By Sarah A. Orlofske, University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point

This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s January, 2025 Newsletter edition.

The author, far left, with another LTH mentee and their mentors

Wetlands have been a part of my life since childhood and these early adventures inspired my career in wetland ecology. For the better part of a decade, I have also had the privilege of working with the waterfowling community, united by our shared love of wetlands and their most charismatic and ecologically important inhabitants. Throughout this time my primary activities have been recruiting hunters to donate specimens for our research. (You can see some of the results of this research here. I am incredibly grateful to all the hunters who have donated to our research over the years! Even though I had been so close to waterfowling all this time, I had never been waterfowl hunting myself. That changed this year at the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association Green Bay Chapter’s Learn to Hunt event. It may sound like an overstatement, but the experience was life changing!

The Friday evening activities started with classroom lessons, and I was enlightened by the information and expertise shared by the instructors and mentors and just how much was packed into a short meeting! The time on the shooting range afterward was helpful to refresh my skills and more importantly build my confidence, both of which were rusty from years away from a shotgun. I was impressed by the breadth of knowledge of the instructors and mentors. Their patience in answering my numerous questions and making sure I felt prepared was greatly appreciated!

I don’t think I slept much at all that night with all the excitement. We set out for the site at 3:30 AM. When we arrived, it was still completely dark as we loaded gear and dog into boats and put on our waders. The marsh was already noisy with geese and other active wildlife as we paddled out to our location and got everything set up. I have done a lot of wetland fieldwork but this was different – the setting, watching the sun rise, the camaraderie of others out in the field. I was impressed by the skill of my mentors in setting the decoys up and positioning ourselves in a stand of cattails. I will never forget my mentor setting out his special decoys hand carved by his father ready for another memorable day in the marsh.

The author and her ducks

My first shots were early, just after the official opening and I slipped in the mud and missed, but as my nerves calmed and my balance improved, I got wrapped up in watching the sky and listening to my mentor with his expert calling ability. I remember seeing the ducks from underneath, right above my head, and how they responded to the decoys and the calls. Their reaction time and their flight were so unexpectedly fast! My mentor was faster as he called out instructions to me, somehow never seeming to stop calling at the same time. I got a good look at a duck coming in from my left and took a couple of shots with the duck falling with the last one. The dog was out in a flash to retrieve it and I was amazed at the speed and skill used to locate and return the bird to us. A true partnership of hunter and canine companion, who seemed to love the experience just as much as the humans, if not more! My first duck was a hen pintail. Pintails have been my favorite ducks since childhood and that made the moment even more special.

As the morning continued, I admired how the marsh changed as the birds came by in waves. Sometimes just one or two, others in larger flocks. I missed some, but I was also successful too. Unexpectedly, a pair of ringnecks came in between myself and the other mentee and she got the drake and I got the hen and they fell near by each other. I think our mentors were just as excited as we were! We both had an outstanding hunt. I returned with five total ducks with a mix of species and the other mentee had four, which combined were a diverse sub-sample of the species of ducks we saw that day.

I was exhausted and exhilarated at the same time! I was really cold – my fieldwork typically ends when waterfowl season starts, so the cold temperatures caught me off guard – and my arms were completely worn out, but I couldn’t wait to tell anyone who would listen about my hunt. I treasured the experience that put me “backstage”. I had been so close to waterfowling for so long that it made the experience that much more rewarding. I got to see the pros in action and to be able to take part in all of the rituals and practices. It was like being on stage with your favorite music artist. I now better understood everything that happened leading up to the donation of the breasted-out carcasses and it made those donations even more special.

Our research seems even more connected to the waterfowl community now. These birds will be used in every possible way – as a delicious and nourishing meal to be shared with family and as specimens for research. For the first time, I will be proud to discover new scientific knowledge with birds I harvested myself.

The whole experience left me grateful, inspired and a bit overwhelmed. I realized what I knew and how much I still had to learn. I need warmer clothes and more practice with a shotgun, but I also have a strong desire to learn more, make more connections and pursue a future opportunity to get out again “backstage” to encounter waterfowl as both scientist and hunter.

By Anna Rzchowski, Public Lands Ecologist – arzchowski@wisducks.org

This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s November, 2024 Newsletter edition.

Anna in her blind on the morning of the hunt

The last Sunday in October, I paddled with my mentors across the silent marsh to set up in a little bay on the Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge. As the sun rose, the marsh slowly came alive. A pair of eagles chattered in a nearby dead tree. Mallards, wood ducks, pelicans and more flew overhead. Seeing and hearing the marsh wake up that morning was an incredible experience that I can’t wait to repeat. I didn’t grow up in a hunting family and, thanks to a great team of mentors at WWA’s Waterfowlers Academy By Women For Women Learn to Hunt Waterfowl, getting out in the marsh again this fall feels totally doable.

As a wetland enthusiast, it was especially cool to have the opportunity to experience the Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge through this hunt. The refuge is situated at the mouth of the Trempealeau River where it meets the Mississippi. A mosaic of sandy prairies, bottomland forests and marshes support astounding numbers of waterfowl and other wildlife. It’s staggering to consider the acres upon acres of wetlands and uplands within its watershed.

Thinking on a watershed level helps to understand what’s happening in the wetland. Are there nutrient inputs upstream? Where is the water coming from and where is it going? These answers will help or hinder restoration efforts and can guide goals for the site.

The sun sets on Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge

Not all wetland restorations will be great waterfowl habitat or result in a pristine native wetland. Some protect stream systems from activities in the surrounding uplands by capturing nutrients and improving the health of downstream wetlands. Some will create great hunting spots. Others provide a refuge for rare and imperiled plant and wildlife species.

WWA has a number of wetland restorations in the works with three out for bid this fall. These projects won’t look like the Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge when all is said and done. Each project provides different benefits that reach far beyond the property boundaries. Ditch plugs at Meadow Valley Wildlife Area and Necedah National Wildlife Refuge will not only restore wetland acres and more productive waterfowl habitat, but also reduce impacts to downstream roads and infrastructure by increasing water storage capacity in these wetlands. A restoration in Waushara County will create a bit of habitat for wood ducks, support the native plant community, and restore sub-surface water flow from springs on the site, lowering the temperature of the water entering the stream and improving conditions for trout.

Thinking at a watershed level makes wetlands restoration and management feel a little less intimidating. Improving a part of the system improves the whole. By restoring wetland acres within the watershed, we’re improving the health of the many acres of wetlands and waterfowl habitat downstream, too. And that’s encouraging!

By Bruce Urben, President

This article originally appeared in Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s November, 2024 Newsletter edition.

The students and their mentors

On the night of Friday, October 11^th, WWA’s Green Bay Chapter began their 16^th annual Learn to Hunt (LTH) waterfowl program ran through our Waterfowlers Academy. Eight students attended this year and each started their LTH experience with  several hours in the classroom at the Pittsfield trap club. Instruction included presentations by certified Hunter Safety instructor Jeremy VanSistine, hunter ethics and conservation laws by Conservation Warden Logan Woods, duck identification by WDNR Regional Biologist Steve Burns and duck and goose calling by VanSistine and Bryan Urben of the GB Chapter. The students enjoyed a pizza dinner with soft drinks and sampled duck sausage, hotsticks and good Wisconsin cheese.

After dinner the students were paired up with their mentor team for some time on the trap line, shooting clay pigeons in the positions they would encounter the next day at their mentored hunt. A number of our adult students had not previously fired a firearm!

A student and her mentor in the field

Saturday morning started early for the mentors and students, with some on the raod as early as 4:00 am to meet their mentors at the scouted hunting sites. The hunt concluded by late morning and all met back at the trap club for a picnic lunch, more demos and certificate presentation. According to the mentors, all of the students had some opportunities – some successful and some not. Nine ducks were harvested and the WWA GB Learn to Hunt team demonstrated cleaning their harvest and shared their favorite recipes.

A USDA tech sampled for Avian Influenza

A representative from United States Department of Agriculture was present to swab the throat and cloacal areas of each duck in their effort of monitoring Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). A short presentation was given and a discussion followed on the need for this continued monitoring.

All of the participants had a great time during our closure meeting, and several are planning future hunts this year! All students left with a goody bag that included a WWA Waterfowlers Academy hat and a duck or goose call to commemorate their attendance.

This year, students attended from all over Wisconsin, including Stevens Point and Madison.

A special thanks to all of our Learn to Hunt mentors, including Mike Keeler, Bryan Urben, Jeremy VanSistine, Logan Sincoular, Mark Wilcox, Ken McNamer, Jesse Nickels, Hank and Dave Voakes and Bruce Urben. We cannot hold this type of event without these experienced and avid waterfowlers who gave up a day of hunting for these students! Also thank you to Pittsfield Trap Club near Pulaski for the use of their facilities and all of our presenters and behind the scenes help, and of course, the donations of food and soft drinks from our valued sponsors.

Students and mentors show off their successful harvest

If you are interested in attending a Learn to Hunt waterfowl program in the future, please contact Todd Schaller, our WWA Education Chair at 920-379-1704 or email at tschalt@charter.net.