Maryland Wood Duck Initiative - A Total Wetland Experience
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B&W illustration of wood duck nest box

Click on me to learn about Volunteer Scott Jasion's Award


What's New

 Please Review our September 12, 2008 Activity Report

 Updated Events Calendar

Volunteer hours now exceed 13,000 since late 2004.

Wood Duck Boxes for Sale!
Limited Offer - 50 available $25.00 each

The J. M. Tawes Technology and Career Center in Somerset Co. (Tawes) is making 50 cedar wood duck boxes. MWDI and the Maryland Waterfowler’s Association (MDWFA) are assisting Tawes sell and deliver the boxes at Tawes’ cost to help perpetuate the school’s program of teaching its students proper saw and wood assembly techniques by recycling the proceeds to fund cedar lumber for more boxes next year. These will sell out fast. Order today!

The Harford County Ducks Unlimited Chapter sponsored a box building program from kits made in May at the Rocks and Susquehanna State Parks as part of the Park’s Junior Ranger program. The Chapter’s 25-box program was accepted by the Parks and several properties will be involved. Two boxes currently exist in what will become MWDI’s 60th public land’s site. Congratulations to Scott Jasion, Jason Schlosser and Chris Todd and the other Harford Co DU volunteers for making this happen.

Special congratulations to Scott Jasion, Harford County Ducks Unlimited and MWDI volunteer. Scott has been named "Hero of Conservation" by Field and Stream Magazine. Read more about Scott's award.

On July 28th MWDI was the guest of Maryland's Wildlife Advisory Commission. View a copy of the slide show presented by Cliff Brown ( 4 MB PDF File - Opens with Acrobat).

Congratulations to MWDI Photo Contest Winners Dave Godfrey and Alex Addagio. Each will each receive a signed, remarked and framed print of Autumn Glory by Jim Taylor which won the Maryland’s 2007-2008 state duck stamp competition. MWDI’s photo contest continues and we encourage you to submit you photos. We have two additional Autumn Glory prints to award in October. MWDI thanks all who have participated.

MWDI is proud to be among 100 organizations that have joined the new Maryland No Child Left Inside Coalition. This Coalition represents education, environment, conservation, recreation, religion, youth, health, and business interests from across Maryland and will advocate for recreational and educational outdoor experiences for all Maryland youth, and ensure that all Maryland students graduate environmentally literate. On Earth Day, Governor Martin O’Malley signed the Maryland Partnership for Children in Nature executive order, positioning Maryland to be a national leader in the movement to connect kids to the environment. We encourage all of MWDI friends and sponsors to become part of this critical effort.

100 high school students competing in the 2008 Maryland Envirothon assembled 33 wood duck boxes on June 18th at the Harford Glen Environmental Center. This was the second year in which MWDI has participated in the Envirothon, which has graciously provided funding for the lumber and supplies. Special thanks to Harford County Ducks Unlimited for able assistance. The boxes will be put to good use on various MWDI public project sites across Maryland. Read More...

Mark Salvaggio contacted MWDI about earning his Eagle Scout rank in September 2007 after reviewing our website. While MWDI provided some lumber and supplies, Mark expanded the scope and fully embraced all managerial aspects of the project. Mark obtained additional lumber and material donations, coordinated the 120 volunteer hours of 20 scouts from this Columbia, Maryland-based Boy Scout Troop 617, and delivered 43 of the best constructed cedar boxes we have been given. Mark's team also developed specialized jigs which will be very useful for future MWDI box building events. Read the complete story.

Students in Courtland Lilley’s Transportation Technology Class at James M. Bennett High School in Salisbury, MD recently transformed 25 empty Freon canisters into Wood Duck nesting boxes and donated them to MWDI. The Maryland Waterfowlers Association will install, monitor, and maintain these boxes on Lower Shore project sites. Six of these nesting boxes are already in place on Nassawango Creek in Worcester County as part of a 2008 nesting project. Read the complete story.

Jim Taylor Donates Framed Duck Stamp Prints
as Prizes for MWDI
Photo Contest
Jim Taylor, winner of this years Maryland duck stamp contest has donated 4 framed prints of Autumn Glory (a pair of wood ducks!) for first prizes. Photo submissions have grown favorably and we'll be making a selection for the interim winners of 2 prints in the adult and youth categories soon. The contest will continue for another year so please keep you submissions coming....wood duck related, wetland and educational wildlife photos desired.

The J. M. Tawes Technology and Career Center in Somerset Co. (Tawes) made 27 pine wood duck boxes and 25 predator guards. These boxes were originally intended for MWDI’s use. However, in order to help perpetuate the school’s program of teaching its students proper saw and wood assembly techniques, MWDI and the Maryland Waterfowler’s Association (MDWFA) assisted Tawes in selling the boxes and guards so they could recycle the proceeds to fund cedar wood purchases for more boxes next year.  They sold out in record time. Click here to see the quality of these products. Thanks to those who jumped on this offer, made via e-mail to those on the MWDI mailing list.

Delta Waterfowl's Eastern Shore Chapter has built and donated 25 new cedar boxes and predator guards to be utilized in several Lower Eastern Shore projects that were supported be Delta last year.
 
Washington County Eagle Scouts
built and donated 12 cedar boxes to support the Praether WMA,  Fort Frederick and Licking Creek projects.
 
The Maryland Waterfowler's Association
is expanding its volunteer support of various MWDI projects. Members will be managing the new Pocomoke/Shad Landing and Nassawango projects in Somerset County in addition to the Fairmount WMA, EA Vaughan WMA and Cypress Swamp projects, which they supported last year. The Southern MD region is also expected to begin helping with several projects on the lower Western Shore.

Ducks Unlimited publicized MWDI at the Arundel Mills Bass Pro store in February as part of their membership and awareness campaign.

The National Wildlife Federation has agreed to support MWDI in 2008 by funding 25 box kits for our youth oriented box building sessions and by providing a free one year subscription to their very popular Ranger Rick magazine to all children who participate in MWDI's youth events. Click here to learn more about this offer.

The Wood Duck Society Newsgram is published three times a year and contains informative wood duck management details. The November issue has just been released. The cost is $10 annually. Check out www.woodducksociety.com. The organization has been very supportive of MWDI's efforts.

2006 Hooded Merganser Summary
Submitted to the Breeding Bird Atlas Survey by MWDI and Maryland DNR.

Volunteers Welcome - Pick a project and get outdoors!

See our Events Calendar

Maryland Wood Duck Initiative logo & Photo Collage

This page updated on October 08, 2008