FWC News Release: FWC laboratory named in honor of longtime biologist

For immediate release: September 10, 2014

Media contact: Brandon Basino, 727-896-8626

 

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FWC laboratory named in honor of longtime biologist

 

On September 10, the director of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute presented a resolution naming the FWC’s Gainesville Wildlife Research Laboratory in honor of Lovett E. Williams Jr. The announcement was made at the agency’s Commission meeting in Kissimmee.

Williams, a sixth-generation Floridian, spent much of his childhood outdoors in the Big Bend region developing a passion for the state’s flora and fauna. Williams worked as a wildlife biologist and research supervisor with the then-Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission (GFC) from 1961 to 1985, where he focused much of his research on wild turkey. He studied and hunted wild turkey all his life and produced some groundbreaking research on two species of turkey in Mexico. He was integral to turkey restoration and research, and he wrote a landmark book, “The Art and Science of Wild Turkey Hunting.”

In 1964, Williams and fellow GFC biologist, Dale Crider, first proposed the idea to create the Wildlife Research Laboratory. The duo moved to Gainesville and worked with their staff out of four single-wide trailers for several years until the original laboratory was completed in 1977.

“The FWC has a rich history of exceptional wildlife research, beginning with the establishment of the Wildlife Research Laboratory in Gainesville. Our nationally recognized wildlife research programs are built on the solid foundation established by Lovett Williams,” said Nick Wiley, executive director of the FWC. “Today, we almost take for granted that sound science should always inform wildlife conservation efforts, but it was Lovett’s passion, vision and creative leadership that made this a reality in Florida. We owe him our gratitude for this great accomplishment.”

The number of researchers and the species they study at the lab have increased steadily since its establishment. Those numbers will continue to grow with the addition of a newly completed necropsy lab that is large enough to enable research on panthers, deer and black bear.

To learn more about the history of the FWC’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, visit MyFWC.com/Research, select “About FWRI,” “FWRI Information” and then “History of the Institute.”

 

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