Tom Moorman to Lead Ducks Unlimited Conservation in Southern Region

Tom Moorman, Ph.D., has been selected to replace the retiring Curtis Hopkins, Ph.D., as director of operations for Ducks Unlimited’s Southern Region. Moorman will oversee DU’s conservation delivery in 13 states.

“Tom has been a vital part of DU’s conservation team for more than 20 years,” said DU Chief Conservation Officer Paul Schmidt. “He has had a notable career serving in a number of capacities over that time, most recently as the director of science and public policy for DU’s Southern Region.”

Moorman came into the public spotlight as the leader of DU’s Gulf Coast Oil Spill Response Team in 2010, but his contributions to wildlife management and conservation planning have been known in the field for some time.

Utilizing his extensive experience with waterfowl and wetland research and management, Moorman has guided DU’s planning and evaluation within the 13-state Southern Region to strengthen the science underlying DU’s conservation programs. By doing so, he has made a marked and tangible difference in the efficiency and impact of waterfowl habitat delivery across the migration and wintering grounds of the Central, Atlantic and Mississippi flyways.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to work in this new capacity with DU’s conservation partners, dedicated volunteers and staff to meet the waterfowl and wetlands conservation challenges in some of the most important wintering and migration habitats in North America,” Moorman said. “While we have made much progress together, there remains a lot of habitat restoration to be done to ensure the future of waterfowl and waterfowl hunting – two of my passions. I look forward to continuing that work as director of operations in the Southern Region.”

Moorman received a Bachelor of Science from Ohio University, a master’s in wildlife science from Auburn and a doctorate in wildlife ecology from the State University of New York. He has received a number of awards from within and outside DU, including the national 2012 Jim McDonough Award from The Wildlife Society.

Moorman will assume his new position on Nov. 1 and will continue working out of DU’s Southern Regional Office in Ridgeland, Miss.

Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited is the world's leader in wetlands and waterfowl conservation. DU got its start in 1937 during the Dust Bowl when North America’s drought-plagued waterfowl populations had plunged to unprecedented lows. Determined not to sit idly by as the continent’s waterfowl dwindled beyond recovery, a small group of sportsmen joined together to form an organization that became known as Ducks Unlimited. Its mission: habitat conservation. Thanks to decades of abiding by that single mission, Ducks Unlimited is now the world’s largest and most effective private waterfowl and wetlands conservation organization. DU is able to multilaterally deliver its work through a series of partnerships with private individuals, landowners, agencies, scientific communities and other entities.