Cordova, Alaska: Ducks Unlimited Dusky Canada Goose Intern - Summer 2022

            After spending most of the day working on various projects different from Duskies, I got to spend a few hours in the evening looking for resights. Resights are able to be recorded with their alphanumerical sequence on the red neck collar. We saw a total of seven neck collars, but could only identify five of the sequences. The cameras and binoculars were extremely useful to read the collars. A variety of color markings are important to migratory bird data like Duskies, but also Red Knots, which are a declining species. The information we found for the Dusky resights will help organizations better manage Duskies in the future.  

          T he Dusky Canada Goose ( Branta canadensis occidentalis ) (Dusky or Duskies) is a subspecies of Canada Geese ( Branta canadensis ). They breed almost primarily in the Copper River Delta in South-Central Alaska and winter in the Willamette Valley and Lower Columbia River floodplain in Western Oregon and Southwest Washington. The Copper River Delta is the largest coastal wetland on the Pacific Coast at about 700,000 acres, and the Willamette Valley is the largest inland river valley in the Pacific Northwest. Currently, the Dusky Canada Goose population is hovering right around 15,000, giving them one of the smallest goose populations in North America. In late September, Duskies depart from post-molt staging areas down the Pacific Coast of Alaska and Canada until they reach their wintering grounds in Washington and Oregon in early November. They leave those grounds for the migration north in late March and early April and reach the breeding grounds in mid-late April.           

          Hello everyone, my name is Blake Richard, and I am thrilled to announce that I am the Ducks Unlimited Intern that will be assisting the U.S. Forest Service on the Dusky Canada Goose Artificial Nest Island Program here in Cordova, Alaska. The project is based out of the Cordova Ranger District in the Chugach National Forest which is home to the Copper River Delta. I am originally from Park Falls, Wisconsin and currently a student at Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin where I play basketball and baseball. My passion of photography led me to find this position and pursue it. If you'd like to find out more about me, you can check out my website, blakerichardphotography.com. I arrived in Cordova on the 24th of April and began on the 25th, after I just finished finals at Northland on the 22nd. Not the smoothest transition, but excited for what the future holds! I'll be announcing more about the project in the near future. Once again, welcome, and thank you for followin