Iowa’s Venom, Oil and Toxic Sap
Iowa’s Venom, Oil and Toxic Sap

I once struck up a conversation with a man from Australia and while talking I asked him the question most people want to know about Australians, “how many times have you been bitten by one of your crazy spiders you have down there?” His answer was shocking, “Oh not many, probably less than 20 times.”

I once struck up a conversation with a man from Australia and while talking I asked him the question most people want to know about Australians, “how many times have you been bitten by one of your crazy spiders you have down there?” His answer was shocking, “Oh not many, probably less than 20 times.” My coworker and I laughed in horror and amazement and counted our blessing of living in the relatively venom free state of Iowa.

I once struck up a conversation with a man from Australia and while talking I asked him the question most people want to know about Australians, “how many times have you been bitten by one of your crazy spiders you have down there?” His answer was shocking, “Oh not many, probably less than 20 times.” My coworker and I laughed in horror and amazement and counted our blessing of living in the relatively venom free state of Iowa. But only relatively venom free, within Iowa’s borders there are a handful of flora and fauna that if encountered can leave an unlucky Iowan itchy, burning, swollen, scarred and in the worst of scenarios, permanently incapacitated or dead.

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Dangerous Plants and Animals in Iowa

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Combating Heat Stress in Dogs

Combating Heat Stress in Dogs

Combating Heat Stress in Dogs We’ve all probably heard at least one heat stress horror story with a dog. Unfortunately, some of us have experienced this trauma. If we don’t want our dog to be a statistic, it’s important we are aware of the dangers heat and humidity can have on our dogs’ health. During […]

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Gun Safety Tips for the Field

Gun Safety Tips for the Field

Gun Safety Tips for the Field When a person mentions safety, some may shrug their shoulders and write it off as a dry subject. However, it never hurts to open your ears to a few commonsense reminders. After working a career in the DNR, I will comment on a few basic field safety reminders and […]

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 A Guide to Choosing the Best Stand Location How Safe is your Treestand

 A Guide to Choosing the Best Stand Location: Whitetails 365

 A Guide to Choosing the Best Stand Location: Whitetails 365 It’s August, and bowhunters across the state are gearing up for another epic season. The thrill of patterning summer deer and strategizing for the upcoming bow season, youth season, and early muzzleloader season is in the air. Have you considered new stand locations? Now is […]

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Hunt without Smelling Like Work

Hunt without Smelling Like Work

Hunt without Smelling Like Work In a past life I worked as a science teacher. There are many things that make teaching a unique working experience- very little peer interaction, your homework is grading homework, your life is run by bell schedules, and the most unique aspect of all- that familiar school smell. Every school […]

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Featured Story

Springtime Panfish-Perch, Crappie, and Bluegill

Spring is in full swing here in Iowa, and what can be more pleasant a reminder than the sound of birds, the sight of flowers blooming, and the feel of a warm afternoon? I can think of at least one more thing…Panfish!

I can remember it like yesterday, our family would all meet up at the lake house. There was work to do. The yard was to be picked up, the cabin cleaned, and the dock had to be put in. But then, after the work was finished, it was time for all of us cousins to fish! We would all go out to the garage to pick out a few old rods and tie on a hook and sinker as best we could.

The next order of business was to hunt for worms. Flipping anything that we could find stuck in the ground in hopes of just finding a few crawlers. Once the bait was secured, we were ready to fish. We would go out on the dock and cast, vertical jig, and even troll along the side of the dock. We usually did pretty well use those tactics, but my all-time favorite was walking along the rocks on shore and dropping the bait down every little crevice, not knowing what was going to come up next.

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The Iowa Sportsman website and magazine are Iowa’s only privately owned media sources catering to hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts here in Iowa. Simply put, we are unlike other Iowa outdoor media sources: All our staff is from Iowa, from our publisher to our writers. We actually follow through on what we advertise; we provide knowledgeable content from people who know the industry or sport discussed.