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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Whitetail Body Language

Whitetail Body Language

Whitetail Body Language Much like all animals’ whitetails have a language they use to communicate with each other. As a hunter it is important to understand, as much as possible, a whitetails language. By deciphering the whitetail language code hunters can understand what a deer is thinking and saying to other deer. In return a […]

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Iowa Fall Fishing Tips

When the bite is On

When the bite is on September…ahhhhhh…cooling temps, well at least we hope they start cooling off. We’ve just wandered through the heat of July and August and it was in a word, hot! Fishing, for the most part, was an early morning or late afternoon evening event. Two reasons really; you want to avoid sweating […]

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Waterfowl Boat Checklist

Waterfowl Boat Checklist

Waterfowl Boat Checklist Most hunters are “gear guys”; we want to have the right equipment for every situation and even if we do not need it, it helps us sleep at night knowing we are prepared anyway. The duck boat is a special place. It is a mobile hide that we essentially live out of […]

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Tips for Maximizing Youth Deer Hunting Success

Tips for Maximizing Youth Deer Hunting Success

Tips for Maximizing Youth Deer Hunting Success I started taking my daughters deer hunting when they were 10 and 12 years old. Back then, it was relatively easy to find time to hit the woods. Fast forward a few years, and like all teenagers, their increasingly busy schedules can make finding time to hunt challenging. […]

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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.