COLLEGE STATION Dr. Thomas E. Lacher Jr. has been named head of the wildlife and fisheries sciences department at Texas A&M University, effective March 1.
Lacher is senior vice president of Conservation International and executive director of the Center For Applied Biodiversity Science in Washington, D.C.
“With his vast experience in research and teaching, as well as his extensive international experience, Dr. Lacher’s leadership will continue the wildlife and fisheries department’s path to excellence,” said Dr. Elsa Murano, vice chancellor and dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M.
The department of wildlife and fisheries sciences is charged with “the discovery and dissemination of knowledge in conservation of biodiversity, natural resource management and the sustainable use of natural resources at scales ranging from genes to landscapes,” according to Dr. Delbert Gatlin III, interim department head. About 400 undergraduates, who study in seven primary options, and some 200 graduate students in master’s or doctoral programs are enrolled.
Lacher was professor and holder of the Caesar Kleberg Chair in Wildlife Ecology at Texas A&M from 1996-2004. He was director of the Archbold Tropical Research Center at Clemson University from 1989-96, and assistant and associate professor of biology at Western Washington University from 1981-89.
His research has focused on tropical biodiversity in tropical forests. He also helped create a network of monitoring sites designed to share information on tropical ecosystems among researches and policy makers. He has done extensive work in Central and South America as well as projects and presentations in at least 12 other countries in Europe and Asia.
Lacher earned a bachelor’s degree in 1972 and his doctorate in 1980, both in biological sciences from the University of Pittsburgh.
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