{
  "id": 5964255,
  "title": "Virginia teen dug pond for school project; 9 years later, wildlife thrives",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/06/virginia-teen-dug-pond-for-school-project-9-years-later-wildlife",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-06T11:07:39.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Times of India",
    "slug": "times-of-india",
    "url": "https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/in-2017-a-14-year-old-virginia-girl-dug-a-backyard-pond-for-a-school-project-9-years-later-it-has-become-a-thriving-wildlife-ecosystem/articleshow/133834489.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A high school project nine years ago in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley blossomed into a thriving wildlife sanctuary, according to a recent report by the National Wildlife Federation. In 2017, 14-year-old Maggie initiated a backyard pond as part of her agriculture class assignment. Today, the pond teems with life, from American toads and gray treefrogs to green frogs and pollinators. Before the pond, the area was just a field of grass. Maggie researched pond designs, filled it with water by spring 2018, and the family landscaped around it with soil, rocks, and plants. The family later had the garden certified as a Certified Wildlife Habitat. This small initiative demonstrates how individual homeowners can create haven for local species, providing food, water, shelter, and appropriate native vegetation.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}