The Environmental Journal of Southern Appalachia
Thursday, 27 October 2022 14:02

Bo Baxter takes helm of the crucial nonprofit Conservation Fisheries

Written by

313389018 6003984879614115 2260947738162227737 nBo Baxter (right) and JR Shute examine one of many tanks hosting native fish species at Conservation Fisheries in this photo taken last year. Thomas Fraser/Hellbender Press

JR Shute and Pat Rakes declare semi-retirement, hand over operations to Hellbender Press board member

KNOXVILLE — A career biologist with deep experience in Southern Appalachian aquatic systems is the new captain of Conservation Fisheries.

The highly productive and robust nonprofit aims to secure, augment, preserve and protect the aquatic environs of the Southeast, namely through the reintroduction of native fish to areas they once inhabited 

Bo Baxter spent 25 years as a conservation biologist at the Tennessee Valley Authority. He became an active board member at Conservation Fisheries, Inc. (CFI) upon his retirement from TVA. He soaked up knowledge of its operations and was named executive director as of Oct. 20. His path comes full circle, as he was one of the first paid staff members at Conservation Fisheries, some three decades ago.

Baxter is a member of the Hellbender Press editorial board.

Conservation Fisheries celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2021. JR Shute and Pat Rakes founded the nonprofit in 1986 after an ultimately successful project to restore native fish to Abrams Creek in Great Smoky Mountains National Park years after it was poisoned by the federal government to make way for non-native game fish.

Now, decades later, Shute and Rakes said in a social-media statement it “felt like the time was right to pass the torch on to a new generation.” Both men will remain on the CFI board and actively contribute to the biodiversity-preservation mission of Conservation Fisheries.
“Bo was our very first paid employee way back in the early days of CFI. After 25 years with TVA, Bo retired and returned to his roots with us. Over the last few months he has been learning the ins and outs of the organization.
“With our current team, Pat and I feel like we are ready to step aside and let them run with it. I have never felt more confident that CFI is in good hands,” Shute said.
CFI also added two new board members, Peggy Shute and Liz Etnier.
“For now, we have much to do in our drive toward the future! I know Pat and I are excited to remain active partners in this place we’ve called home for all these years,” Shute said.
One of Baxter’s initial priorities likely will be overseeing a significant expansion of the CFI lab, aquariums and offices located on Division Street off Sutherland Avenue. Hellbender will cover that news.
Rate this item
(1 Vote)

Related items

  • Hellbent: Little River Watershed Association swims upstream to protect one of Earth’s great rivers
    in News

    Andrew Gunnoe, President of Little River Watershed AssociationAndrew Gunnoe is seen in the rain on Little River in Blount County, Tennessee. He is board director for Little River Watershed Association.  Courtesy LRWA

    Andrew Gunnoe helms spirited efforts to preserve beloved Little River but the current is swift

    MARYVILLE — For 25 years, the handful of men and women involved with the nonprofit Little River Watershed Association (LRWA) have been protecting the crystal clear waters as they plummet from the Great Smoky Mountains before meandering through Blount County and merging with the Tennessee River.

    “We see ourselves as the voice of the Little River, speaking for the river and its health,” said Andrew Gunnoe, president of the LRWA Board of Directors.

    From the famous swimming hole at the Wye to the profusion of inner tube rental companies in Townsend, the Little River is one of the region’s most popular spots for water recreation. Further downstream, the waterway becomes an almost perfect spot for fishing, canoeing and kayaking.

    For all the popularity as a recreation stop, the 59-mile stretch of water is also a vital habitat for numerous aquatic species and provides the 120,000-plus residents of Blount County with drinking water. 

  • David Etnier, a legendary chronicler and advocate for lesser-known regional fish, dies at 84
    in News

    David EtnierCourtesy JR Shute

    Etnier left behind a legacy of research and ambitious students

    KNOXVILLE Dr. David Etnier, a professor at the University of Tennessee internationally known for his research on freshwater fishes and caddis flies, died May 17 at the age of 84.

    Etnier, known as “Ets” to his students, joined the UT faculty in 1965 and retired in 2001. Three aquatic insect species he helped discover are named after him, and those are just three of the more than 410 insect species he helped discover.

  • Quaff some brews and pour some out on Endangered Species Day

    Barrens topminnowBarrens topminnow (Fundulus julisia) at Conservation Fisheries, a native stream fish breeding center. This species is endangered (IUCN). It is only found in the Barrens Plateau in middle Tennessee, making it one of the rarest fish in eastern North America. © Joel Sartore 2023 

    Friday, May 19 is Endangered Species Day. Not just in Knoxville. The U.S. Postal Service is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act by releasing a collection of stamps featuring endangered animals and fishes. All 4,000 of the Endangered Species Limited Edition Collector's Sets are already sold out, but other collector items are still available. The fish were photographed by Joel Sartore, a friend of local nonprofit Conservation Fisheries. His National Geographic Photo Ark collection also features boulder darters, which are native to the Elk River in Middle Tennessee and have been federally listed as endangered since 1988.

    Here’s another link to the celebration: Endangered Species Day in the Old City.

    Join in various festivities, ranging from Riverside Tattoo Flash Day to Pint Night at Merchants of Beer to honor those critters who may not be with us much longer.

     

    Endangered Species Stamps

  • Beneath the surface: Ahoy Appalachian creek snorkels
    in News

    JasonMeador KidsSnorkelingLittleTennRKids snorkeling on the Little Tennessee River.  Courtesy Jason Meador

    The Blue Ridge Snorkel Trail gets you down with Southern Appalachian fish

    ASHEVILLE — Snorkeling and looking at freshwater fish are great ways to enjoy Southern streams, and visitors to Western North Carolina will soon have better access to it courtesy of North Carolina Snorkel Trail. Stream access points in numerous locations will boast signs about snorkeling, safety and fish identification.

    The concept began with North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Mountain Habitat Conservation Coordinator Andrea Leslie, and Luke Etchison of the Western Region Inland Fisheries Division, which surveys aquatic animals by snorkeling. This allows them to look at populations of fish, crayfish and mussels. 

    Leslie told Hellbender Press she wants to encourage snorkeling tourism because people love streams, waterfalls and swimming. The sights below the waterline may be less familiar to the general public. 

    Southern mountain streams have fish as vibrant and exciting as the Caribbean Sea.

  • Hellbent: Conservation Fisheries saves what we don’t typically see
    in News

    summer2021 jon michael mollishConservation Fisheries Executive Director Bo Baxter (second from right) leads young students in an inventory of Little River fish. The “Stream School” collaboration with Little River Watershed Association gets kids in creeks and rivers.  Michael Mollish /Tennessee Valley Authority

    ‘It’s very good for the soul.’ Bo Baxter and Conservation Fisheries focus underwater to save our Southern fishes.

    This is the latest installment of an occasional series, Hellbent, profiling citizens and organizations who work to preserve and improve the Southern Appalachian environment.

    KNOXVILLE  For more than 35 years, an obscure nonprofit headquartered here has grown into one of the most quietly successful champions of ecology and environmental restoration in the Eastern United States.

    Conservation Fisheries, which occupies a 5,000-square foot facility near the Pellissippi State University campus on Division Street, has spent nearly four decades restoring native fish populations to numerous waterways damaged years ago by misguided governmental policies. 

    In fact, the mid-20th century saw wildlife officials frequently exterminating key aquatic species to make way for game fish like trout.

    “It was bad science, but it was the best they had at the time,” said Conservation Fisheries Executive Director Bo Baxter. “A lot of the central concepts of ecology, like food webs and communities, were not developed back then.”

  • 5 big threats to the world’s rivers
    in News

    fresh water Conservation FisheriesA biologist with Conservation Fisheries surveys a stretch of Little River near Walland, Tennessee to determine fish viability and identify rare species for transplantation. Thomas Fraser/Hellbender Press

    Human activities have imperiled our waterways — along with a third of freshwater fish and other aquatic species

    This story was originally published by The Revelator.

    If we needed more motivation to save our ailing rivers, it could come with the findings of a recent study that determined the biodiversity crisis is most acute in freshwater ecosystems, which thread the Southern landscape like crucial veins and arteries.

    Rivers, lakes and inland wetlands cover 1 percent of the Earth but provide homes for 10 percent of all its species, including one-third of all vertebrates. And many of those species are imperiled — some 27 percent of the nearly 30,000 freshwater species so far assessed by the IUCN Red List. This includes nearly one-third of all freshwater fish.

    How did things get so bad? For some species it’s a single action — like building a dam. But for most, it’s a confluence of factors — an accumulation of harm — that builds for years or decades.