University of Montana Wildlife Biology Program Names Next Boone and Crockett Professor

March 25, 2026
7:46 am

▶

Listen to Article

The University of Montana's Wildlife Biology Program has just tapped Heather Johnson as the next Boone and Crockett Professor of Wildlife Conservation, marking her as the sixth holder of this prestigious chair since its 1993 inception. Johnson, a sharp-minded researcher with the Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, brings her expertise in large mammal conservation and the cascading effects of climate change on wildlife to the role. This isn't some ivory-tower appointment—it's funded and stewarded by the Boone and Crockett Club, the same outfit founded by Theodore Roosevelt in 1887 to champion ethical hunting, habitat preservation, and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. That model, born from the fires of frontier necessity, insists on science-based management, public trust in wildlife resources, and—crucially—equal access for all citizens to hunt and fish, principles that scream 2A ethos without ever mentioning a trigger pull. Dig deeper, and this move is a masterstroke for conservation realists who see firearms not as relics of the past but as indispensable tools for the future. Johnson's focus on big game like elk, bears, and mule deer aligns perfectly with Boone and Crockett's legacy of using hunter-funded dollars (via Pittman-Robertson excise taxes on guns and ammo) to bankroll 90% of U.S. wildlife programs. In a world where urban elites push anti-hunting narratives and climate alarmism threatens to lock up public lands, her tenure could amplify data-driven defenses of sustainable harvests—harvests that require rifles in steady hands. For the 2A community, it's a reminder that our rights underpin the very science sustaining wild places: without armed stewards culling overpopulated herds or defending against predators, Johnson's research on climate stressors rings hollow. This appointment reinforces that hunters aren't poachers; they're the original conservationists, and bolstering voices like hers keeps the anti-gun crowd's land-grab fantasies in check. The implications ripple outward. As federal overreach and green agendas encroach on hunting grounds from Montana's Bob Marshall Wilderness to Alaska's ranges, Johnson's platform could spotlight how 2A protections enable the boots-on-the-ground management that models predict will be vital amid shifting habitats. Pro-2A advocates should watch her work closely—cite it, fund it, amplify it. In an era of rewilding fantasies that ignore human-wildlife balance, this is a win for those who load magazines not just for sport, but for stewardship. Boone and Crockett's choice keeps the flame alive: conserve through use, or lose it all.

Best FFL Software Ranked and Compared!

The University of Montana’s Wildlife Biology Program has just tapped Heather Johnson as the next Boone and Crockett Professor of Wildlife Conservation, marking her as the sixth holder of this prestigious chair since its 1993 inception. Johnson, a sharp-minded researcher with the Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, brings her expertise in large mammal conservation and the cascading effects of climate change on wildlife to the role. This isn’t some ivory-tower appointment—it’s funded and stewarded by the Boone and Crockett Club, the same outfit founded by Theodore Roosevelt in 1887 to champion ethical hunting, habitat preservation, and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. That model, born from the fires of frontier necessity, insists on science-based management, public trust in wildlife resources, and—crucially—equal access for all citizens to hunt and fish, principles that scream 2A ethos without ever mentioning a trigger pull.

Dig deeper, and this move is a masterstroke for conservation realists who see firearms not as relics of the past but as indispensable tools for the future. Johnson’s focus on big game like elk, bears, and mule deer aligns perfectly with Boone and Crockett’s legacy of using hunter-funded dollars (via Pittman-Robertson excise taxes on guns and ammo) to bankroll 90% of U.S. wildlife programs. In a world where urban elites push anti-hunting narratives and climate alarmism threatens to lock up public lands, her tenure could amplify data-driven defenses of sustainable harvests—harvests that require rifles in steady hands. For the 2A community, it’s a reminder that our rights underpin the very science sustaining wild places: without armed stewards culling overpopulated herds or defending against predators, Johnson’s research on climate stressors rings hollow. This appointment reinforces that hunters aren’t poachers; they’re the original conservationists, and bolstering voices like hers keeps the anti-gun crowd’s land-grab fantasies in check.

The implications ripple outward. As federal overreach and green agendas encroach on hunting grounds from Montana’s Bob Marshall Wilderness to Alaska’s ranges, Johnson’s platform could spotlight how 2A protections enable the boots-on-the-ground management that models predict will be vital amid shifting habitats. Pro-2A advocates should watch her work closely—cite it, fund it, amplify it. In an era of rewilding fantasies that ignore human-wildlife balance, this is a win for those who load magazines not just for sport, but for stewardship. Boone and Crockett’s choice keeps the flame alive: conserve through use, or lose it all.

Share this story