An avid waterfowler and renowned biologist, Dr. Scott Petrie, 53, was named Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientist of Delta Waterfowl in 2015. He came to The Duck Hunters Organization as an accomplished and respected leader in the waterfowl conservation community, having served as executive director at Long Point Waterfowl in Ontario for 18 years.
Relying on his experience and strong connections in both the waterfowl management and hunting communities, Petrie’s notable achievements include leading Delta’s development and events staff through a period of rapid growth; overseeing the organization’s expanded conservation and leadership roles in the Atlantic and Pacific Flyways; placing renewed emphasis on and raising public awareness of Delta’s waterfowl research legacy; and advancing Delta’s hunter recruitment/retention efforts and programs such as Hen Houses and Working Wetlands.
As a young man, Petrie worked on a family dairy farm in Atwood, Ontario, where he also began hunting ducks and geese. His passion for waterfowl grew out of research as a “Delta student” in 1986 and 1987, when he worked on the Marsh Ecology Research Program and Minnedosa Canvasback Project. He completed an undergraduate degree in wildlife biology at the University of Guelph in Ontario in 1990, and earned his PhD at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa in 1997, where he studied the wintering and breeding ecologies of the white-faced whistling duck.
“It was very exciting to return to the organization I started with as a student,” Petrie said. “It’s been a pleasure leading an excellent team that’s increasing the impact and delivery of Delta’s conservation programs. Delta is gaining recognition as a key contributor to waterfowl conservation and as the premier organization supporting duck hunters across North America.”
When he’s not in the office, you’ll find Petrie hunting waterfowl and pheasants with his English springer spaniel, Boone, attending his sons’ hockey games or spending time with his wife, Val. He lives in Bismarck, North Dakota.