NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: https://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/377644
I had a lot of curiosity about the natural world as a kid. I lived in a small town in central Illinois that was essentially rural in nature. I spent a lot of time in the woods and the creeks. But there was a rule, that until I was a certain age, I could only go to the first creek. There were three parallel creeks that were about a quarter mile apart, so I could go down into the first creek when I was 6 years old. But I had to be 8 or 9 before I could go to the second creek – older, wiser. I couldn't go to the third creek until I was about 12. And after I made the third creek and saw all of its wonders, one of my older brothers said, "Well, that's nothing, if you keep going, there's a river." My dad was quite a horse person. He was born in Kentucky and later lived in southern Illinois and exercised racehorses. When I was 10, he lassoed my neighbor's wild pony and brought it home as part of a trade and I had Tony the Pony. I kept him out at my uncle's farm a half mile away. By then, I was old enough to help with my uncle's farm chores. I was always interested in taking care of animals. My dad was a hunter also, so I was exposed early on to hunting and fishing with my brothers and cousin. We hunted rabbits with beagle hounds. When I was about eight, my beagle brought back a young rabbit during the summer. He hadn't killed it, but its skin was damaged so I glued the skin back on using a bottle of LePage's glue. It wasn't the best thing to do, but it was the thought that counted. It was a start. I had wanted to be a veterinarian. I initially studied pre- vet medicine in Illinois for a couple years but decided to transfer to the University of Montana-Missoula (UM). I had a full-ride scholarship to go to any state school in Illinois, so when I told my dad I wanted him to pay out-of-state tuition so I could be a wildlife biologist, he didn't seem thrilled. After some time passed, he did two things that I'll never forget. He said, "If you can work and save $1,000 per year, I'll pay the rest." This was a big commitment for a factory worker with four kids. He also handed me a book titled, How to Make a Living at Conservation. I don't think he'd been in a library since high school. And there wasn't exactly a bookstore on every corner. I still have that book to this day. At UM, I was in an atmosphere where wildlife and conservation issues of the day were front and center. There were many nationally prominent university professors there. It was an era on the heels of the Wilderness Act and other environmental legislation. The Cooperative Wildlife Research Units were becoming more prominent in wildlife research. The plight of grizzly bears was on the forefront at that point in time, and the Cooperative Research Unit at UM had Frank and John Craighead, who were the leading researchers for grizzly bears at Yellowstone National Park. I cherish my time there. It motivated me to want to continue to be involved in conservation. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do; I just wanted to do something to make a difference in conservation. I had first worked part-time for Montana Fish and Game on an elk telemetry project while I was going to school and was pleased when I had the chance to go to work for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission in 1974. I was in the fisheries division at the North Platte Fish Hatchery and 40 Years a Steward An Interview with Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Director Jim Douglas 26 NEBRASKAland • OCTOBER 2014 a ho h rse per Q: What inspired you to go down the conservation career path? I di didn dn't 't k Q: Describe how your career aspirations have changed throughout the course of time. as as a kid id I l Q: What are your earliest memories of being outdoors? By Amy Kucera d e t h a w N t Jim, cousin Kevin, and Tony the Pony in 1961. Kevin, Jim and Uncle Leroy after a rabbit hunt in 1966.