Rowan University recently introduced the Ducks Unlimited Club, Rowan’s chapter of the national non-profit organization Ducks Unlimited Inc.

The club held its first meeting back in November, where they held a waterfowl drawing competition, the term “waterfowl” relating to ducks, geese, swans, and other species of waterbirds. Ducks Unlimited Club meets every Wednesday, typically at around 8:00 p.m., in room 201 at Discovery Hall.

“It sounded like a really good opportunity,” Kristian VanMeter, the vice president of the Ducks Unlimited Club said. “We’re all environmental science students, we all care very deeply about the earth, the climate, and the issues facing it. This was a great opportunity for us to kind of kickstart a movement, especially because the School of Earth and Environment didn’t, at the time, have a lot of clubs to represent a collective of 20,000 students around the school. So we thought it was a great idea to kickstart a brand new club with the backing of an already established organization.”

There are currently about 30 members that have joined, including an E-Board of Rowan students all studying environmental science in some capacity, but the Ducks Unlimited Club is open to anybody and everybody who would like to join, even if they have no prior knowledge about wetland conservation or environmental preservation.

“My whole life revolves around waterfowl,” Nathaniel Holl, the senator of the Ducks Unlimited Club, said. “It’s a community with many people, who are the same as me, birdwatchers, environmentalists, conservationists, hunters, and it’s a very strong community. Being a part of growing this community is something that means a lot to me because of how much these birds mean to me and how much my community means to me, and I want to introduce that to people who have no clue about it. We can teach people how to care for them, why they’re valuable, what’s so cool about them, why I care about them.”

The Ducks Unlimited Club is currently planning out different trips and events for members, including an informational trip to Cape May State Park to watch the bird migration, building duck boxes to be put out and monitored as the next breeding time for ducks rolls around, volunteering at local wildlife refuges and parks, going on wetland tours, and setting up discussions with guest speakers with representatives not only from Ducks Unlimited Inc. but also from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). The club is also hoping to partner with the NJDEP to partake in duck banding, the process of attaching metal bands onto ducks so that biologists can track how they migrate and survive in the wild.

“I think there’s something in it for everybody, whether you’re in environmental science or not,” Natalie Evans, the president of the Ducks Unlimited Club, said. “What’s so great about it is, because it’s such a community, there is a place for everybody, and as much or as little as you want to get out of it, you can. If you want to go on every trip and do every experience and then go to every educational bit, you can. But also, if you just want to come along for one of the boat trips, you can.”

The Ducks Unlimited Club is currently petitioning to be chartered by Rowan’s Student Government Association (SGA), with the E-Board aiming for the club to be officially funded by SGA by the next fall semester.

For those who may be interested in joining Ducks Unlimited Club, or at the very least want to learn more about the club itself, there will be a recruitment event on March 7 at 6:00 p.m. at the Chickie’s and Pete’s on Rowan Boulevard, with free appetizers and non-alcoholic beverages, trivia, guest speakers, and more.

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