Dr. Douglas Wilcox

Dr. Douglas Wilcox, a 1967 graduate of Falconer High School, was recently honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Society of Wetland Scientists.

Wilcox is the son of the late Abel and Bessie Wilcox. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in biochemistry from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and earned his Ph.D. in aquatic ecology from Purdue University.

Wilcox retired from the U.S. Geological Survey-Great Lakes Science Center in 2008 following 30 years of federal service and accepted a SUNY-endowed position as the Empire Innovation Professor of Wetland Science at the State University at Brockport. He had also recently retired from his role as Editor-in-Chief of the scientific journal Wetlands after a 20-year tenure. He was one of three initial SWS Fellows and became a certified Professional Wetland Scientist in the first year of the program. His research on wetlands spanned the Great Lakes basin and focused on interactions of wetland plant communities and hydrology, including the roles of climate change, groundwater, and lake-level regulation. He also provided scientific support for restoration of Great Lakes wetlands.

Following 12 years of research at Brockport, where he also taught Wetland Ecology, Northern Wetlands, Restoration Ecology, and Scientific Technical Writing, he retired again in 2020 and now lives in Asheville, N.C.