Prairie Pothole Day 2010!
Prairie Pothole Day 2010 has finally come into focus. Committee members have been working hard the past few months to organize the seminars, procure supplies, and get Stoney Ridge Farm ready for Prairie Pothole Day 2010. Plan on spending Saturday, September 11th, 2010 at Prairie Pothole Day learning about wetland conservation, playing outdoor games, or simply watching kids climb the wall. We have activities for everyone, including your canine friends, so come on out and support wetland conservation in West Central Minnesota, gates open at 9 AM!
- Environmental Learning Activities
- 3-d Archery
- Artists
- Climbing Wall
- Dog Distance Jumping
- Exhibitors
- Youth Archery and BB Gun Shoot
- Seminar's
- Trap & Sporting Clays
- Auctions, Raffles, and More!
Direction and additional information can be found by using the following links:
Prairie Pothole Day Seminars 2010
The seminar schedule for 2010 has been finalized... At least 'till it changes. This year Prairie Pothole will be offering seminars on wild game cooking, dog handling, and waterfowl calling. This year we welcome Mark Dukart, owner & inventor of Illusion Calls. He will be leading a seminar on duck and goose calling. We also have an Avery Pro-Staff member, Mark Brendemuehl, who will discuss waterfowl tactics. So join us for these and many other seminars and presentations.
DockDogs Northern Stars will be at Prairie Pothole Day again this year. As Seen on TV... ESPN, Outdoor Channel, or ABC. The competition is simple and exciting. Simply put - the dog with the longest leap off the end of the dock - The Big Air Dog - WINS!!! Prairie Pothole has the dock, DockDogs has the official 'Tape-measure', and you have a dog. The question is it a Big Air Dog. Come to Prairie Pothole Day and find out!
Mark Dukart comes to Prairie Pothole Day for the first time this year. Mark is the owner and inventor of IllusionCalls. After a tour with the US Marine Corp Mark found employment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN as a driver for VIP's. Due to the sporadic nature of this work he had time to hang out with the geese at Silver Lake, a popular staging ground for migrating Canada geese. One day on whim, he bought a goose call and tried it on the geese, thousands of heads popped up in alarm. That inauspicious first attempt lead to guiding in Rochester and eventually to making his own calls. Demand for the calls, and his instruction, bloomed and Mike finally recorded his teachings and sent them along with each call. Today Illusion Wildlife Communication System includes that very recording along with each waterfowl call. More information about Mark can be found at Illusion Calls
Mark Brendemuehl was introduced to the outdoors as a toddler when he began tagging along with his dad on trout fishing trips. Next came the afternoon hunting trips where, while struggling to keep up with his elders, he learned to hunt rabbits, squirrels and grouse . As he grew older, pheasants and whitetails were added to Mark's targeted game list, and he eventually evolved into bow hunting as well as competing in 3-D archery tournaments. Waterfowl hunting in Mark's home area of Wisconsin was not popular when he was young because migratory bird numbers were down making places to hunt very hard to come by. One Canada goose hunt on Wisconsin's famous Horicon Marsh, however, hooked Mark on goose hunting for life.
Cooking Demonstrations and Sampling will also be presented this year.
Seminar Schedule!
- Mark Dukart - Duck & Goose Calling - 10 AM and 3 PM
- Man Grilling - Cooking Demonstration- 11 AM and 2 PM
- Mark Brendemuehl- Waterfowl Tactics- 12 PM
- Dock Dogs - 11 AM and 3 PM
Prairie Pothole in the news
The West Central Tribune in Willmar Minnesota has been gracious enough to report on the activities and successes of the Prairie Pothole Chapter of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association over the years. In the past coverage included wonderful photos and stories that have been published in the paper following the event. This past year the Tribune's coverage of Prairie Pothole Day went multi-media with a story by Ron Adams. The following links will take you to the Prairie Pothole Day story and the West Central Tribune.
Lucky 7 Raffle
While Prairie Pothole Day is a chance for families to gather at Stoney Ridge Farm to learn about the environment and spend time together, it is also the Chapters fundraiser. The Prairie Pothole Chapter uses the monies raised at Prairie Pothole Day to fund habitat and education projects in and around Willmar, Mn. This year the chapter decided to retire the venerable 10 Gun Raffle.
New this year is the Lucky 7 Raffle with 21 prizes valued at over $6800. A winning ticket may win any one of 7 guns, 7 $100 cash prizes, or 7 Hunters Packages, that include a Wildfowler Outfitter duffle bag, floating gun case, shell belt, fanny pack & MWA multi-too.
The drawing for the Lucky 7 raffle, sponsored by the Prairie Pothole Chapter of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association, will be held on September 11, 2010, at Stoney Ridge Farm, 15 miles North of Willmar, MN. While participants need not be present to win they must be 18yrs or older.
Raffle tickets can be purchased individually for $10 or 3 for $20 from Prairie Pothole Chapter Members
Wood Duck Boxes
Where can I buy a wood duck box? That's usually the question that members of the Prairie Pothole Chapter of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association hear after folks discover Predator Guards. Recognizing the interest in wood duck nesting boxes the chapter has added them to our 'online' store. Now interested parties can purchase nesting boxes and guards together. Once assembled users can mount the nesting box and predator
guard on a post or timber following Roger Strand's best practices. Properly located the nesting box and predator guard provide a safe nesting cavity for wood ducks. To learn more about the placement or nesting
boxes and to place an order please go to the Wood Duck Boxes and Guards web page.
Wood Duck Predator Guards
The Prairie Pothole Chapter of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association has been building and maintaining wood duck nesting boxes for the past 28 years. Roger Strand, a
founding member of the chapter, is a nationally recognized authority on wood duck structures and has developed a best practices approach to helping wood ducks nest safely.
A key component of these practices is to protect the nesting hen from predation. A predator guard below the nesting box provides this protection.
Prairie Pothole began working with a local contracting firm to cut and assemble predator guards for members and our annual habitat day. The guards have become increasingly popular and the contractor has asked the chapter to assume responsibility for ordering and answering any questions about nesting structures. You can learn more about Roger's best practices and order your own guards by going to the Predator Guard page.
8th Annual Wood Duck Day
Habitat Day was a great success. Families gathered at Prairie Woods Environmental Center on Saturday March 6th to build cedar Wood Duck nesting boxes, learn about wetland habitat, and have a good time. Kids
of all ages had a great time assembling the boxes with hammers, screwdrivers, and in some cases shear determination. In the end though many families went home with a completed nest box, predator guard, and a pole
to mount the box.
Roger Strand was also on hand to discuss best practices for nest box success and also offer advice on good places to install the nest boxes. Habitat Day has become an annual event for the Prairie Pothole Chapter of the Minnesota Waterfowl Association. If you missed this years Habitat Day please check back in January, 2010, the event is usually held during the last week of February or the first week of March. Once a date has been determined it will be listed on the Chapter Calendar.
Waterfowl Management Handbook
Although this is not 'New' news, it is probably a good idea to remember that this resource is available online. The US Fish and Wildlife Service developed a series of topical leaflets several years ago to assist managers with questions concerning waterfowl and habitat development. These leaflets were compiled into a handbook that was subsequently put online. If you are interested in these issues you may want to consider book marking the web site or downloading the entire handbook.
