Staff & Contacts

Questions about Turtle Cove can be answered by one of our staff members. Questions about specific research projects at Turtle Cove will be forwarded to the appropriate researcher.

Robert Moreau, Ph.D.

Manager | rmoreau@southeastern.edu | 985.549.5008 (office) 504.231.1067 (cell)

Rob has served at Turtle Cove since 1997, and he became the station's Manager in 2001. In addition to overseeing daily operations and budget matters, he also leads some of the education, public outreach, and restoration field trip groups to Turtle Cove.  Rob is also the host of two of the Southeastern Channel's community programs: (1)  Backyard Wonders, a show that highlights the "natural wonders" of Southeast Louisiana, and (2) Northshore Gems, spotlighting some of the real treasures of the Northshore area. He teaches two environmental classes at Southeastern: Environmental Management: The Greening of Business (GBIO 690/MGMT 620, co-listed with the Biological Sciences and Business Departments at the graduate level) and Environmental Awareness (GBIO 281, offered through the Biological Sciences Department at the undergraduate level).

His research interests include the socio-economic impacts of humans interacting with their environment (historical, wetland issues), and environmental management (why it is in the best interests of businesses to become more sustainable--i.e., "greener"). Rob earned a doctorate in Land Resources (interdisciplinary environmental studies) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Gaylord Institute of Environmental Studies in 1996, a Master's in Environmental Science--Management and Planning, from Louisiana State University's Department of Environmental Studies in 1992, and a Bachelor's in Accounting/Internal Auditing also from Louisiana State University in 1988.

 

Hayden Reno

Caretaker/Facilities Technician | hreno@southeastern.edu | 985.507.7710 (cell)

Since 1986, Hayden has been the main force who keeps Turtle Cove running smoothly. He is in charge of the station's boats, equipment, and facilities, and he regularly inspects all of these to ensure everyone's safety. Hayden also serves as a research guide to researchers when needed, tells lots of stories about the history of the swamp.  Hayden can identify (and catch---and cook) anything and everything crawling, oozing, and swimming in the area, and his culinary skills are well known and highly regarded, especially when he fries fresh catfish or slowly simmers a seafood gumbo or big black pot of chicken and sausage jambalaya for some of our special events.

 

Ariel Ebanks

Community Outreach and Education Coordinator | ariel.ebanks@selu.edu | 985.549.2268 (office)

 

  Ariel is our newest staff member. She received her masters degree in biological sciences from    Southeastern Louisiana University in 2022. Ariel assists with coordinating and leading Turtle      Cove tours, and works with faculty members on restoration projects in the Manchac area. 

 

Turtle Cove Graduate Students 

Every semester, Turtle Cove appoints graduate students to work for Turtle Cove while getting their masters degrees. Our current Turtle Cove graduate assistants for Spring 2024 are Maggie Keller (magdalene.keller@selu.edu) and Oliver Robinson (oliver.robinson@selu.edu). 

 

Fred Stouder-RETIRED

Marsh Restoration Coordinator | fstouder@southeastern.edu | 985.237-8538

Fred retired back in 2012, having served with Turtle Cove since 1994. He has a Bachelor's in Biology (1996) from Southeastern Louisiana University. In 1995, he began managing a federal grant for a marsh restoration project comprised of two major activities: 1) deploying Christmas trees to build sediment levees and 2) planting new various marsh grass seedlings and cypress trees to regrow areas of the wetlands around Turtle Cove. As an alum of Southeastern you can still email Fred if you have questions on the marsh restoration he did on West Jones Island (Tangipahoa Parish) and in "the Prairie" in the Manchac Wildlife Management Area of St. John Parish. For the 15 year life of these two projects, over 35,000 Christmas Trees were deployed and over 25,000 marsh grasses and cypress trees were planted.

 

Dr. Robert Hastings - RETIRED

Dr. Hastings, or "Dr. Bob" as he was noted, retired back in 2001. Bob was the original (founding) director of Turtle Cove, serving in that capacity from 1986 to 2001, and is largely responsible for laying the foundation of everything we continue to strive to accomplish. Bob is also the author of "The Lakes of Pontchartrain: Their History and Environments" (2009) -- widely known as an important work on the history and ecology and culture of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin.  Find it here on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Lakes-Pontchartrain-Their-History-Environments/dp/1604732717). Dr. Hastings can be contacted at his email (bhastings6601@gmail.com).