UW-Stevens Point to offer speaker series blending arts and culture with conservation

Discover the relationship between art and wetland habitats with the Wisconsin Center for Wildlife at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. "The Art of Waterbird and Wetland Management" speaker series will begin Thursday, Jan. 30, featuring talks from seven land management and creative naturalist professionals.

The series will be held weekly on Thursday nights from 5-6 p.m. in Room 170 of the UW-Stevens Point Trainer Natural Resources Building, and via livestream on the College of Natural Resources (CNR) YouTube channel. All seminars are free and open to the public.

The series will focus on the Federal Duck Stamp and state-level stamp art contests, with speakers addressing how funds raised from the sale of the stamps are used for conservation of waterbirds and their habitats. Participants will also learn the history and art of decoy carving and how decoys are used to advance scientific research and management objectives. Additional details and livestream links may be found at www.uwsp.edu/wcw.

The series is sponsored by the Wisconsin Center for Wildlife and CNR and was co-organized with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Events include:

• Jan. 30 - "Ding's Darling: The Federal Duck Stamp and an American Conservation Hero," Tim Eisele, freelance outdoor writer and photographer

• Feb. 6 - "Bird Decoys from the View of a Biologist," Chris Nicolai, waterfowl scientist, Delta Waterfowl

• Feb. 13 - "The Artform of Functional Hunting Decoys," Pat Gregory, waterfowler and decoy maker

• Feb. 20 - "Managing Wetlands for Waterbirds on Horicon National Wildlife Refuge," Sadie O'Dell, wildlife biologist, Horicon National Wildlife Complex, US Fish and Wildlife Service

• Feb. 27 - "Secrets of Secretive Marshbirds," Auriel Fournier, director and associate research scientist, Forbes Biological Station, Illinois Natural History Survey

• March 6 - "Wisconsin Waterfowl Habitat Conservation Strategy in Action," Taylor Finger, game bird specialist, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

• March 13 - "Creativity and Conservation: My Experience with the Federal Duck Stamp Competition," Rebekah Knight, wildlife artist and 2nd place runner-up in the 2024 Federal Duck Stamp Competition