{"id":242478,"date":"2026-04-22T22:50:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T22:50:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/242478\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T22:50:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T22:50:13","slug":"usf-ducks-petition-for-castor-beach-expansion-project","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/242478\/","title":{"rendered":"USF ducks petition for Castor Beach expansion project"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a>USF ducks sit on Castor Beach quacking in support of their expanded beach lodge. ORACLE GRAPHIC\/THOMAS MARRS<\/p>\n

USF\u2019s campus ducks are often the target of a lot of publicity on campus, from student organizations to incoming freshmen.<\/p>\n

USF departments love making Instagram Reels<\/a> about the ducks, while freshmen love taking photos of them with their first cameras to post on Reddit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Even the USF Student Government has approved a resolution<\/a> to install duck-crossing signs across campus to prevent them from becoming roadkill. Everyone on campus loves the ducks.<\/p>\n

However, the ducks on campus don\u2019t care about Instagram, Reddit or duck crossing signs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So, they drafted a new proposal for the USF administration to review, demanding more space on Castor Beach.<\/p>\n

Ana Tidae, Tampa Bay\u2019s first \u2014 and probably only \u2014 duck scientist and translator, said she is helping the ducks draft a petition for a Castor Beach expansion project.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can understand them perfectly,\u201d Tidae said. \u201cJust like how you can tell when a dog wants dinner, or a cat wants to be pet. I can tell these ducks want more Castor Beach.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the help of Tidae\u2019s translation abilities, I interviewed the American Pekin duck brothers who live in the pond at USF\u2019s Simmons Park \u2014 who are allegedly the brains behind this project.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re sick and tired of this pond,\u201d the left brother said, translated by Tidae. \u201cAll the ducks at Castor get to eat the food that people leave behind from Argos Exchange. We just get cucumbers from Juniper Dining every once in a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: SATIRE: USF student disappears after saying he will skip class once and never again<\/a><\/p>\n

Still, Tidae said the Castor Beach ducks are also asking for more space. Charles Duckins, a Muscovy duck, is in full support of the petition.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore space on Castor Beach would mean that we can get further away from couples disgustingly making out on the hammocks,\u201d Duckins said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The American Pekin at Simmons Park said Castor Beach has more \u201chuman diversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Simmons Park, we only see the freshmen who live at Juniper-Poplar Hall,\u201d the right brother said. \u201cOr weird psychology students crossing the bridge to get to class buildings. Either way, the lack of diversity is annoying.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some ducks choose to live in parking garages on campus. When asked how pond ducks feel about them, the Pekin brothers and Duckins shared the same sentiment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose ducks are literally stupid,\u201d Duckins said. \u201cWe have multiple huge bodies of water all over campus, and they choose to hang out in a parking garage puddle.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Pekin brothers agreed, saying that the parking garage ducks are drawing attention away from their cause.<\/p>\n

\u201cSG is only focused on the duck crossing signs because of the mother-duckers that don\u2019t leave the parking garage,\u201d the left brother said. \u201cIf they would just go to a pond like a normal duck, they wouldn\u2019t get run over.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: SATIRE: Why USF should have less parking<\/a><\/p>\n

Tidae said she fully supports her \u201cduck friends\u201d on their activism and will continue to translate for them whenever they need her to.<\/p>\n

\u201cI provide a voice for the voiceless,\u201d Tidae said. \u201cAs long as these ducks keep waddling, I will translate their quacks.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ducks and Tidae plan to speak before SG soon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

USF ducks said that, depending on SG\u2019s response, this moment could be historic for Tampa Bay and Florida \u2014 or Tidae will be known as the biggest quack on campus. <\/p>\n

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