Waterfowl legend Art Hawkins passes on

Last update: March 12, 2006 - 1:48 PM

Conservationist and waterfowl management pioneer Art Hawkins died Thursday where he spent much of his life outdoors.

Hawkins, 92, of Lino Lakes, had taken a walk outside his home on Lake Amelia, sat on his favorite bench and visited with his granddaughter before collapsing. A student of famed conservationist Aldo Leopold, Hawkins was a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin. Art was a legend in waterfowl management, said Harvey Nelson, 81, of Bloomington, a retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service colleague.

He helped lay the foundation for waterfowl surveys that have been used for 50 years to set our annual duck regulations, said Steve Wilds, regional Fish and Wildlife Service migratory bird chief.

Hawkins was a Mississippi Flyway biologist and flyway representative during a career that spanned more than 35 years. The recipient of countless conservation awards, since retirement Hawkins has served as an advisor to the Department of Natural Resources, the Aldo Leopold Foundation, the Leopold Education Project of Pheasants Forever and the city of Lino Lakes.

In 1970 he co-founded the Environmental Program in Churches and has helped organize Earth Day events. He also helped design the wood duck box that has aided the return of that species.

Hawkins is survived by his wife, Betty, three children, Tex, Amy and Ellen, and four grandchildren. Memorials preferred to Madison Audubon Society, 222 S. Hamilton St, Madison, WI 53703; the Aldo Leopold Foundation, P.O. Box 77, Baraboo, WI 53913; and Delta Waterfowl Foundation, P.O. Box 3128, Bismarck, ND 58502.