New Chief of Resources and Science Joins the National Parks of Eastern NC

The National Parks of Eastern North Carolina are pleased to announce that Dr. Tracy A. Ziegler has been selected to serve as the new chief of resource management and science for Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Lookout National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, Moores Creek National Battlefield, and Wright Brothers National Memorial (National Parks of Eastern North Carolina). She will manage the natural and cultural resource and research programs for all five parks.

Tracy earned a Master of Science degree from Florida Institute of Technology and then received her Ph.D. from Duke University in Earth and Ocean Sciences. She studied at the Duke University Marine Laboratory in Beaufort, North Carolina and her work included areas around Cape Lookout National Seashore.

In the late 1990s, Tracy’s National Park Service career started as a seasonal interpretive ranger at Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. After attending graduate school, Tracy started at Everglades National Park in 2007 as a fisheries biologist for Florida Bay. She moved to Key West in 2010 to become the fishery biologist for Dry Tortugas National Park, where she successfully implemented the Science Plan for their Research Natural Area. For the past three years, Tracy has been a National Park Service marine ecologist for the Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate in the Water Resource Division, where she coordinated national programs on ocean and coastal issues. Tracy brings a wealth of experience from the south Florida parks and a broad park management perspective.

Tracy’s passions include traveling to national parks, running, hiking, SCUBA diving, and being outdoors, especially enjoying the beach. She is looking forward to life in eastern North Carolina and working with the many partners and communities in the area.