Brian is an obsessive outdoorsman who spends most of his free time in the woods or on the water in northern Minnesota.  He is a life-long angler and hunter who ties his own flies, carves his own decoys, and loads his own shotshells…this is a lifestyle for him.  Brian’s involvement in the lead-free movement in Minnesota started with Steve Windels suggesting the Lead-Free plenary at the Minnesota Wildlife Society 2014 meeting in Bemidji.  Brian has been advocating the move towards lead-free hunting and fishing for more than 25 years.  In his own sporting life, Brian has been lead-free in big game and upland bird hunting (waterfowl is mandatory) since 1999 and moving towards lead-free fishing since 2002.  This change in Brian’s personal sporting life was the direct result of his work on contaminants research projects in California, Delaware, and later Connecticut.  Brian holds a BS in Wildlife from the University of Vermont, an MS in Environmental Education from Bemidji State, an MS in Wildlife Toxicology and a PhD in Wildlife Toxicology both from the University of Connecticut at Storrs.  In addition to educating the public and advocating for the voluntary switch to lead-free sporting activities on this project, Brian is a Professor of Wildlife in the Biology Department at Bemidji State University.  His other projects have included Purple Martins, Cavity nesting birds such as Eastern Bluebirds and Tree Swallows, as well as wolves, deer, Wood ducks, and artificial nest boxes for waterfowl in both Minnesota and Victoria, Australia.

Steve has been active in promoting the use of non-lead ammunition since his days as President-Elect of the Minnesota Chapter of The Wildlife Society, when a plenary session at the chapter conference in 2014 kickstarted the chapter’s involvement in this issue at the statewide level. He is an avid hunter and fisherman who is committed to using non-toxic ammunition and tackle in his own pursuits. Steve has worked on wildlife conservation issues all over the world, including Mexico, Europe, East Africa, the Middle East, and beyond. Steve received his B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Management from the University of Minnesota, his M.S. in Wildlife Management from Texas A&M University-Kingsville, and his Ph.D. in Forest Science from Michigan Tech University. He is the Chief Scientist/Owner of Northern Wildlife Consultants, and also works full-time as a wildlife biologist in the public sector.