Seminar: The art of field notes

Randy Babb’s passion for wildlife led to a lifelong career in wildlife conservation, including more than 30 years with the Arizona Game and Fish Department. This Arizona native and self-educated naturalist is a lifelong hunter and angler as well as an accomplished writer, artist, photographer and taxidermist. Randy started with the U.S. Forest Service as a biological field technician before joining AZGFD in 1986 as the Aquatic Education Program Manager. From 1992 to 2013, he was the Region VI (Mesa office) Information and Education Program Manager, serving as a Department spokesperson for media interviews, drafting news releases, writing articles and scripts for the Department’s magazine and television show, and presenting at public events.
During this time, Randy wrote the book An Introduction to Hunting Arizona’s Small Game, a valued resource for small game hunters in our state. He also wrote text and drew illustrations for many Department wildlife education posters, including the popular “Sport Fish of Arizona” and “Native Fish of Arizona” fish identification posters and multiple bird identification posters. He developed interpretive signage for Sipe White Mountain Wildlife Area, Robbins Butte Wildlife Area, and The Arizona Trail. Randy’s expertise with reptiles enabled him to curate a live venomous serpent collection for Department outreach at community and educational events across the state.
In 2013, Randy became AZGFD’s Watchable Wildlife Program Manager. He developed an innovative model for wildlife-viewing events that showcased the Department’s expertise and provided for cost recovery. He also researched and developed the Department’s live wildlife cam program, collaborating with different programs to set up multiple and often complex live cam sites. The cams achieved unprecedented reach, drawing viewers from 32 states and 38 countries.
Since retiring from Game and Fish, Randy hasn’t slowed down. Throughout his career, he served as a biological consultant for National Geographic Television, Discovery Channel, and BBC programs on desert wildlife. As a member of Wildlife at Risk (WAR), he has made annual visits to Vietnam to monitor the effects and recovery of wildlife from human conflict and has documented many new or thought-to-be-lost species.

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