Wyoming’s Brian Nesvik Advances to Head U.S. Fish & Wildlife

4/10/2025 |

Photo U.S. Fish & Wildlife Logo

In Washington, D.C., a senate committee divided down party lines voted 10-9 to advance Wyoming’s former Game and Fish Director nomination to head the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

President Donald Trump’s nomination of Brian Nesvik to serve as the agency’s next director sent shock waves through the American left. Although Nesvik’s questioning before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee was mild and uneventful, the party line vote revealed the dark political divisions at work.

Environmental groups opposed to the State of Wyoming’s work to delist wolves from the Endangers Species list have led the battle. One group, the Endangered Species Coalition, declared last month that “Trump declares war on wildlife” with Nesvik’s nomination.

Environmental groups have been angling to block Nesvik’s nomination.

Nesvik’s career in the wildlife field has been impressive, moving his way up through the ranks in Wyoming Game and Fish. He worked as a game warden in Laramie and Pinedale.

Then Nesvik served as Cody Regional Wildlife Supervisor in 2010, and one year later was promoted to Chief Game Warden and Wildlife Division Chief.

Governor Mark Gordon appointed Nesvik as Wyoming Game and Fish Director in 2019. During his tenure as director, Nesvik tackled issues such as grizzly management and aquatic invasive species, as well as the ongoing challenges in managing healthy mule deer populations.

Wyoming’s heavy guns came out for Nesvik last month. U.S. Senator John Barrasso and Wyoming Governor Gordon both testified on his behalf before the Environment and Public Works Committee.

During his testimony before the senate committee last month, Nesvik described his career.

Environmental groups launched salvos against Nesvik. The Sierra Club, for instance, wrote that “the nomination of Nesvik appears to advance the Trump administration’s long-standing anti-wildlife sentiments,” and described his resume as “controversial.”

The organization pointed to Nesvik’s testimony before Congress calling for the removal of Endangered Species Act protection for grizzly bears. The Sierra Club also decried Wyoming’s wolf policy and pointed to the infamous incident where a Wyoming hunter went relatively unpunished after capturing a wolf and briefly displaying it at a bar in the small town of Daniel before taking it outside and killing it. The incident, which caused international media outrage, happened in the town of 100 people in 2024.

Nesvik’s nomination now heads to the full Senate for final confirmation at a date not yet scheduled. With the GOP holding a 53-47 edge in the upper congressional chamber, final approval is likely on track to succeed.