By Bruce Urben, President
Pictured above: the author talks about wood duck ecology with the students
This article appeared in the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association’s June 2026 eNewsletter.
WWA at Forest/Natural Resources Education Day at Pulaski School District School Forest
Tuesday, May 12th, was the 6th annual Forest/Natural Resources Day at the Pulaski School District School Forest. The Wisconsin Waterfowl Association has been invited to present information on Wood Duck ecology each year of the ongoing program! The presentations are for all 150 4th-grade students in the district, supporting and giving a kick-start to the Pulaski Middle School Science teacher’s “Wood Duck curriculum” for the district’s 7th graders!
Jeremy VanSistine (WWA-Green Bay Chapter) and WWA President Bruce Urben have been presenting at the school field day since its inception 6 years ago.
The day started according to Mother Nature’s plan of 40-degree temps, rain, and 25-mile-an-hour wind. You wouldn’t know we had inclement weather when the first of 9 groups arrived at 9:15 and huddled under our pop-up tents at our presentation area. The students heard important information about Wood Duck ecology, including what they eat, when and where they migrate, and how they nest. A wood duck nest box was available to see, along with an unhatched egg from the box cleanout this winter. The students were able to touch and handle a taxidermy drake wood duck and closely review their stunning colors and shape. They heard the wood duck whistle as their means of communication and listened intently to our presenters! Wood Duck biology was on the agenda for very attentive and interested students. The presentation ended with many questions from the students before the next rotation began.
A large group of Conservation groups put on the annual field day in addition to WWA, including: WDNR (forestry products), USDA/NRCS (tree planting), Brown Co. Parks (wetland animals), Green Fire (invertebrate sampling), WDNR (fisheries), and USFWS (pollinators and birds).
Thank you to Dave Landers and Kaleb Santy, Pulaski School District teachers, for coordinating the event each year—a huge undertaking of busing, presenters, and coordination while school is ongoing.
Pulaski School District Middle School was among the first to adopt WWA’s “Wood Duck Curriculum,” developed by WWA members Ryan and Jessica Peterson, teachers from the Brillion School District.
Pulaski uses the curriculum each year for its 7th-grade students and monitors several wood duck nest boxes supplied by WWA. Unfortunately, this year, several of the nesting boxes were damaged by flooding this spring, but one very happy Owl is nesting in one of the boxes with several eggs already.
Based on the students’ curiosity and engagement, Pulaski School District may inspire a future waterfowl biologist in the years ahead.
