By Leilana McKindra - Communications Specialist, Agricultural Communications Services, Oklahoma State University

STILLWATER, Okla. – With Oklahoma wheat producers heading into another growing season, the bottom line will be top of mind, as always, and for many, that means focusing squarely on yield, yield, yield.
However, doing what it takes to boost the bushels also can lead to other important things, like increasing the protein content of a crop.

In fact, the protein content of the Oklahoma wheat crop is garnering increased attention these days after two straight years of registering less than ideal levels.

“Low protein wheat can create pricing and marketing challenges for everyone in the supply chain,” said Brian Arnall, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension precision nutrient management specialist. “Perhaps even more concerning is that low protein is an indicator that nitrogen was limiting during grain fill and therefore, a field’s maximum yield potential wasn’t achieved.”

The happy news for proactive producers is this is a fixable concern.

Variety selection, growing environment and fertility all play major roles in driving up the protein content in a wheat crop.

While some varieties, on average, offer higher protein, the differences among varieties can be overshadowed by the environmental conditions at different locations, said David Marburger, OSU Cooperative Extension small grains specialist.

Ideally, during grain fill, optimal conditions would include cooler temperatures and ample available moisture, which could positively affect yield but negatively impact protein levels in the crop.

“We’ve seen that over the past couple years. We fertilized with our normal nitrogen rate to achieve our yield goal, and this usually provides an adequate protein content as well. But we’ve had better yields partly due to the better growing conditions, and therefore lower protein content,” Marburger said. “We can get the opposite, as well, especially with drought or other stresses, where there are less kernels and/or the kernels become small and shriveled. Now you have that same amount of nitrogen, but over less grain to put it in. So, you might actually have a higher protein content.”

That leaves fertility, or more specifically nitrogen, as the X factor.

Protein is a function of nitrogen concentration, Arnall said, and if the nitrogen concentration in grain is low, so is protein.

“If the nitrogen well is running dry at the end of the season, protein will be low,” he said. “We typically see low values if nitrogen rates were below crop need. Or, perhaps the nitrogen applied was lost through leaching or other mechanism, which is more likely to happen when all of the nitrogen is applied pre-plant.”

Bottom line? Managing nitrogen and maximizing yield come down to ensuring nitrogen is available to the plant at important growth periods.

“It’s always best to apply nitrogen when the plant needs it, which is right after tillering for grain-only. In dual purpose, we have a high need in the fall and again at tillering,” Arnall said.

Producers do not need to guess about the nitrogen levels in their fields either.

N-Rich strips, used in conjunction with GreenSeeker TM hand-held sensor technology, and a sensor-based nitrogen rate calculator, are key tools producers can use to guide them on nitrogen application.
Ultimately, the goal is to enhance the overall quality of the Oklahoma wheat crop, Marburger said.

“If we all work on improving protein and quality, in general, we’re going to raise the overall quality of the Oklahoma wheat crop and we’re going to have end-users who want to buy this grain first before any other,” he said.
For more information on nutrient management, download free of charge OSU Current Report CR-2277, “Applying Nitrogen Rich Strips,” and OSU Fact Sheet PSS-2258, “Evolution of Reference Strips in Oklahoma” at factsheets.okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University, in compliance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246 as amended, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Higher Education Act), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other federal and state laws and regulations, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, genetic information, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, or status as a veteran, in any of its policies, practices or procedures. This provision includes, but is not limited to admissions, employment, financial aid, and educational services. The Director of Equal Opportunity, 408 Whitehurst, OSU, Stillwater, OK 74078-1035; phone 405-744-5371; email: has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director of Equal Opportunity. Any person (student, faculty, or staff) who believes that discriminatory practices have been engaged in based on gender may discuss his or her concerns and file informal or formal complaints of possible violations of Title IX with OSU’s Title IX Coordinator 405-744-9154

Press release

Oklahoma’s archery hunters have had the chance to hunt deer since Oct. 1. But the first chance to harvest a deer with firearms belongs to the state’s youth hunters on Oct. 20-22.

The Youth Deer Gun Season is open to hunters age 17 and younger who are accompanied in the field by an adult at least 18 years old who is hunter education certified or exempt. The adult may archery hunt while accompanying the youth, but the adult may not hunt with a firearm.

“As wildlife managers, we try to give the most opportunity possible, and the youth season focuses on just that,” said Dallas Barber, big game biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. “We get the chance to introduce new young hunters to something that we as biologists and managers are passionate about.”

The three-day Youth Deer Gun Season allows participants to take either a buck and a doe, or two does. A deer license is required for each deer hunted.

Barber said this earlier season gets youngsters in the woods during a time when the weather is usually warmer than during traditional Deer Gun Season, which often creates a better hunting experience for them.

“This is one of my favorite times of the year,” he said. “If we can turn one of our youth hunters into a lifelong outdoorsman or woman, then the youth season is more than worth it.”

Bucks should still be following a pattern if weather conditions remain stable. “However, if we get a nice cold front coming through, we could see more deer movement,” Barber said.

As a bonus, youth deer hunters may also harvest a turkey in counties that have a fall gun turkey season, provided the hunter has the appropriate turkey license.

For complete information on Youth Deer Gun Season regulations and license requirements, consult the current Oklahoma Hunting and Fishing Regulations Guide found online at wildlifedepartment.com, in the free OK Hunting and Fishing mobile app for Apple or Android users, or in print anywhere hunting and fishing licenses are sold.

By Sean Hubbard, Communications Specialist - OSU Agricultural Communications Services

STILLWATER, Okla. – The internet supplies endless amounts of cute kitty videos. A kitten batting around a ball of yarn, a cat chasing a feather duster and fat, grumpy cats lying on their backs have generated many smiles from people throughout the world.

Those same animals, however, are decimating native wildlife populations. Free-ranging domestic cats, from feral cats to outdoor house cats, are linked to 63 wildlife extinctions spanning the globe, as they feast on birds, lizards, amphibians and small mammals.

Researchers from Oklahoma State University’s Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management and the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center recently came together to study how cats are impacting mainland wildlife populations.

Study authors Scott Loss, NREM assistant professor, and Pete Marra, director of SMBC, are studying the impact of cats on wildlife to support science-based conservation and cat population management. Their research findings, published in the latest issue of Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, help fill in some gaps previously undiscovered through single studies.

“Our review shows overwhelming evidence that, beyond causing island extinctions, where there were no native predators, and massive numbers of mainland wildlife deaths, cats can exert multiple types of harmful impacts on mainland wildlife species that are reflected at the population level,” Loss said.

Based on their literature review, the researchers summarize two main direct effects and two main indirect effects of cats on wildlife populations. The first direct effect, predation, by which cats directly kill and remove individuals from the population, has some obvious evidence.

At least 14 observational studies show that cat predation is a substantial source of mortality at the population level for mainland wildlife. In addition, an experimental study in Australia compared two separate populations of small, native rodents for a two-year period. One population was fenced off, not allowing any feline predators. The other was open and fair game.

“This experimental study provides the most convincing evidence yet that cats can cause population declines for mainland wildlife,” Loss said. “In areas where cats could not access, the population persisted the whole two years of the study. For the areas where cats could access, the populations declined to extinction in both cases.”

The second main direct effect of cats on mainland wildlife populations flies a little more under the radar.

Toxoplasmosis, according to the Mayo Clinic, is a disease that results from infection with the Toxoplasma gondii parasite. It is the motivation behind recommending pregnant women should not clean out litter boxes or garden, because it can be transmitted from infected cat feces, and can be deadly to humans and also to wildlife.

Direct mortality from Toxoplasma infection has led to population declines in some cases, especially for marsupials, marine mammals, such as sea otters, and tropical primates.

“Indirect effects of Toxoplasma infection are even more surprising. For example, past research in California showed that infected sea otters were more likely to be attacked by sharks,” Loss said. “This suggests the pathogen alters otter behavior in a way that makes them more vulnerable to predation, leading to additional mortality that could affect their population.”

Finally, cats also can inflict population impacts indirectly through fear. Just the presence of a predator alters prey species’ behavior, movements or reproduction in ways that affect wildlife populations. Notably, one population modeling study showed that fear-induced reduction of bird reproductive output is capable of significantly reducing bird populations, even with low levels of direct predation.

“Based on our comprehensive review of research from around the world, there is now overwhelming evidence that cats impact populations of mainland wildlife in several ways,” Marra said. “If we hope to protect native species globally, it is essential that we start implementing more effective management of cats, including keeping owned cats on a leash or indoors and removing unowned cats from outdoor environments.”

Oklahoma State University, in compliance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246 as amended, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Higher Education Act), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and other federal and state laws and regulations, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, genetic information, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, or status as a veteran, in any of its policies, practices or procedures. This provision includes, but is not limited to admissions, employment, financial aid, and educational services. The Director of Equal Opportunity, 408 Whitehurst, OSU, Stillwater, OK 74078-1035; phone 405-744-5371; email: has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director of Equal Opportunity. Any person (student, faculty, or staff) who believes that discriminatory practices have been engaged in based on gender may discuss his or her concerns and file informal or formal complaints of possible violations of Title IX with OSU’s Title IX Coordinator 405-744-9154.

Press release

The Carl Albert State College Annual Vike@Nite 5k is scheduled for Thursday, October 26, 2017 at 6 p.m. In addition, there will be a kids race at 5:30 p.m. on the same evening.

According to Hali Repass, the run is designed to provide a fun, affordable event for the campus and the community, with all proceeds benefiting the CASC Alumni Association for the purpose of future scholarships.

Registration for the 5k will be on site at the CASC Poteau campus from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and is $20 per participant. Repass explained that finisher’s medals will be awarded, but no age division awards or record keeping will take place. There will be gun timing only and participants are responsible for noting their own time as they cross the finish line.

Registration for the kids race is currently open on runsignup.com, and on site registration will also be open for the kids event from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The Community State Bank will be grilling hot dogs post event, and Oldcastle will be providing the aid station at the halfway point in the event.