President — Paul Kelley, P.O. Box 75, Hudson, IL 61748; phone: 309-726-1443; e-mail: pkelleyp@aol.com
Vice President — Carroll Williams RR4 Box 135, Fairfield, IL 62837; phone: 618-516-2275;
e-mail: Carroll.Williams@gmail.com
Secretary — Dean Corgiat, 620 Clarksville Rd., Pittsfield, IL. 62363; phone: 217-285-4984;
e-mail: dcorgiat@verizon.net
Treasurer — Timothy M. Kelley, 17458 Tice Rd., Petersburg, IL 62675; phone: 217-632-3521;
e-mail: tmkelley69@warpnet.net
Membership Options:
• Individual membership including subscription to Trapper & Predator Caller — $20
Complete membership application on first page of association section and send dues to:
ITA, Treasurer
Tim Kelley, 17458 Tice Rd.
Petersburg, IL 62675
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Our fur auctions went well this year even with conflicting information. I received several inquiries about our sales being canceled. They were not, but to make even more sure that the membership wasn’t confused with the cancellation of the NAFA sale, plus a couple of other state sales, I sent a postcard to every member indicating dates and time. It seems that some were spending more time talking the sales down than promoting them. Tim will have the results of the Odell sale in this column. Although the Odell sale only had nine lots, several were of some size. Those not bringing fur probably wish that they would have, with some of the prices received. I won’t quote exact prices because the table will be in this month, but ’rats topped out at $9 with an average of larger ’rats in the $8 plus range.
’Coons went much better than anyone expected, with one lot topping out at $25, but the average was still much less. Joe House had an $11 high on a ’possum, even though he donated the proceeds to the ITA. Thanks Joe! The sale at Fairfield had 30 lots, with much more green fur, which tends to bring averages down.
’Rats still went in the neighborhood of what they did in Odell. Overall with the talk of “no” market early on, both sales went very well. We’ll have to see what happens in March or May or whenever, to see if there is a recovering market. I hope it is positive.
I have had more questions about when we will get a season on otters. I can’t say for sure, but with the primary and this being election year, don’t hold your breath. Seems like everything goes on hold until we know who is the nominee or who wins the election. One more reason to advocate for a commission form of DNR like Missouri, and get some long-term funding for it.
By the time you are reading this, the election, or at least the primary, will have been over, and we should know the candidates for both tickets. Needless to say, someone will be happy and someone sad with the outcome. The only request I have of each of you is “Vote.” Kevin Townsend of Highland, IL won the 10/22 at Fairfield. Jerry Halfacre won the 50/50 with around $130 if my memory serves me correctly. I almost forgot to thank the workers for both sales. Warren Kaforski at Odell put most adults to shame with his excellent efforts, tagging and bundling fur. Chris, you have a good one there, teach him well. At our southern sale, Mrs. Cody Champ (Alisia) deserves accolades for her service. Well done and thanks to one and all for the work each of you did.
Till next time. — Paul Kelley
TREASURER’S REPORT
Greetings To All:
By the time you read this, the 2009-2010 trapping season, except for beaver, will be a thing of the past. Even though prices were somewhat depressed compared to recent years, our association did hold our annual fur auctions in January. The early auction was held on Jan. 9 in Odell. Though we had a fairly slight turnout of sellers, we did have a very good contingent of buyers on hand and we sincerely extend our thanks to all for supporting our auction.
Considering the early market reports, I think our sellers were pleasantly surprised by the relatively strong prices they received. I’ve posted the results in a table, below, but I also must thank all the individuals who helped prepare, operate and clean up after the auction. I’d list everyone individually, but I’d likely forget someone and, rather than risk hurt feelings, I’d prefer to give special mention to several ITA members who helped immensely during (and prior to) the auction: Donnie Thompson of rural Hudson, Illinois, Steve Sutter, also of Hudson, and Chris Kaforski and his son, Warren, of Serena, Illinois. All of these gentlemen played very important roles in helping the ITA put on a good auction.
There were many, many others, both ITA Directors and members, who helped at the auction and I extend our sincere thanks to them as well. The results of the auction at Odell are as follows:
Listed by Species, Size, Number Offered, Number Sold, Low, High and Average.
Raccoon (dry)
4X — 13; 13; $9; $25; $15.88
3X — 69; 69; $3; $22; $14.10
2X — 103; 103; $4.50; $13; $10.72
XL — 71; 71; $3; $7.50; $6.44
L — 36; 25; $1; $5; $3.92
M — 1; 1; $2; $2; $2
Raccoon (green)
3X — 10; 10; $0.50; $12.50; $11.30
2X — 25; 25; $1; $11.50; $10.88
XL — 16; 16; $2; $5.50; $4.84
L — 7; 7; $4; $4; $4
M — 3; 0; –; –; —
Kit — 2; 0; –; –; —
Muskrat (dry)
2X — 10; 10; $6.50; $9; $8.55
XL — 144; 144; $0.50; $7.25; $6.97
L — 142; 142; $5; $6; $6.36
M — 36; 36; $0.25; $4.25; $3.66
Coyote (dry)
4; 4; $7; $19; $11.50
Beaver (dry)
XL — 16; 16; $12; $20; $16.43
L — 6; 6; $5.50; $10; $14.58
Mink (dry)
L — 1; 1; $10; $10; $10
Opossum (dry)
2X — 4; 4; $2.50; $3; $2.87
XL — 3; 3; $2.50; $2.50; $2.50
L — 3; 3; $2; $2; $2
M — 11; 11; $0.10; $1; $0.67
S — 2; 2; $0.75; $0.75; $0.75
Skunk (dry)
XL — 3; 3; $10; $11; $10.33
L — 7; 7; $2; $5; $4
Red Fox (dry)
1; 1; $21; $21; $21
Gray Fox (dry)
1; 1; $12; $12; $12.00
Squirrel (dry)
5; 5; $0.25; $0.25; $0.25
The Fairfield auction was held on Jan. 23 and I have not, as of yet, tabulated the results. I’ll leave that for next month’s column. However, I think it is fair to say that, again, our sellers and buyers came away relatively pleased with the results.
On a final note for this month, I am gong to explain the process for ITA membership renewals, as there has been some confusion recently. As you’ll note, once you sign up to be a member of the ITA, you begin receiving your Trapper & Predator Caller magazine (this usually happens within a month or two; if it takes longer than that, please be sure to contact me right away so I can look into it!). About eight months into your membership/subscription period, the magazine’s subscription service will send you a renewal notice (a two-part form; you need to send in both parts of the form to me when you renew) with instructions to send the renewal form and payment to my address. If you ignore or put aside this first renewal notice, you will likely receive the second notice within about six weeks of the first one. If you put the initial form aside but then pay it before getting your second notice, please be advised that you will still receive the second notice.
The notices are computer-generated, so you need to be aware that if you wait to renew, you are pretty much asking to get the second notice…which can create confusion, especially if you think you have already paid. Since I typically go to the bank to deposit membership checks only once a month, this can lead to some lag time before your bank receives your cancelled check. If you have questions about a payment or anything else related to your membership, please don’t hesitate to call me. The sooner you contact me with any problems, the easier, generally, it is to fix them.
Thanks and God Bless ‘til next time!
— Timothy M. Kelley