GA Student Chapters remain highly engaged on and off campus

Below is a summary of recent Student Chapter activities within Georgia, which was included in the Georgia Chapter of The Wildlife Society’s Fall 2017 newsletter. The newsletter includes updates from the Student Chapters of The Wildlife Society at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) and the University of Georgia. Photos highlighting Student Chapter activities are also included in the Chapter’s Fall 2017 newsletter.

Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society

ABAC Student Chapter of TWS, under the leadership of its officers Chris Terrazas, Miranda Wilkinson, and Jacob Wilson, was very active this past Fall semester. Volunteerism is very important to this student chapter as you can tell from the list of all the activities they’ve tackled just recently:

• The student chapter sent several students to the Georgia Chapter of The Wildlife Society meeting in September 2017, where they enjoyed the numerous talks by professionals in the field they are working to join.
• Funded 17 students to attend the SEAFWA conference in Louisville, Kentucky. They took full advantage of the networking opportunities and some of them may have even found their summer job as a direct result!
• Participated in the Southeastern Section of TWS’ business meeting at SEAFWA.
• Built ~20 new American kestrel nest boxes for GADNR Nongame Division to be placed across the area near ABAC.
• Built 50 wood duck nest boxes for Greg Balkcom’s efforts at increasing waterfowl reproduction in the state.
• Supplied over 40 volunteers to help run a Jake’s Day event at Paradise Public Fishing Area!
• Sponsored an educational booth at the Jake’s Day event to help our students learn how to interact with the public while providing experiential learning for the youth in the area. The students themselves developed the content of the booth that included general species awareness for multiple common species (mammals to birds), turtle traits (comparing turtles and tortoises), and a look at carnivorous plant diversity of the Southeast.
• Nine members were Project Wild certified this past November.
• 12 members signed up to get S130/S190 red card certified for fire training through The Orianne Society in December.
• Supplied volunteers for quail covey call counts at Silverlake WMA where they needed numerous people to cover all the different stations all at the same time.

University of Georgia Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society

Founded in 1967, UGA TWS is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Members are very excited to be celebrating their chapter’s history. Starting with the first TWS Student Conclave in 1972, UGA has attended The Wildlife Society’s Southeastern Student Conclave annually. Historically, UGA has done well at student conclaves and annual conferences of TWS.

Student members look forward to representing The Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources and The University of Georgia each year. UGA has hosted the Southeastern Student Conclave in 1980, 1990, and 2007. Student members also enjoy networking with wildlife professionals and engaging with the local community.

In September 2017, a few members traveled to Covington, Georgia, for the annual Georgia Chapter of The Wildlife Society meeting.

This past fall, five members of the UGA Student Chapter traveled to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to attend the 24th Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society. There, the UGA quiz bowl team won the Quiz Bowl competition for the second consecutive year.

On October 21, UGA TWS participated in Sandy Creek Nature Center’s annual “Scary Spooky Slimy” event. TWS provided animal specimens, and student members were able to inspire local kids to take an interest in nature.