Posted: June 20, 2023
A field day event held recently by Penn State Extension gave youth 4-H members from across Pennsylvania an opportunity to explore their interest in wildlife and forestry.
The "Exploratory Tract" for youth ages 7-11 included hands-on wildlife and forestry educational activities and guest speakers. The theme was "Big, Bigger and Biggest!" and featured workshops on invasive plant species, amphibians and reptiles, wildlife population dynamics, and more.
The "Science Tract" offered youth ages 12-18 a chance to participate in a series of educational sessions to increase their knowledge and skills related to wildlife and forest sciences. According to organizers, the sessions brought to life content from 4-H wildlife and forestry project books and helped 4-H'ers better understand current conservation issues. The event also was aimed at inspiring participants to investigate potential career paths in forest and wildlife conservation.
Teens hoping to attend national 4-H competitions in wildlife and forestry competed in knowledge and skills tests.
The wildlife science competition resulted in:
— First place to Carson Riley, of Huntingdon County.
— Second place to Grace Ziegmont, of York County.
— Third place to Madison Cousins, of Armstrong County.
— A fourth place tie between Carley Locke, of Crawford County; Gideon Sensenig, of Lancaster County; Jasper Martin, of Montour County; and Olivia Creek, of Cumberland County.
— Fifth place to Isaiah Snyder, of Blair County.
A team of these top scorers will represent Pennsylvania at the 2023 National Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Program Invitational, July 30-August 2 in Milford, Iowa. The ecoregion of focus for this year will be the Great Plains grasslands and tallgrass/mixed prairie.
Top achievements in forestry science included:
— First place to Elizabeth Bruner, of Indiana County.
— A five-way tie for second place among Sadie Palfrey, of Indiana County; John Bruner, of Indiana County; Maggie Palfrey, of Indiana County; Keith Biddle, of Blair County; and Nathan Kennedy, of Indiana County.
— A third-place tie between Wyatt Conoway, of Clinton County, and Audrey Marko, of Clinton County.
— Fourth place to Elliot Heim, of Montour County.
— Fifth place to Danielle LaVan, of Indiana County.
The team of Elizabeth Bruner, John Bruner, Sadie Palfrey, and Maggie Palfrey will represent Pennsylvania at the National 4-H Forestry Invitational, July 23-27 in Weston, West Virginia.
Event coordinators expressed appreciation for guest speakers Derek Eberly, from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, who spoke on youth leadership opportunities in conservation throughout Pennsylvania; and Makayla Whaling, from the Pennsylvania Game Commission, who led a seminar on Pennsylvania elk.
The event was a collaboration among state 4-H program staff, volunteers and council members; faculty in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences; Penn State Extension educators; and the Pennsylvania Sustainable Forestry Initiative. The Pennsylvania Forest Products Association helped sponsor this event.
