Natural resource challenges continue to evolve, prompting advancements in research to understand and manage wildlife and ecosystems.

For nearly eight decades, a cooperative research partnership among the federal government, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Wildlife Management Institute and Oklahoma State University has prepared the next generation of natural resource professionals.

Known as the Oklahoma Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, the program is housed in the Ferguson College of Agriculture’s Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management and is one of 43 U.S. Geological Survey research units nationwide.

This partnership dates to 1948, making it older than OSU’s Edmon Low Library, built in 1953, said Jim Long, Oklahoma Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit leader.

“As leader of the unit, I try to emphasize the word cooperative,” Long said. “I want us to be as cooperative as we can be so everybody benefits.”

With $3.7 million in annual research expenditures, the unit continues to conduct research and workforce development that provides valuable information on fish and wildlife in Oklahoma. Every dollar the partners allocate to the research unit generates an estimated $5 in research value, Long said.

The cooperative unit provides cost-effective expert knowledge about wildlife management and conservation, as well as hands-on training for graduate students.

The unit also fosters irreplaceable connections, opportunities and collaboration between the federal and state governments and OSU, said Jason Harmon, professor and head of the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management.

These efforts help support landowners and people directly involved in hunting, fishing and other recreational activities, in addition to the benefits Oklahomans receive from a healthier, more sustainable state, he said.

According to the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, all wildlife belongs to the public. It is the state agency’s responsibility to manage this resource through a public trust, said Robert Lonsinger, assistant unit leader.

“A land-grant university’s mission is to serve the public,” Lonsinger said.

While one aspect of the unit’s mission is to provide essential information and resources for state wildlife management, the other focuses on educating students, Long said.

Most of the Oklahoma Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit’s work is conducted by graduate students guided by Long and Lonsinger. Long oversees fishery research, while Lonsinger oversees wildlife research.

At the unit’s 50th anniversary cookout in 1998, Long attended as a doctoral student. In 2023, Long helped organize the unit’s 75th anniversary celebration, he said.

The unit’s employees not only produce scientific research but also train the next generation of natural resource professionals, Long said.

Since its inception, 420 students have completed graduate research through the program.

Long and Lonsinger consider themselves mentors first and scientists second, he said.

“It’s about getting people out in the field and the workforce who have the right technical skills to make a positive difference,” Lonsinger said.
The unit helps people to become better-rounded scientists because students are actually in the field, not just reading about it, said Bill Dinkines, ODWC wildlife division chief.

Applied scientists and graduate students work collaboratively with the ODWC to address state needs, Lonsinger said.

Current aquatic projects include surveys of freshwater mussels and at-risk fish species, as well as sonar surveys to understand the ecology of paddlefish. Current terrestrial projects include mesocarnivore ecology, large carnivore ecology and multi-species interactions, Long said.

Similar to Long, Ken Cunningham, ODWC fisheries division chief, also began at the research unit as a master’s student and developed professional relationships before he was hired full time, he said.

Cunningham met Dinkines while both were pursuing master’s degrees in natural resource ecology and management and assisting the unit with research.

“My time at the co-op really taught me the importance of collaboration and communication because building relationships is a key to success,” Dinkines said.

Now, as colleagues, they are both leading their divisions and working together to mentor today’s graduate students and young biologists.

Wyatt Wolfenkoehler, a natural resource ecology and management master’s student, said he learned about the research unit during his internship at the ODWC.

“I was told to talk to Dr. Long if I was interested in research,” Wolfenkoehler said.

That introduction opened the door to multiple opportunities, even throughout his undergraduate career, he added.

“Dr. Long taught me the basics of research and helped me become a published author as an undergraduate researcher,” Wolfenkoehler said.

Wolfenkoehler is currently completing his research thesis on paddlefish.

A unique feature of the cooperative unit is the many opportunities it provides to expand connections and explore potential career paths, said Ryley Parker, a natural resource ecology and management master’s student.

Early in his career, Parker realized the value of furthering his education and reached out to Long again, whom he had met in 2023 while working as a technician. Long later assigned Parker to research the rocky shiner fish, Parker said.

“It was the next step that I needed,” Parker said. “And as far as next steps go, it was a pretty dang good one for me because I get to do groundbreaking work over a non-game species that I greatly enjoy.”

Like Wolfenkoehler and Parker, this collaboration has created a pipeline for other wildlife professionals to continue their education.

ODWC and many other organizations have had great success hiring biologists and technicians and then sending them back to school, Cunningham said. They can complete advanced degrees while continuing to work full-time, he added.

“I am in a unique position,” said Ashlee Korte, a natural resource ecology and management master’s student. “I work as a biologist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Kansas City, helping to assess the population of the endangered pallid sturgeon.”

Korte’s project focuses on tagging and tracking the population and habitat of the young pallid sturgeon fish in the Missouri River.

Whether it is restoring endangered or threatened species, improving freshwater ecosystems or managing state wildlife populations, the primary motivation for the unit’s research is to apply new information for solving real-world natural resource issues, Lonsinger said.

The collaboration amplifies each unit’s capacity to conduct impactful research for Oklahomans.

“We at ODWC use the co-op as our research arm because we can’t do much in-house research,” Dinkines said. “We invest millions of dollars into the research unit to help us answer questions, so that we can better manage the public trust resources across the state.”

 Story by Emma Hickey | Cowboy Journal