A nationally recognized Mississippi State wildlife biologist and university administrator is receiving another major honor from The Wildlife Society.
Richard M. Kaminski, associate dean of the College of Forest Resources, is the international organization’s latest selection for the Caesar Kleberg Award for Excellence in Applied Wildlife Research. A 25-year member of the MSU faculty, Kaminski also holds the college’s James C. Kennedy Endowed Chair of Waterfowl and Wetland Conservation.
In 2007, he was elevated to the prestigious rank of Fellow by the Bethesda, Md.-based non-profit scientific and educational organization founded in 1937 to promote wildlife stewardship around the world.
Named for a Texas conservationist, the society’s Kleberg Award recognizes scientists "whose body of work, in both inquiry and discovery, has resulted in application to wildlife management and conservation on the ground."
Last year, Kaminski was among a group of 25 cited by Outdoor Life magazine for major contributions to hunting, fishing and other outdoor sports. He was among the first U.S. scientists in the 1970s to conduct wetland management experiments examining waterfowl use and aquatic invertebrate responses to various wetland management situations.
Kaminski also has been honored on campus with a John Grisham Faculty Excellence Award, as well as an MSU Alumni Association award for graduate-level teaching and other recognitions.
A Manitowoc, Wis., native, he holds a doctorate from Michigan State University.