Ducks Unlimited Hires Longtime LDWF Biologist to Oversee Louisiana Conservation Programs

Ducks Unlimited recently selected Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Biologist Director Mike Carloss as the new manager of conservation programs for Louisiana.

Louisiana is critically important for waterfowl. It is the only state containing two of DU’s top five priority areas: the Mississippi Alluvial Valley and the Gulf Coast. Unfortunately, Louisiana continues to lose habitat at alarming rates. In fact, the Pelican State has the highest rates of wetland loss in the country. Carloss will head up DU’s diverse habitat conservation work in the state.

Carloss has a long history of conservation engagement in Louisiana, including more than 20 years with LDWF, two years with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and five years as an adjunct instructor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

“I’ve spent my life and career in the Sportsman’s Paradise, which gives me keen insight into the challenges and blessings of this area,” Carloss said. “I’m eager to start this new chapter in my conservation career working for the world leader in wetlands conservation to protect and restore the continent’s most important and imperiled waterfowl wintering habitat.”

Carloss holds a Master of Science in biology with an emphasis in ecology and a Bachelor of Science in wildlife management, both from University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

“Mike Carloss will continue the tremendous collaborative conservation efforts Ducks Unlimited is known for and take them to the next level,” said Jerry Holden, DU director of conservation programs. “He has worked for or with many of our strongest partners, including LDWF, NRCS, NOAA, the Gulf Coast Joint Venture, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Gulf Coast Prairie Landscape Conservation Cooperative and the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority.”

Carloss will officially begin working out of DU’s Lafayette field staff location on Jan. 6, 2014. He assumes the position previously held by Bob Dew, who is now DU’s director of development for Louisiana.

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.