At the American Fisheries Society (AFS) 146th Annual Meeting in Kansas City, Mo., AFS President Ron Essig recognized eight fisheries professionals named as AFS Fellows in 2016. AFS designates as Fellows of the Society certain members who have made outstanding or meritorious contributions to the diversity of fields that are included in the American Fisheries Society.  Contributions can include, but are not restricted to, efforts in leadership, research, teaching and mentoring, resource management and/or conservation, and outreach/interaction with the public.

The goals of the Fellows program are to honor AFS members who are recognized by their peers as distinguished for their outstanding and/or sustained contributions to the discipline, help make outstanding AFS members more competitive for awards and honors when they are being compared with colleagues from other disciplines, and support the advancement of AFS members to leadership positions in their own institutions and in the broader society. Some of the qualifications for the Fellows program include receiving a major AFS award, serving as a journal editor for at least five years, or serving as president of the Society. Only living AFS members are eligible.

The designation of an AFS member as an AFS Fellow is an honorific title. Fellows are listed on the AFS website.  The eight newly elected Fellows are:

• Jeff Boxrucker, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (retired), coordinator for the Reservoir Fisheries Habitat Partnership, and inductee in the AFS Fisheries Management Section’s National Fisheries Management Hall of Excellence
• David O. Conover, Vice President for Research and Innovation, University of Oregon; recipient of the Oscar E. Sette Award from the AFS Marine Fisheries Section; and an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow
• Reginal M. Harrell, Professor, University of Maryland; American Institute of Fisheries Research Biologists (AIFRB) Fellow; Certified Fisheries Professional; and editor of the North American Journal of Aquaculture
• Robert Hughes, Environmental Protection Agency contractor (retired);  Senior Scientist with Amnis Opes Institute; Courtesy Associate Professor in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at Oregon State University; Fulbright Scholar; co-editor of Landscape Influences on Stream Habitats and Biological Assemblages, Historical Changes in Large River Fish Assemblages of the Americas, and Effects of Urbanization on Stream Ecosystems; and AFS Past President
• Robert Lackey, Environmental Protection Agency (retired), Professor at Oregon State University, Certified Fisheries Professional, AIFRB Fellow, Fulbright Scholar, Golden Member of AFS (50+ years), and co-editor of Salmon 2100: The Future of Wild Pacific Salmon
• Donald J. Orth, Thomas Jones Professor at Virginia Tech, Past President of the AFS Education Section, and recipient of the AFS Excellence in Fisheries Education Award
• Donna L. Parrish, Unit Leader, U.S. Geological Survey, Vermont Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and Research Professor, University of Vermont; Past President of AFS Education Section; co-editor of Fisheries Techniques, 3rd Edition; and AFS Past President
• Harold L. Schramm, Jr., Unit Leader, U.S. Geological Survey, Mississippi Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and Professor, Mississippi State University; co-editor of Catfish 2000: Proceedings of the International Ictalurid Symposium; inductee into the National Fisheries Management Hall of Excellence; and recipient of the AFS Excellence in Public Outreach Award