I started the project a few years ago, with the intention of having a mobile comprehensive display (that is one that could be setup at various venues) of all the recognized species of waterfowl that reside in North America.
Our mission, and what we hope to accomplish with the completed collection, is to provide an opportunity for any and all that are interested, waterfowlers, bird lovers, and general public alike, to be able to witness all in one place the enormous variety of waterfowl that lives in North America.
When coming up with the concept for this project, my initial intention was to raise awareness of the differences, in the various species of waterfowl, to be used by waterfowlers for identification purposes. I am an avid collector myself (6 species left, more on that later too), and thought that along with the obvious advantage of having representative specimens of each species available to educate waterfowlers, how awesome it would be to have an entire collection for the public to view.
Our mission, and what we hope to accomplish with the completed collection, is to provide an opportunity for any and all that are interested, waterfowlers, bird lovers, and general public alike, to be able to witness all in one place the enormous variety of waterfowl that lives in North America.
When coming up with the concept for this project, my initial intention was to raise awareness of the differences, in the various species of waterfowl, to be used by waterfowlers for identification purposes. I am an avid collector myself (6 species left, more on that later too), and thought that along with the obvious advantage of having representative specimens of each species available to educate waterfowlers, how awesome it would be to have an entire collection for the public to view.
The concept behind the project was borrowed, with permission, from John Otto, of Washington. He had assembled a small collection, that included the 32 recognized drake ducks from North America. I loved the idea and thought it would be great to expand that concept to include both hens and drakes, along with geese, cranes and swans.
To say I underestimated the enormity of the task would be and understatement.
The logical jumping off point for this thing would be to amass a list, either official or generally recognized as correct, of the species that would be included in the collection. I was fortunate enough to find the website www.wildfowltraveler.com/. The website is a "society" of sorts, similar to the Boon and Crocket club, for big game enthusiasts. They have a comprehensive list of NA waterfowl that was agreed upon by a panel of members, that when all have been "collected" would allow a collector to become a member of the "Master" society. I used this list as a base for my collection (see list here). Along the way we added a few things, like including all the sub-species of Canada geese, etc. But for the most part we have stuck with the main list.
The next step for me was to secure a/many taxidermist(s) that would be willing to mount the birds, either for free, or reduced cost. In exchange I offered advertising for their services at all the events we attended with the display. Darin Gardner (Darin's website) stepped up to the plate and offered to mount all the birds, for this enormous project, free of charge. I can't say enough how big of relief this was for me. I was fearful of the amount of work it would take to not only coordinate the taxidermists, but all the legal paperwork that must accompany any federally protected bird (which all waterfowl are), when it is at a licensed taxidermy facility. Having Darin step in and accept the whole project, really helped me to believe that we could accomplish this enormous task.
The next step of course would be to collect all the specimens that we would hope to be displaying. Federal law allows for waterfowl to be "gifted", to someone other than the original owner. No form of compensation is allowed, be it trade, monetary, good will or otherwise, in exchange for protected waterfowl. I have been very, very strict about this policy, not even allowing for compensation for shipping. I felt I had to be, to protect the integrity of the project, and make sure that all legal avenues were followed. I have in my possession, transfer of ownership documents, for all waterfowl that was donated/gifted to me/the project. I retain ownership of all the birds for legal reasons.
Currently we have nearly all of the necessary, specimen(s) collected, except for an elite few. I will be posting a list on the blog, that I will try and keep updated, incase some of you are willing and/or able to donate/gift any of these birds to the project. We are only accepting, dead, frozen, unmounted specimens. This allows us the ability to make sure that everything will fit in with the display.
The next and final step will be to either purchase or construct, a purpose built trailer, that will house and store the collection and the corresponding display. In my "other" life, away from the passion of waterfowling, I am a fabricator by trade. I have the resources and ability to build a trailer like this. We are in the planning phase of fundraisers, to purchase the materials to construct the trailer. More on that to come.
In the coming months I hope to have updates on the project, along with a list of the remaining birds that we need to "collect" for the project. I also plan on having a, species profile, with various websites and information about the different birds that we will be featuring once the collection is complete. Along with that I will have updates on fundraisers, for the project.
Thanks for taking the time to read. Post a comment if you'd like.
Later,
Kev
The next step of course would be to collect all the specimens that we would hope to be displaying. Federal law allows for waterfowl to be "gifted", to someone other than the original owner. No form of compensation is allowed, be it trade, monetary, good will or otherwise, in exchange for protected waterfowl. I have been very, very strict about this policy, not even allowing for compensation for shipping. I felt I had to be, to protect the integrity of the project, and make sure that all legal avenues were followed. I have in my possession, transfer of ownership documents, for all waterfowl that was donated/gifted to me/the project. I retain ownership of all the birds for legal reasons.
Currently we have nearly all of the necessary, specimen(s) collected, except for an elite few. I will be posting a list on the blog, that I will try and keep updated, incase some of you are willing and/or able to donate/gift any of these birds to the project. We are only accepting, dead, frozen, unmounted specimens. This allows us the ability to make sure that everything will fit in with the display.
The next and final step will be to either purchase or construct, a purpose built trailer, that will house and store the collection and the corresponding display. In my "other" life, away from the passion of waterfowling, I am a fabricator by trade. I have the resources and ability to build a trailer like this. We are in the planning phase of fundraisers, to purchase the materials to construct the trailer. More on that to come.
In the coming months I hope to have updates on the project, along with a list of the remaining birds that we need to "collect" for the project. I also plan on having a, species profile, with various websites and information about the different birds that we will be featuring once the collection is complete. Along with that I will have updates on fundraisers, for the project.
Thanks for taking the time to read. Post a comment if you'd like.
Later,
Kev
Hey I heard they have this display on the BYU grounds
ReplyDeleteYes, there is a big display down there. I have never been myself, but I've heard that it's something else. I believe they also have waterfowl from outside of NA along with upland birds as well.
ReplyDeleteOur project will be similar, but mobile, so we can set it up at different events.
Later,
Kev