TWRA Wildlife Officer Hunter Daniels Receives Mississippi Flyway Waterfowl Enforcement Honor

NASHVILLE --- Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Wildlife Officer Hunter Daniels has received the honor of being named Mississippi Flyway Waterfowl Enforcement Officer of the Year. The Mississippi Flyway Council annually recognizes full-time law enforcement officers who make outstanding contributions to the protection of waterfowl in the flyway states.

Daniels’s assigned work area is Wilson County which is one of the top waterfowl hunting destinations in Middle Tennessee. Currently, there are 134 public duck blinds on Old Hickory Wildlife Management Area. Parts of Old Hickory WMA are located within Wilson County and are managed primarily for waterfowl hunting.  Officer Daniels routinely assists other officers on Percy Priest Lake and Cheatham Reservoir with law enforcement efforts. In addition to waterfowl enforcement efforts, he patrols Old Hickory Lake during the summer, one of the top visited lakes in Tennessee.

Daniels is very active in public outreach and works with youth, school, and adult organizations on waterfowl education and participation. Recently he led an effort to instruct wood duck natural biology at Lebanon High School. Students were able to learn about wood duck nesting habitat as well as efforts by TWRA to increase the much-needed habitat. They also constructed 250 wood duck boxes to be placed around Old Hickory Lake. Daniels taught on multiple occasions at the Andrew Jackson Fraternal Order of Police camp to reach children who live in urban areas, on wildlife, hunting, fishing, and environmental issues.

Each of the last three years he coordinated youth hunts on Old Hickory WMA. In addition to the youth hunts, he also led a group of military veterans on a duck hunt.

Daniels is in his fifth year with the TWRA. He previously worked in Canada for Delta Waterfowl conducting diving duck nest surveys. He has a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Sciences from Tennessee Tech University. He will also be recognized at a future meeting of the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission.

In addition to Tennessee, the Mississippi Flyway includes Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Ontario.

It is estimated about 40 percent of North America's waterfowl spend at least part of their lives in the Mississippi Flyway. The flyway extends from Canada's tundra to the southern end of South America. 

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Photo: Hunter Daniels holds his award for being named Mississippi Flyway Waterfowl Enforcement Officer of the Year. He is flanked by Region I Major Brian Elkins (left) and Col. Darren Rider, and Region II Major Jeff Skelton.