With the nomination of former Wyoming Game and Fish Director Brian Nesvik as the new chief of the federal Fish and Wildlife Service pending before Congress, some environmental groups are pushing to derail his appointment.
Nesvik’s detractors say that disease outbreaks at Wyoming’s elk feeding grounds and the torture and killing of a wolf in Daniel, Wyoming, last year happened under his watch.
So, they argue, he wouldn’t be a good fit to head the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).
However, a retired FWS warden who crossed paths with Nesvik during his career said that Nesvik’s leadership skills make him an excellent choice to lead the federal agency.
Long History With The State
Nesvik began his career with Game and Fish in 1995 and was appointed as director by Gov. Mark Gordon in 2019.
Nesvik previously served the agency in various positions, including as a game warden, regional wildlife supervisor and chief game warden.
He retired from Game and Fish in September of 2024 and was replaced by current director Angi Bruce.
Nesvik also served with the Wyoming Army National Guard for 35 years before retiring at the rank of brigadier general. He commanded troops on two combat tours in Iraq and Kuwait.
President Donald Trump last month nominated Nesvik as the new FWS chief. His nomination was still pending on Wednesday. It’s set to go before the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, but a hearing hasn’t been scheduled.
Elk And CWD
A coalition of environmental groups sent out a statement this week, claiming that Wyoming’s elk feeding grounds are a vector for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and other wildlife diseases.
Nesvik’s “failure to act” on the feeding ground problems as the head of Game and Fish is to blame, the groups claim.
Wyoming Wildlife Advocates (WWA) is one of the groups opposing Nesvik’s nomination.
CWD’s spread, mostly through Wyoming’s mule deer herds has been “a slow-motion disaster” and the fact that it’s getting into elk herds has troubling implications, WWA Executive Director Kristin Combs told Cowboy State Daily.
So far, the number of cases in elk at feeding grounds has been small.
Since December of 2024, a total of four elk have died from CWD at three of the feeding grounds – according to information the environmental groups included with their statement.
However, the disease has the potential to spread rapidly among elk, with devastating consequences, Combs said.
Wyoming doesn’t have commercial elk ranches, but some other states do. And in some instances, CWD has infected up to 80% of the elk on a ranch, she said.
The crowded conditions at the elk feeding grounds mirror those at elk ranches, she added.
CWD is caused by prions, or malformed proteins, that can spread between animals. The prions can also linger in soil for years, or even decades, and infect animals that come into close contact with that soil.
It is 100% fatal in elk, deer and moose.
Is It Nesvik’s Fault?
Combs said that during Nesvik’s tenure as Game and Fish director, he stated that “there’s no solution that’s off the table” regarding problems at the feeding grounds – except shutting the feeding grounds down.
She said her organization and others in the coalition want to see the feeding grounds shut down. And they think that Nesvik should have at least started the process during his tenure.
Retired federal game warden Tim Eicher of Cody told Cowboy State Daily that he doesn’t see why Nesvik should be blamed for any supposed problems with the feeding grounds.
The feeding grounds date back to the early 1900s, and “Brian inherited them,” Eicher said.
Moreover, both state and federal agencies were involved in founding and managing the feeding grounds, he added.
Because his nomination is still pending, Nesvik declined to comment, and instead referred questions to FWS headquarters.
Messages left with the FWS public affairs office were not returned on Wednesday.
The Daniel Wolf Case
The Western Watersheds Project also came out against Nesvik’s nomination to head FWS.
That’s partly because of alleged mishandling of a case involving the torture and killing of a wolf in Daniel in February 2024.
“Nesvik's agency failed to hold a man accountable for a brutal wolf-killing incident in 2024, issuing only a $250 fine,” according to a statement issued by the Western Watersheds Project.
Court records indicate that Daniel resident Cody Roberts forfeited $250 bond on a citation for illegal possession of a warm-blooded animal, issued by a Game and Fish warden.
Critics claim that more could have been done to force Roberts to appear in court, where he could have faced stiffer penalties.
In a previous interview with Cowboy State Daily, Nesvik said Game and Fish became a lightning rod during a world-wide firestorm of outrage over the Daniel wolf killing.
“That incident involved some bad behavior and bad decisions by one individual. And a lot of people were really passionate and really upset about it,” Nesvik said.
But some “wanted to blame the department (Game and Fish) and I didn’t see that coming,” he said.
Leadership Skills
Eicher said that more than anything else, a successful FWS chief must have good leadership skills.
And Nesvik’s skills in that regard are exceptional, he said.
Eicher said that toward the end of his career with FWS, he interacted with Nesvik, who at that time was stationed in the Game and Fish’s Cody office.
“He’s a leader, period,” Eicher said.
Eicher added that if Nesvik is appointed, he won’t be the first Wyomingite to head FWS.
Eicher worked for FWS when it was led by Wyoming native John Turner.
In 1989, Turner, a former Wyoming state senator, was picked by then-President George H.W. Bush as FWS director.
“He (Turner) was a great director, and I’m sure Brian will follow in his footsteps,” Eicher said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
