2022 Private Lands Conservation Champion

Leigh & Judy Fredrickson, Stoddard County, Missouri

Wetland conservation and management professionals know Dr. Leigh Fredrickson well from textbooks, workshops, and a trove of scientific publications. “A pioneer of wetland management” and “the father of wetland management” are a couple of the phrases used to describe Leigh Fredrickson. It may come as no surprise that his wife, Judy, is equally passionate about wetlands and land stewardship. 

Leigh has an extraordinary history in conservation. Dedicating the past 60 years to conservation, including obtaining a Master’s and Ph.D. in conservation disciplines, he’s actively worked, advocated, and/or argued in the name of conservation in all 50 states and Mexico. Leigh has also taught. He served as a professor, teaching waterfowl ecology and wetlands at the University of Missouri for many years. The Fredricksons moved to Southeast Missouri in 1967. Leigh was awarded a directorship at Gaylord Laboratory at Duck Creek Conservation Area. Here he had direct access to a 6,300-acre area that includes remnant bottomland forest, open marsh, a lake, and upland acres. He continued his research in this position until 2002.

Leigh and Judy Fredrickson are conservation warriors. Together, they own just shy of 200 acres in Stoddard County, which they continue managing and enhancing to encourage diversity. They initially owned around 90 acres, and when the 120 adjacent acres went up for sale, they were able to snag an additional 100 acres of future habitat.

On their farm, they’ve participated in various practices to benefit wildlife and increase carbon sequestration. Just a few to mention are woody control, invasive species eradication, edge feathering, and Monarch-friendly plantings using Missouri Department of Conservation cost-share and/or Habitat Challenge Grant assistance in their efforts. Additionally, a portion of their property is enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), providing a designated pollinator plot. A visit to their farm will reveal pollinators of all sorts, wildflowers of all colors, and fauna of all varieties.

From their efforts has echoed the unmistakable call of the bobwhite quail—a sound that, Leigh and Judy agree, was virtually absent for years. Within the confines of this 200-acre property Leigh and Judy continue to set the bar for land managers, providing an array of easily distinguishable habitat types: wetland, upland/savanna, and forest land. Leigh and Judy had a vision from the beginning and have followed through, leaving their footprint on countless landscapes; their impact on an immeasurable number of minds; and their genuine friendship in many hearts. They are true Conservation Champions!

July 2023 Presentation & Celebration with the Fredricksons in Missouri!

Judy & Leigh Fredrickson, Jeff Raasch, and Kelsey DeZalia-Jenkins.