Dr. Malcolm F. Vidrine is The Caroline Dormon Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist of The Year for 2023!

By Dr. Robert A. Thomas PhD. Professor of Environmental Communication, Loyola University, LMNA Past President and Chair of The Dormon Award Committee.

​The Louisiana Master Naturalist Association, a statewide organization dedicated to educating citizens about the natural history of our state and its importance to their well-being, is proud to announce that the 2023 recipient of its Caroline Dormon Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist award is Dr. Malcolm F. Vidrine, professor emeritus of biology at Louisiana State University Eunice.  He received the award April 22 at LMNA’s annual Rendezvous held in Hackberry, Louisiana, and hosted by the Southwest Louisiana Master Naturalists.

This award is given in recognition of an outstanding career in education, scholarship, and research in the field of natural history.  A major criterion of the award is that the recipient has actively shared knowledge with the general public and accomplished projects that have resulted in important improvements in conservation of Louisiana’s natural resources.
 
Dr. Vidrine earned a B.S. and M. S. from Louisiana State University and a PhD. From the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now ULL).
 
His work experience includes high school teaching, various teaching positions throughout graduate school, research at The Gulf South Research Institute, adventures in the private sector with the Jefferson Parish Mosquito Abatement District, followed by teaching at LSU Eunice for 38 years.  Dr. Vidrine is especially recognized for his work in prairie restoration, one of his passions throughout his career.  He has remained on the cutting edge of expansion of our knowledge on restoration of Louisiana’s prairie grasslands, and again he included this research in his scholarship as well as engaging in the private sector such as his efforts with The Cajun Prairie Gardens.
 
Dr. Vidrine has received much recognition during his career, including serving as a Jessup Fellow at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia and receiving the Dr. Charles M. Allen Cajun Prairie Award from the Coastal prairie Partnership.
​His work has been diverse (scientific papers, documentaries, brochures, landscaping, serving as a publisher, consulting, and many other endeavors), thorough, and directed at many audiences.  He has over 100 scholarly publications and has participated in authorship of over 20 books that focus on prairie ecology, freshwater invertebrate biology, conservation biology, and archeology.  One that is of extreme value to naturalists is his treatise on the freshwater mussels of Louisiana.
 

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We are happy to celebrate such an esteemed educator and researcher whose life has contributed to a better understanding of our state’s natural history!  He is truly a worthy recipient of the Caroline Dormon Louisiana Master Naturalist award.
 
The Louisiana Master Naturalist Association founded the Outstanding Louisiana Naturalist Award as a tribute to the legacy of Dr. Caroline Dormon and to recognize people who personify her commitment to conserving and appreciating the rich biodiversity of Louisiana. Vidrine is the sixth recipient of the award. 
 

Dormon Award dedicated webpage with profiles on current and past winners.
https://www.louisianamasternaturalist.org/the-dormon-award.html
Past participants: James Delahoussaye (2022), William R. “Bill” Fontenot (2021), Kelby Ouchley (2020); Vernon Antoine Brou, Jr. (2019); Dr. Charles Allen (2018).