History

The Ottawa Duck Club is one of the largest and most active wildlife conservation organizations in the Ottawa Valley.

The Ottawa Duck Club evolved from a sportsmen's group called QUEONT (Quebec-Ontario Wild Duck Propagation) and some of the original QUEONT members are still active today. It had its beginning in 1966 and Murray Boegel became the first President. The Ottawa Duck Club was formed by a number of concerned citizens who understood the detrimental impact that the degradation of our environment was having on our waterfowl population. Club members set out to improve the habitat for both migrating and nesting waterfowl.

Through Murray Boegel's efforts, the Ottawa Duck Club was able to obtain a long-term agreement on the use of nearly 7,000 acres of Crown Game Preserve at Shirley's Bay behind the Connaught Rifle Range, for wetlands work. With the assistance and cooperation of the Department of National Defence, a series of nesting and staging ponds were created, natural foods planted and grains raised for the local and migrating ducks and geese.

The Ottawa Duck Club was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization in 1973. It spends several thousand dollars each year on various pond improvement, floating nest structures, nesting box and other projects for the benefit of waterfowl and other birds in the area. Over the years funds have been raised by holding a Wildlife Art Show and Sale, the sale of grain, the holding of raffles, the sale of nesting boxes, as well as through the sale of memberships and donations to the club. Grants have been received from Wintario, the Canadian National Sportsman's Show, the Wetland Habitat Fund and the Community Fish and Wildlife Improvement Program (CFWIP).

Some of the activities the Ottawa Duck Club has been involved in during the past 37 years include:

• the establishment of the Upper Canada Goose Sanctuary near Morrisburg on the St. Lawrence River.
• a winter duck feeding experiment on the Ottawa River near the Champlain Bridge.
• a five year project to see if Black Ducks could be imprinted to accept nest platforms placed over the water, in an effort to reduce predation.
• nesting box programs for Wood Ducks, Tree Swallows, Blue Birds and American Kestrels. Nesting platforms for Osprey and the establishment of a colony of Purple Martins.
• the creation of nesting sites for Mallards, Black Ducks and Canada Geese.
• the transplanting of Canada Geese from the St. Lawrence sanctuary to Shirley's Bay, which has resulted in the flocks of geese that many of us enjoy watching (and feeding) in the western regions of the new City of Ottawa throughout the summer and fall months.
• various projects to improve winter deer yards and study beaver in cooperation with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR).
• the protection of pickerel spawning beds in the spring as an assistance to the MNR.
• the first Wood Duck nesting box project on the Lower Ottawa River.