FWP AT WORK Earl Radonski, Fisheries Technician, Billings

FISH FINDER

EARL RADONSKI

Every three years, we electrofish this four-mile stretch of the lower Bighorn River, known as the Manning Section, to assess fish species distribution. In the boat with me this October morning are Brad Olszewski (left) and Mike Ruggles. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has data on this stretch going back about 30 years, and we’ve found that not much has changed, which is good news. But if we had seen, for instance, channel catfish numbers declining, then we would have investigated the cause of the decrease. That’s just one of the many reasons FWP assesses these and other fish populations throughout Montana.

Doing this kind of work, being on the water, I feel like I’m living the dream. As a kid growing up in Wisconsin, I spent a lot of time goofing around in streams and I always loved being out in nature. So to move to Montana and work with fish and rivers as my job, I feel that I’ve come full circle in my life and am able to recapture some of my childhood joys, 40 years later.