Dan Dourson

Dan Dourson is the senior wildlife biologist with Copperhead Environmental Consulting, Inc. He is a well respected malacologist, experienced naturalist, and environmental consultant with over 20 years of experience in wildlife research, natural area monitoring, and environmental education. His expertise includes the identification of bats, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, plants, mussels, and land snails. In addition he has conducted surveys for Nesticus spiders and Trechus beetles.

Dan has participated in survey techniques designed for conducting rare and endangered plants, mussel surveys, and bat surveys, as well as reptile and amphibian surveys. He has a substantial knowledge of rare and unique habitats and principles of conserving wildlife species. He has conducted bat mist netting surveys and radio telemetry research as part of an ongoing project documenting the roost characteristics of bats. In addition, he has conducted mussel fauna surveys of both large and small streams throughout the eastern United States.

Dan currently serves as a member of a team of field biologists studying the Mollusca group with Discover Life in America’s All Taxa Biota Inventory in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This study is yielding several species of terrestrial mollusca new to science that Mr. Dourson will ultimately describe. Another current project is the description of another novel species of land snail (Mesodon estillensus) that is found in Estill County, Kentucky.