The shop building at Washington High School was busy with the whine and buzz of power tools as 19 students in Charles Daniels’ Construction Technology – Furniture/Cabinet class were hard at their work.

The week of September 15-19 the shop class was making 40 nesting boxes for Wood Ducks to replace those destroyed on the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge by the catastrophic Evans Road Fire which consumed thousands of acres of refuge land. 

The nesting boxes are needed not only to replenish destroyed or damaged ones, but because the fire eliminated many existing natural nesting cavities.  The Wood Duck (Aix sponsa), one of the few North American duck species that is a “cavity nester”, makes its nest in a “hole” or “cavity” in a tree.  Many of these birds have thus been rendered “homeless” by the loss of trees resulting from the largest wildfire in the nation this past summer.

The Wood Duck nesting boxes project, dubbed “Ducks in Luck” or “Shacks for Quacks” by WNCT-TV in its coverage, is the latest endeavor of the Friends of Pocosin Lakes N. W. R.  The refuge Friends group is a volunteer organization, formed only this past spring, dedicated to being “a friend” to a unique wildlife sanctuary by promoting and protecting this natural treasure. 

The Friends group no sooner got its feet on the ground than it was confronted with the emergency of the wildfire, stretching the resources of its members and the refuge staff.  The Evans Road Fire, which started on June 1 and has yet to be completely extinguished, has created the need for much restoration work, Wood Duck nesting boxes being only one of these needs.  Among pending projects is replacing refuge signs and other infrastructure.

The Pungo Unit of the Pocosin Lakes N. W. R. is managed primarily for waterfowl, including Wood Ducks.  Wood Duck are one of only a few duck species that nest on the refuge.  Unlike many of the ducks common on Pungo Lake and nearby impoundments in winter, such as Gadwall, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, and American Wigeon, Wood Ducks are year-around residents in North Carolina and commonly breed on the refuge.

Since they nest at Pocosin Lakes N. W. R. and are dependent on tree cavities or a suitable substitute, such as well-made and well-maintained nesting boxes, these structures, along with habitat maintenance, are the mainstay of the refuge’s management effort.

By the early 1900s, due to over-hunting and habitat destruction, such as logging and the draining of wooded wetlands, Wood Ducks were facing the threat of extinction.   The work of our National Wildlife Refuges, and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, has brought about an impressive recovery for Wood Duck populations.  Also important to this success story is legislation such as the Migratory Treaty Act, passed in 1918, giving the U. S. and Canada the authority to regulate waterfowl hunting.  This regulation allowed the prohibition of Wood Duck hunting until 1941 when populations had rebounded.

Wood Ducks earn their common name (perhaps it should be “Woods Duck”) since swamps, wooded stream banks, and other forested wetlands are where to find them.  They are well adapted to this habitat.  They eat tree mast such as acorns, cypress cones, and grapes, can perch on a tree branch, and, because of their short wings and long tail, and perhaps plenty of practice, are expert at threading their way in flight through close standing trees. 

Besides filling a very special niche in nature, Wood Ducks are beautiful birds.  The scientific name, Aix sponsa, favors this almost universal observation.  “Sponsa”, Latin for “bride” and the word from which we got “spouse”, refers to a bride dressed in her very best finery for her marriage ceremony. 

It is, of course, the male or Drake that is so arrayed.  The female or Hen Wood Duck is a mousy-brown or gray with a conspicuous white eye ring, lacking the many, rich and iridescent hues of the Drake.  This difference, or “sexual dimorphism”, actually benefits the survival of the eggs and chicks.  Although the Drake helps in selecting the nesting site, it takes no part in incubating the eggs or brooding and feeding the young.  Because of its flashy colors, the Drake’s comings and goings to the nest would very likely attract predators.  

To complete the Friends of Pocosin Lakes N. W. R. Wood Duck nesting box project, Mr. Daniels’ second-year shop class will take a field trip to the refuge to install the nesting boxes of their creation and to receive a firsthand look at the piece of nature’s real estate they are befriending.

An essential part of the mission of the Friends of Pocosin Lakes N. W. R. is outreach and education.  The efforts, interest, and skills of these high school students will greatly benefit the refuge and its wildlife.  But they are served in turn. Their experience will likely teach them much about refuges and wildlife, and also about giving back to nature and the community.  As their teacher Charles Daniels said and more to the point, “The chance to participate in something like this is a perfect way for me to help teach my students about giving back.”

My very special thanks to all those who contributed so generously to this project, including the students of the Construction Technology II class, their teacher Charles Daniels, Russell Holloman, the Principal of Washington High School, all those who donated materials, including Mackey’s Ferry Saw Mill of Roper, and Lowe’s and ACE Hardware of Washington, and my hardworking team of the refuge Friends group, most especially Emily Scott, who pulled the whole thing together.   

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