 | This biographical article is written like a résumé .(February 2015) |
C. Kenneth Dodd Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | United States |
| Alma mater | [[St. Johns College High School (Washington, D.C.}]] University of Kentucky Arizona State University Clemson University |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Herpetology Conservation Biology |
| Institutions | United States Geological Survey U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service University of Florida |
C. Kenneth Dodd Jr., is an American conservation biologist, conservationist and herpetologist who specializes in herpetology, the study of amphibians and reptiles. Born 16 November 1949 in San Diego, California, he grew up in northern Virginia and attended St. Johns College High School in Washington, D.C. He later attended the University of Kentucky (BS, 1971) and Arizona State University (MS, 1972) and earned a Ph.D. in zoology under Edmund D. Brodie Jr. from Clemson University in 1974 [1]
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After a year at Mississippi State University, he joined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) Office of Endangered Species (OES, 1976–1984) where he was responsible for reviewing the status of amphibians and reptiles under the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973. During this time, he prepared the documents leading to the listing of 40 species under the Act’s provisions, including the first Critical Habitats for nesting sea turtles and the first federal protection for a venomous snake. He was further instrumental in promoting habitat acquisition for endangered species, particularly for the St. Croix Ground Lizard (Green Cay National Wildlife Refuge) and Leatherback Sea Turtle (Sandy Point NWR). As one of the earliest staff members of OES and sole herpetologist in the national endangered species program, Dodd played a significant role in establishing OES as a world repository of information on critically endangered species and their conservation. In total, he authored 85 Federal Register documents involving endangered and threatened species. While in the Washington area, Dodd also was a Research Associate at the Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., from 1976-1984. [2] [3] . In late 1984, Dodd transferred to the FWS research division (later in the U.S. Geological Survey) where he conducted research on imperiled federal species, including the Red Hills Salamander, Flattened Musk Turtle (which led to federal protection), Loggerhead Sea Turtle, and Striped Newt. He is also known for his study of temporary ponds in Florida’s sandhills and a long-term study on the biology of Florida Box Turtles at Egmont Key, Florida. He, with Drs. R. Bruce Bury and Gary Fellers in 1980, were the first biologists to suggest that widespread amphibian declines were occurring in the United States [4] . The Sierra Club notes that today, he is a nationally recognized herpetologist. [5]
In recognition of his conservation efforts, Dodd received four Special Achievement Awards and three STAR Awards from the FWS/Department of Interior [6] , twice received the Annual Award for Conservation from the Desert Tortoise Council [7] , the Special Award from the Gopher Tortoise Council, the Paul Moler Award for Herpetological Conservation from the Florida Chapter of The Wildlife Society [8] , and the Peter C.H. Pritchard Turtle Conservation Lifetime Achievement Award from Turtle Survival Alliance/International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group/The Turtle Conservancy [9] .
In addition to research, Dodd volunteered as a Courtesy Associate Curator in the Florida Museum of Natural History (2019-2023) and as an Associate Professor (Courtesy) in the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida (1986-2018). As a member of the Graduate Faculty, he served as chair of three Ph.D. committees and eight Master’s committees and as a committee member of many other graduate students at UF and elsewhere.
Dodd is professionally best known for his books on natural history, sampling and monitoring herpetofauna, and amphibian conservation:
2001. North American Box Turtles. A Natural History. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. 231 pp. [soft cover edition issued in 2002; reissued 2023] [ISBN 0806135018]
2004. The Amphibians of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville. 283 pp. [ISBN 11572332751]
2010. Amphibian Ecology and Conservation. A Handbook of Techniques. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 556 pp. [ISBN 9780191037382]
2013. Frogs of the United States and Canada. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 2 Volumes, i-xxvii + 962 pp. Awarded in 2014: Outstanding Book Published (The Wildlife Society); Outstanding Reference Source (American Library Association); Outstanding Academic Title (Choice Magazine) [ISBN 1421406330]
2016. Reptile Ecology and Conservation, A Handbook of Techniques. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 462 pp. [ISBN 9780198726142]
2023. Frogs of the United States and Canada. Second edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland. xxxiv + 954 pp. [ISBN 9781421444918]
2025. Status of Conservation and Decline of Amphibians in Canada and the United States. Amphibian Biology, Volume 9, Part 7. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. [with Harold Heatwole and Susan King] [in press]
