What is Conservation Fisheries?

Conservation Fisheries is a tax exempt, non-profit, 501(c)3 organization dedicated to the preservation of aquatic biodiversity. Incorporated in 1992, and based in Knoxville, Tennessee, Conservation Fisheries propagates the region's rarest fishes. Our goal is restoring fish populations that have been eliminated because of pollution or habitat destruction. We were the first facility in the Southeast to propagate rare, non-game fishes for recovery work. We also monitor the status of populations of rare fishes in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Virginia. We developed unique, non-invasive monitoring techniques for which we are widely recognized. We also produce fishes for use in toxicity testing. Policy makers use these tests to refine water quality standards for our rivers and streams.

Community Involvement

Our efforts involve much more than raising fish. We have also made a commitment to educate the public about the life in our rivers and streams, and the threats to their survival.

Awards

We sincerely thank those who nominated us or wrote letters of support leading to the awards we have received over the years.

2007 National Fisheries and Habitat Conservation Award, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
2006 River Champions Award, Tennessee Clean Water Network
2004 “Rise to the Future” Collaborative Aquatic Resource Stewardship Award, U.S. Forest Service
2001 Aquatic Resource Conservation Award, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation
2001 Regional Director's Award, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Board of Directors

Conservation Fisheries is fortunate to have a strong board of directors with diverse backgrounds.

Richard Biggins

After receiving a Bachelor of Science from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Science in Fisheries from the University of Arizona, Dick was a fisheries biologist for the Vermont and Utah Fish and Game Departments for over 10 years in the late 1960s and early 1970s. From 1978 until his retirement in 2002, he worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service specializing in the listing and recovery of endangered aquatic species. He received the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Meritorious Service Award, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Recovery Champions Award, and the Freshwater Mollusc Conservation Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in the conservation and recovery of aquatic endangered/threatened species. Dick and his wife Margaret spend summers at their home on Georgian Bay near Parry Sound, Ontario, and winters in the Smoky Mountains near Asheville, North Carolina.

Chris Cameron

   Chris grew up in Knoxville fishing the banks of Beaver Creek. He graduated from the University of Tennessee . For the past eight years he has been Vice President of Investments for UBS Financial Services. Chris has served on other area boards, including:

Vice President Moses Teen Center
Treasurer of Senior Citizens Home Assistance
President Appalachian Anglers

   Chris's favorite hobby is saltwater fishing. When not fishing, he enjoys reading, cooking, and spending time with his wife, Julie, and their daughter.

David Etnier

   David A. Etnier received his PhD in Zoology at the University of Minnesota in 1966. He has been on the faculty of the University of Tennessee since fall 1965. Currently, he is emeritus professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology. Dr. Etnier has probably contributed more to the understanding of the distribution and taxonomy of southeastern freshwater fishes than any other single person. His current publications and research deal primarily with the systematics, biology, and biogeography of North American freshwater fishes and caddisflies. He is perhaps best known for the discovery and naming of the snail darter.

Patrick Rakes

   Pat has been studying rare fishes since he began his master’s degree project at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 1982. Pat studied the distribution and life history of the Barrens topminnow. This work laid the foundation for efforts that continue to try to protect this beautiful little spring dwelling fish. Pat's years of maintaining aquaria have instilled a sense of intuition for keeping fish alive and healthy. He has a "wet thumb" as we say! Pat is one of the original founders of Conservation Fisheries.

Steve Scarborough

   Steve Scarborough attended Middle Georgia College, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Southern Polytechnic Institute. He is active in river conservation and works as a design consultant for Watermark Sports. Steve holds five patents related to recreational products and manufacturing processes and has designed nearly two hundred canoes and kayaks that are produced and sold worldwide. A founder of Dagger Canoe Company, he is an avid river enthusiast and now lives on White's Creek in Roane County, Tennessee.

J. R. Shute

   J.R. has been studying rare and endangered fishes in the southeastern U.S. for over 25 years. He and his wife Peggy were involved in one of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s earliest projects funded under Section 6 of the Fish & Wildlife Service’s Endangered Species Act of 1973 as employees of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington . During the course of this project, as they surveyed the rare, endemic fishes of Lake Waccamaw, NC, many of the non-invasive surveying techniques currently used by CFI were developed. J. R., along with Pat Rakes, founded Conservation Fisheries.

John Tullock

John has written 13 books on aquarium keeping and a book on native orchids. His Natural Reef Aquariums has sold over 100,000 copies and is in its fifth printing. In 2006, his Growing Hardy Orchids was named one of the year's five best garden books by the American Horticultural Society. John graduated with a Master of Science from the University of Tennessee. He worked with Conservation Fisheries from its inception. John has always been a champion of environmental protection and worked hard to promote ethical collection and handling practices within the marine aquarium industry. He is the founder of the American Marinelife Dealer's Association. John works as Outreach Director for Conservation Fisheries. During his spare time, he enjoys hiking, photography, gardening, and, of course, writing.

Staff

J. R. Shute (left) and Patrick Rakes (right) are Co-Directors of Conservation Fisheries. They have been jointly responsible for day-to-day operations since the beginning.

Melissa Petty has recently re-joined CFI as an Aquatic Biologist after a seven year stint at Virginia Tech. Missy received her MS degree studying the James River spiny mussel and worked at the Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Center in Blacksburg, VA. She is already familiar with our work and with the fishes of this region. She will be of great assistance in the hatchery and in the field. We’re happy to welcome her back!

Crystal Ruble plays a dual role at Conservation Fisheries. She is our Hatchery Manager and Field Technician. Crystal has had years of aquarium experience. She is a graduate of UTK with a BS in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and a second major in Psychology. Crystal has been with us since January 2004. She will be going for a graduate degree at the University of West Virginia starting this year, studying darter reproductive life history. Fortunately for us, she will be doing her research at CFI. However, she will have to be away from August through December to do course work in WV.

Becky Franklin started at CFI in summer 2007 as a Hatchery Technician. As a student at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, she was active in environmental issues. Becky envisioned, created, and chaired Team GREEN (Growing a Responsible Environmental Education Network), a club that promoted environmental awareness through creative educational programs.

Jessica Hendricks started with CFI in the winter of 2008 as a Hatchery Technician. She received her degree in Microbiology from the University of Florida. Jess has always wanted to get involved in environmental work. She is quickly learning her way around the hatchery. We hope to have her assist in fieldwork this summer.

Student workers, mostly from the University of Tennessee, are employed as seasonal field assistants and as part-time hatchery technicians. Conservation Fisheries provides these students with the opportunity to gain hands-on experience working with endangered fishes and the techniques necessary to study them. We are also very fortunate to be assisted by highly qualified volunteers from academic and professional disciplines in our area.