Missouri Conservationist online

William Anderson, a 27-year veteran of the Conservation Department, has worked as a fisheries biologist since 1986. Part of his job includes managing the fish populations of Table Rock Lake, Lake Taneycomo and southwest Missouri streams. He is an avid bass angler and enjoys fishing on local reservoirs.

Jim Auckley is managing editor of the Conservationist magazine. He joined the Conservation Department in 1971 during the campaign for the Conservation Sales Tax. He enjoys fishing Crane Creek on infrequent trips to southwest Missouri. He is a member of Trout Unlimited and edited the Mid-Missouri Chapter's newsletter for several years.

Steve Barnes became a fisheries research assistant in 1997 after four years with the Conservation Department. He says he is proud of being a life-long Missouri resident. The exotic species he writes about in this issue may become more of an issue as global transportation becomes more common. In his spare time he enjoys camping, fishing and canoeing with sons Julian and Levi.

Catherine Downen is a freelance writer living in St. Charles with her husband, Phil, and three children. She is the third of five children born to Marilyn and Warren Wiedemann. Her father served as conservation agent for Franklin County for 31 years before retiring recently. She enjoys hiking, canoeing and camping and likes to collect campfire stories.

Chris Riggert is the volunteer water quality monitoring assistant for the Stream Team program. He completed a research project on Big Creek crayfish and St. Francis River crayfish, and has a strong interest in crayfish and introduced species. He is an avid angler, enjoying a quiet evening on a small pond in his belly boat. He lives in Boonville with his wife, Jeanine, and two dogs.

George Yatskievych, a botanist with the Conservation Department for over 12 years, is stationed at the Missouri Botanical Garden, where he directs the jointly sponsored Flora of Missouri Project. A frustrated outdoorsman doomed to computer work, he enjoys travel, hiking and nature photography on weekends. He is working on a book about Missouri ferns.