and then boomed up to the high $30's and $40's last year. Items can go down as fast as they went up and vice versa. As far as market reports in trapping publications, the one that is on the money, the biggest percentage of time is John Epler's in Trapper's World, published by Kyle Kaatz. The rest of them are generally right, but pump a lot of fluff - sugar coat it a little too much. Basically, I know about as much about the fur market as you do. The trapping publications do a pretty good job of getting information out, especially Trapper's World. I can tell you the 'coon inventory is not sold out. There is still a good quantity of semi's and coat coon in Canada. I could tell you where, here in Missouri, there are huge quantities of beaver, coyote, cat, rat, and red and grey fox in dealers' hands. The word from Canada is 'the best of the best will sell'. I know of numerous trappers, especially from northern Missouri, who shipped to Canada last year and averaged in the high $20's and even low $30's on 'coon. However, this also happened at Missouri Trapper's Association sales. But they were 'best of the best' - excellent color, size, and most importantly, best put-up. My predictions are: Raccoon - will pick up where they left off last season, maybe $5 cheaper on good sections, put-up, and size. The northern sections are what is in demand. Buyers will be cautious. Beaver - size is very important, 60" and up. Again, the very best will sell. There is too much time and money in putting up green beaver for dealers. In my opinion, don't trap beaver until around Christmas, for quality. Rats - Should slip up a little in price. Coyote - Same as mink, thousands of Missouri types in storage. Grey Fox - Has slipped downward in demand from last year. Red Fox - Stable at $10-$20. Cats - The very best will bring some money. The average Missouri cat will bring $30-$60. Again, wait until later in the season to trap. Cats are late primers. Otter - The blacks will be in the $30-$40 range. The browns and pales are in a speculative market. Skunks - Not a great demand, but wide stripes will bring $5-$8. Opossum - The best in Canada brought $7. The average was $2-$3. I know a dealer that sent some. The bad slights and damaged brought a dime. That's right, ten cents before commission. Beaver Castor - $10~$20 per pound-semi-dry. As I have said, this could all change, for better or worse, by November 15 or when our fur auctions take place. There are too many factors that affect the fur market, such as the size of the new catch, the value of the American dollar, the weather in fur-consuming countries, fashion and demand, money available to buyers; brokers, coat makers, retailers, speculators, the consumer, the backlog of already made garments, and the economy in general (which isn't the best world-wide). Mrs. McCain or Mrs. Obama need to be wearing a fur coat on inauguration day, which hopefully will be zero degrees. All I can say is when silver opossums average $18 at MTA fur auctions and black opossums bring $20, everybody will be happy. One thing I need to say about selling fur, wherever, country buyer, MTA fur sales or Canadian auctions, do the very best job possible at putting it up. If you don't have the expertise to scrape and stretch fur, sell your fur green. Wash it, comb it, and don't thaw it out too soon. The worst thing a buyer can see is wet, dirty, half-way scraped and stretched fur that has to be re-scraped and dried and then won't bring but 1/2 price, at best, for him. I am sure any Missouri trapper member and most fur buyers will be glad to show you how to scrape and stretch fur, especially 'coon. The three keys to finishing fur are clean the fur, medium amount of heat, and air circulation. One other note, don't waste any fur. If you can't let the opossum, skunk, or kitten 'coon out of the trap alive and unharmed, please skin'm, scrape'm and sell'm. If they just bring 50 cents -$3, that's okay. You owe that to the furbearer and yourself. Please attend MTA's 50th Anniversary Rendezvous at Cape Girardeau. I know it's a long drive for some of you, but do it. It will only happen once. (The author of the above report does not sell trap supplies to a great extent or publish a magazine.)
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