Leopold to head wildlife, fisheries

A veteran faculty member and nationally recognized wildlife biologist is the new head of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

Dr. Bruce D. Leopold officially assumed the duties Nov 1. He had served as interim head since the retirement of Randall Robinette last year.

A native of Conshohocken, Pa., Leopold received a bachelor's degree from Pennsylvania State University in forest science, a master's in forestry from MSU and a doctorate from the University of Arizona in wildlife ecology.

A Mississippi State faculty member since 1987, Leopold researches predator-prey relationships, habitat management and quality assessment, wildlife population monitoring, and forest-wildlife management, among others.

Earlier this year, he completed a 10-year study of Mississippi's predators that was unprecedented nationally for the number and variety of animals involved.

Prior to joining the MSU faculty, Leopold was a research assistant at the University of Arizona and a field biologist for the United States Bureau of Reclamation.

He is a member of the Wildlife Society and editor-in-chief of one of the organization's peer-reviewed journals. He also is a member in the American Society of Mammalogists, Mississippi Wildlife Federation, and Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Xi, and Xi Sigma Pi honor societies.