THURSDAY, MAY 7, 2020
THE CHRONICLE — 13
THE ANGLER’S
LOG
BEST BET
Isolating from others, of course. Let’s stay
the course, whether we’re fi shing from the
shore or on the water. Be sure to physically
distance from others in the outdoors.
THE best fishing guide for the
southern Willamette Valley
Frank Armendariz is an expert Oregon river guide and veteran outdoorsman • f rank@rivertrailoutfitters.com
I
often mention the agencies and some
of the individuals who work essen-
tially behind the scenes to manage
and enhance the many fi sheries Oregon
has been blessed with. Given the demands
we place on our forest lands, our rivers
and other natural areas. It becomes a
challenging balance between our need
for forest products, hydroelectric power
and our rapidly expanding population,
refl ected in the growth and development
of our urban communities. While still
maintaining healthy habitats for fi sh and
other wildlife and preserving the uniquely
Oregonian cultural history of “hunting
and gathering”.
As an angler, river guide and outfi t-
ter, I have always viewed these resource
managers as partners. They work at main-
taining the vital natural components of
our cultural history and current economy
and we pay for those efforts through our
purchase of licenses and tags. Even with
the public’s contribution, it is a daunt-
ing job and everyone I have ever been in
contact with, who fi lls those roles, takes
their work deeply to heart. Many of them
are actually your neighbors, live in our
communities and care as deeply about our
future and our environment as any of us.
Emma Garner is one of those individ-
uals, a fi sheries biologist who works out
of the Springfi eld offi ce of the Oregon
Department of Fish & Wildlife. In light of
“social distancing” I sent Emma several
questions; here are her responses. I was
inspired and thankful for Emma’s enthu-
siasm and commitment to her career as a
fi sh biologist for Oregon. And that became
clear in the answers she gave me ...
A lifelong connection
PART I
tures in the creeks and fi elds near
my neighborhood. I raised frogs
from tadpoles, watched birds gather
around piles of seeds I left for them,
kept an eye on bird nests I found in
nearby trees, and followed snakes
through the grass. While I didn’t
know at the time I would be a fi sh
biologist, I have a distinct memory
of being in sixth grade and declar-
ing that I wanted to be an “environ-
mental ecologist.” I think I liked
the idea because I knew it meant I
would get to work outside and for a
sixth-grader it was a big word that
made me feel smart. I maintained
that passion and directed my focus
to those studies all the way through
high school and into college where
I had more control over how I
explored what it meant to be a biol-
ogist.
Q
uestion: Emma, what is your
exact title and would you
please tell me in as much
detail possible about your respon-
sibilities as a Oregon Department
of Fish and Wildlife employee and
how long you have been with the
department.
A
nswer: I am the District
S a l m o n a n d Tr o u t
Enhancement Program
(STEP) Biologist in Springfi eld. I
work with district staff on the fi sh
management side but most of my
duties target STEP goals, which
direct my attention to education,
outreach, and community engage-
ment. I work with many formal and
informal educators, supporting
their programs by providing presen-
tations, guiding hands-on activities,
and leading outdoor lessons. All of
my work focuses on native fi sh,
their habitat, and their biological
needs. I also organize communi-
ty-fi shing events, provide presen-
tations to local groups, work with
nonprofi ts on their outreach goals,
and do my best to support commu-
nity needs and interests in fi sheries.
Working with the community is
a big part of what I do. When we
focus our district efforts on species
management or research, I create a
way for folks outside of the agency
to participate through volunteer
work. Volunteers have been a major
part of our work including: Pacifi c
Lamprey monitoring, sampling
trout in the High Lakes, Rainbow
Trout spawning ground surveys,
and habitat work. There is a lot of
variety in the work I do!
I have been the Springfi eld STEP
Biologist for just over 1.5 years.
Before starting with STEP, I was
the Project Biologist/Crew Lead
on the mid-coast where I worked
with an ODFW research project
that monitored fall Chinook and
winter Steelhead. I have been with
ODFW since 2011. Most of my
time (2011-2017) was spent on the
research side. During those years, I
worked seasonally on jobs lasting
Q
: Can you tell me about your
educational background,
college and when did you
decide to be a fi sh biologist? Was it
your fi rst career choice?
anywhere between 2 and 6 months.
Seasonal work can require a lot of
moving as you change your location
to fi nd work. You experience a lot of
variety in the work you do. I have
had the pleasure of working with
projects focused on: coastal salmon
spawning, pre/post habitat resto-
ration surveys, monitoring Oregon
Chub populations, Redband Trout
surveys on the Deschutes, and Bull
Trout relocation in the Metolius and
Clackamas Basins.
Q
: May I ask a little about your
early life? Where you were
born, what it was like grow-
ing up where you lived and was
there anything in your youth that
you could share that put you on your
life’s path?
A
: Oregon is an incredible
state, years of seasonal
work created opportuni-
ties for me to connect to it in ways
I never would have experienced
otherwise. However, the state has
always carried a big piece of my
heart as I was born and raised in
the Willamette Valley.
For a short while, up to second
grade, I lived in Corvallis. Corvallis
has a beautiful natural area called
Bald Hill Park. It provides miles of
trails for biking and hiking. There
is a 3.5-mile tributary to Mary’s
River called Oak Creek; it fl ows
from Bald Hill out to campus. Up
until we moved, my family lived in
a small house nestled up between
Oak Creek and Bald Hill. I spent
all my free time exploring trails and
the creek. I would hike the creek out
to the recreation area or follow it as
far into town as I could. It made a
huge impact on me as a child and
blossomed my love for the outdoors.
After moving to Philomath, I
continued to explore every natural
space near my home. My family did
not go camping or take many trips
to outdoor rec sites. I connected
to nature through my own adven-
A
: The fall after gradua-
tion, I started college at
Oregon State University
where I earned a bachelor’s degree
in Fisheries and Wildlife. My
connection to streams was still
with me and infl uenced my focus
toward freshwater habitat conser-
vation. I still was not fully fi sh-fo-
cused but I was getting close! After
graduating, I worked as a forest
technician on a project evaluating
the impact of wildfi res on upland
forest stands. After about 1.5 years,
I had the opportunity to apply my
degree more directly to my work.
I was offered a job with ODFW
as a seasonal technician monitor-
ing spawning salmon on the north
coast. This was my fi rst job with the
agency and was a launching pad for
my work with fi sh. I redirected my
focus and I never looked back!
Q
: Did you face any challenges
on your career path and how
did you overcome those?
A
: I think challenges come
with every path we take in
life and are heavily infl u-
enced by who we are and our own
experience and history. I faced many
on my path to where I am today and
I still face them. Building a network
of mentors and support helped me
build confi dence in my voice and
my own power to move past those
struggles. It took me awhile to fi nd
my network but I am grateful for
everyone who has been and who is
a part of it. As I continued my work,
my confi dence in who I was as a
biologist also grew. I deserved the
path I was carving for myself and
fi nding that trust and confi dence in
myself as a biologist made facing
challenges a little easier. They still
pop up and on some days I jump
those hurdles myself, on other days
I lean on the support of my network.
Emma Garner
has spent her
career with
the ODFW. She
said all of her
work focuses
on native fi sh,
their habitat,
and their
biological
needs.