The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has named Marc Webber as the new manager of the Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge, located just east of Seymour, Ind. Webber reported for duty in April, replacing former manager Lee Herzberger.
Webber, who was born and raised in San Francisco, Ca., earned a bachelors degree and a masters degree in biology from San Francisco State University. After graduating, he spent several years conducting marine research -- from the Antarctic to the Hawaiian Islands. Webber began his career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1992 as the manager of Tern National Wildlife Refuge, part of the Hawaiian Islands.
After one year on Tern Island, Webber moved to the main Refuge office on Honolulu to manage several refuges located on Hawaii’s northwestern islands. Webber stayed at Hawaiian Islands NWR until 1997 when he accepted the position of deputy project leader at San Francisco Bay NWR. Webber worked to protect many endangered species and was heavily involved with public use, maintenance and law enforcement issues at the refuge.
In 2000, Webber took a position in Alaska with the Service’s Marine Mammals Management Branch. His job was to develop a better way to determine walrus populations through the use of remote sensing technology. Webber completed his work with walruses prior to reporting to Muscatatuck NWR in late April 2005.
Webber, his wife Nina and daughter Elise, are looking forward to experiencing the change of scenery a move away from the Pacific coast to the middle of America will bring. “I’m really grateful for the opportunity to get back to managing a refuge to ensure it can realize its full potential for fish and wildlife, as well as for the people who enjoy them,” said Webber. “It’s a big change from walruses, but my family and I really want to experience all this country has to offer. Working at Muscatatuck will help me to gain a greater understanding and respect of the heartland of America.”
As manager of the 7,800 acre Muscatatuck refuge, Webber will manage a staff of four who will help him to accomplish the refuge’s mission to restore, preserve, and manage a mix of forest, wetland, and grassland habitat for fish, wildlife, and people. Special management emphasis is given to waterfowl, other migratory birds, and endangered species. The refuge has nine miles of roads open to the public from sunrise to sunset, as well as new conservation learning center donated by the Muscatatuck Wildlife Society Foundation.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance Program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
