Lee Hales

Where the Wild Things Are

// February 21st, 2009 // Media

(Originally published in the St. Tammany News 08/06/2008)

Forget Jeff Corwin. Slidell’s got Lee Hales, its very own traveling wildlife expert.
Describing exactly what he does for a living can be a bit tricky, however.

A naturalist isn’t one specific science,  said Hales. “Geology is my foundation, but what I do incorporates sciences, from animal behaviorism and  paleontology to astronomy and meteorology.”

Hales said he knew from the time he was a child he wanted to work in the outdoors. Born  in Manhattan, he  soon moved to upstate New York. He grew up next to a stream, where he would spend his time watching  all forms of wildlife and wondering  what they were doing.

An early childhood idol was Marlin Perkins, host of “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom.” The long-running television show followed a format still in use today, to build a story around the challenges faced by the host and his crew as researchers studied animals in their natural habitat.

Hales loved the show. It stayed with him as he grew older, and when he enrolled at the State University of New York he decided to major in earth sciences. A lifelong fan of dinosaurs, he also minored in paleontology.

“At the end of my senior year , I was the first one  ever to argue with their  student adviser that there has to be some more classes I can take!” he said, adding… “you  have no idea how many credits I have,  I liked college.”

The avid student got a job with the Buffalo Museum of Science, where he started doing presentations to back up the exhibits. It was there Hales got his first media exposure, as he began appearing on the news and morning talk shows as a museum spokesperson.

During this time he began studying for a Certificate in science education and  took a student office.  It was there he met his future wife, Karen, who occupied the office next door as editor of the school paper.

Hales went on to work at the Buffalo Zoo, where he became a zoology instructor at the zoo’s on-site Science Magnet School as well as an animal handler and trainer. He conducted presentations that incorporated some of the zoo’s residents, from prairie dogs to skunks.

Hales also assisted in early a distance-learning programs, doing remote presentations to outlying schools.

“It was a good way to bring kids to the zoo who otherwise couldn’t make the trip,” he said.

From there, Hales and his wife headed west after he was offered a job at Yosemite National Park in California.

He spent three years there, working under National Park Service guidelines to develop public programs on natural and cultural history to audiences of between 200 and 600 visitors. His topics ranged from indigenous wildlife and peoples to the architecture of historic landmarks, such as the park’s Ahwahnee Hotel.

In each presentation, he took great care to involve audience members and various objects, such as a bear hide or Native American artifacts.

“The idea was to present enough information to instill stewardship, to make people care about the natural world and how their actions affect it,” said Hales.

Hales also served on the park’s Bear Council. Prior to his arrival, the park was experiencing hundreds of campsite break-ins by foraging bears. Park Wildlife Rangers realized that educating the public on things like how to store food and other items, such as toiletries, could help alleviate the problem. Hales was instrumental in getting the word out nightly through public presentations during a critical time for the program.  Once the public education program was full instituted, the number of break-ins dropped drastically.

While at Yosemite, Hales started  appearing in documentaries, serving as a guide for the National Geographic Channel’s “Secret Yosemite.” Others followed for PBS, the Travel Channel and the Learning Channel.

Relocation came again in 2003, when Karen had an opportunity to take over public relations at the former Delta Queen Steamboat Co., and the couple moved to Slidell. Hales spent some time working for the Stennis Space Center museum then found out about the Insta-Gator Ranch, the alligator farm and hatchery located in Covington.

He went to work as a tour guide, also participating in field collection of alligator eggs. He had been there for a year when Hurricane Katrina hit.

“I didn’t do anything for the year after Katrina except rebuild my house, but I was lucky I had something to rebuild,” he said. “One employee who totally lost his home lived on the floor of the Insta-Gator gift shop for several months to keep the operation going.”

Shortly after moving to Slidell, he met Ken Gerhard, a part-time musician who was staying with friends when his band passed through New Orleans. Gerhard’s main calling is crypto-zoology, or the study of hidden animals, and he was preparing to film an episode on Bigfoot for A&E’s “Legend Hunters.” The series explored iconic legends and employed people going in search of the unexplained. Gerhard invited Hales to join the expedition.

Since then he’s gone on to serve as wildlife expert for the History Channel’s “MonsterQuest: Hunt for the Chupacabra,” which began airing in July. The show followed a team of researchers on a search for a mysterious reptile-like beast reportedly killing hundreds of farm animals in Puerto Rico and Texas.

He served as expedition leader for another MonsterQuest episode to air later this year (08), “ Shark in Illinois” investigating sightings of bull sharks as far north as Illinois.

Hales’ colorful career has taken him down many paths, all of which he said have helped him look at things from different perspective. To him, it validates the idea of staying close to one’s childhood dreams.

“I get really excited about this stuff, like going outside at night and listening to the frogs and insects,” he said. ” I want to share that exciment;  It’s why I truly enjoy doing what I do.”