It wasn't a wild good chase that sent Ava Britton to Canada this past summer. More like a wild duck chase, and a successful one at that.
The first-year master's student in the School of Natural Resources had planned to come to Nebraska in fall 2024 to study two-tier duck hunting regulations under the guidance of professors Chris Chizinski and Mark Vrtiska. Before that could happen, the professors suggested she take a graduate field course in the Prairie Pothole Region of Canada and the northern United States. Britton had studied songbirds and falcons as an undergraduate in Arizona but hesitated to apply to the Delta Waterfowl Foundation to take a waterfowl course with further-along graduate students.
"Initially, I was intimidated," she said. "And I asked Chris and Mark, 'Are you sure you think it's a good idea that I go, having not even started my program yet?' And they were like, 'Yeah, definitely. Just immerse yourself in it and just have the experience.' And I definitely agree with them that it was, honestly, great timing for me because I feel like it laid a good foundation for me to go off of now, starting the school year."
See more images and read the rest of the story about Ava at https://snr.unl.edu/aboutus/what/newstory.aspx?fid=1178