Junior conservationists enjoy duck and goose calling and show off their goodies during Marsh Madness at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center. (Molly Stoddard, March 29, 2008)

The Fergus Falls Fish and Game Club helped visitors build 50 bluebird boxes to take home during Marsh Madness at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center, March 29, 2008. (Photo by youth volunteer Jake Steen)

Spring has sprung in western Minnesota!  About 350 visitors enjoyed a little Marsh Madness at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center, Saturday, March 29, 2008.

The purpose of this annual event (held since 1999) is to celebrate the return of spring to our prairie wetlands as well as our conservation heritage. 

People of all ages participated in a variety of activies.  The Fergus Falls Fish and Game Club helped visitors build 50 bluebird boxes to take home and install.  They also displayed Roger Rustad's impressive collection of antique decoys and Otter Tail County conservation history research.  Dalton Outdoors helped kids with gun sizing and displayed the latest in decoys and camoflage clothing.  The Friends of the PWLC served a lunch of hot dogs and potato chips and netted $250 in sales.  Most of the food was donated to the Friends by four local businesses.

Volunteers staffed a variety of activities such as painting cloth grocery bags to take home, making lunch bag nature journals to use outside, examining aquatic invertebrates with a scope cam, duck and goose calling demonstrations, story time, handing out camoflage sunglasses to all kids wearing camo clothing, duck dog demonstrations, waterfowl identification, chainsaw wood carving demonstrations, wood hand carved wildife on display, and a handmade duck boat display.  The Kiwanis Club donated funds for the purchase of materials for children's activities.  First-time volunteer Jack Bernard had the distinct honor of dressing as Puddles and handing out blue goose buttons from his camoflage basket.  A total of 33 volunteers worked this event.

In celebration of the Wetlands Act, the small wetlands exhibit was on display from the R3 Resource Library.  The PWLC also premiered its newly completed prairie pothole region digital videos in the visitor center sod house theater.