Ren Lohoefener has been named Regional Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Pacific Region, which includes Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii and the Pacific Islands. His appointment was announced today by the agencys director, Dale Hall.
Lohoefener assumes the position that was held by David B. Allen, who retired in August.
"I am very pleased to be in the Pacific Region. The Service has a great workforce and the Region has some of the Services most exciting and challenging conservation opportunities," Lohoefener said. "I believe that collaboration is essential to all conservation efforts and I look forward to working with our partners."
Lohoefener, 56, joined the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1989 after working for six years as an ecologist for the National Marine Fisheries Service. Before that, he was a Research Associate and Adjunct Professor at Mississippi State University. Since joining the Fish and Wildlife Service, Lohoefener has been a field biologist, the agencys Texas State Administrator and Assistant Regional Director of the agencys Southwest Region. While in the Southwest, he worked with 11 National Wildlife Refuges, four National Fish Hatcheries, two Fisheries Management offices and the Ecological Services program. Immediately prior to assuming responsibilities in the Pacific Northwest, he was an Assistant Director in the Washington Office.
A native of Kansas, Lohoefener received his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees from Fort Hays State University in Kansas and his Doctorate degree from Mississippi State University. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army.
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 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 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 and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies
