- Mike Duever’s lifelong passion for wildlife, especially reptiles, began during his childhood in the Chicago area.
- His career has focused on habitat preservation, leading him to study the Big Cypress National Preserve in Southwest Florida.
- Duever’s research highlights the critical role of natural fires for the health and renewal of the Big Cypress ecosystem.
Mike Duever grew up in the Chicago area, reading about animals in one of the largest concrete jungles in the nation.
His family moved to the suburbs, where he explored vacant lots that had yet to be developed.
There he found garter snakes and frogs, and even saw a few owls on the garage next door…