Who We Are
Brian D.S. Graeb, Ph.D.
Brian hails from the shortgrass prairie of Eastern Colorado. As a boy, he fished the Republican River, and his first fisheries job was right in his hometown at the Wray State Fish Hatchery. First getting a bachelor’s in Fisheries Science from Colorado State University, he went on to earn his Master’s from the University of Illinois and then his Doctoral Degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Science at South Dakota State University.
As a professor, Brian became a trusted resource for state and federal biologists and managers, and his habitat research created a renaissance in fisheries science that has changed the landscape of lake and pond management. Teaching and research were just the beginning for Brian, who believes that science has to produce results.
Science-based fisheries management is what he calls it, and you’ll never hear him say, “because this is the way we’ve always done it.”
Click to visit Brian’s Google Scholar page.
Katie N.B. Graeb, Ph.D.
Katie has fishing in her DNA as a native of the big north woods and waters in Northern Minnesota. Family vacations were almost exclusively fishing trips, and Katie knew she had found her calling when she took a winter aquatic ecology course as a freshman at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN.
She went on to earn her doctoral degree from Kansas State University, and as a fisheries professor at South Dakota State University, she re-wrote the map on stream fisheries resources in South Dakota.
Katie loves figuring out how the food web is functioning on a client’s property so that she can maximize the transfer of energy into top species, and optimize water quality for recreational enjoyment.
Click to visit Katie’s Google Scholar page.
Hunter French,
Senior Fisheries Biologist
Hunter French heads the BWO Fisheries Science Southern Office in Athens, Texas and serves as your dedicated fisheries biologist for the Texas and Louisiana region. Hunter excels at helping clients overcome heat-related challenges like algae blooms, low oxygen, and warm-water productivity while growing exceptional largemouth bass fisheries. Hunter has extensive experience with female-only trophy ponds, feed-trained blugill and habitat structure development, family fun lakes that achieve quality fish and tight lines, and incorporating science-backed management plans that produce long-lasting results.
Jared Englebert,
Senior Fisheries Biologist
Jared Engelbert heads the BWO Fisheries Science Central Office in Kansas and serves as your dedicated fisheries biologist for the Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma region. With a Master’s Degree in Fisheries Biology and more than 10 years of fisheries management experience in the region, Jared has worked closely with Kansas and Oklahoma landowners to turn their waters into trophy fisheries and lasting legacy lakes.
Will Sanchez,
Senior Fisheries Biologist
Meet Will Sanchez, who leads the BWO Fisheries Science Northern Office out of Lake Poinsett, South Dakota. You’ll be hard-pressed to find picture of Will not out fishing or hunting, and has a Conservation Planning & Park Management degree from South Dakota State University. His fisheries management experience is in developing high-quality walleye and smallmouth bass fisheries throughout the Midwest, helping clients create productive, sustainable waters that provide both exceptional fishing and long-term ecosystem balance. From habitat planning and forage development to population management and stocking strategies, Will works closely with lake and pond owners to deliver practical, customized fisheries solutions that maximize the potential of every body of water.
Peyton Chard,
Kansas Fisheries Biologist
Peyton grew up in Kansas, fishing and hunting like many other Kansas kids, and then went to Fort Hays State University for fisheries. Peyton first worked as a fisheries seasonal for Kansas Wildlife and Parks and after college, he began working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the endangered Pallid Sturgeon on the Missouri River. Peyton then moved to working with Kansas Wildlife and Parks sampling on the Kansas River for invasive Silver Carp and removing them from the river. The rest is history, and his local knowledge of the south central plains is incredibly valuable to us here at BWO Fisheries Science.
About Us
Drs. Brian and Katie Graeb
Created by Drs. Katie and Brian Graeb, BWO Fisheries Science is a fisheries and wildlife management business that takes the next step in applied fisheries science. Their specializations illustrate their comprehensive process, with Brian’s expertise in population level sport-fish and lake management being the perfect complement to Katie’s community and ecosystem non-game conservation knowledge.
Our Promise
At BWO Fisheries Science, science-based management is the backbone of our business. We will uphold the traditions of stewardship and conservation, and leave an ecosystem better than we found it. We strive to make our business model and management system unique to every client, so that our ability to provide quality service and a quality outcome is never in doubt.
