From a child fly tying and fishing has been a focal point in Brian Lanouette’s life. A deep rooted passion for fishing has transferred to a young professional career in the fisheries science. Brian holds a Bachelors and Masters of Science from Washington State University (WSU) in Limnology (study of lake ecosystems). After taking a couple years to work seasonally for Idaho Department of fish and Game monitoring steelhead populations and pursue salmon guiding opportunities in SW and SE Alaska, he returned to WSU to work toward a PhD in Limnology focusing on lake food web ecology. An ecosystem-based approach of looking at fish populations dominates Brian’s research efforts, and believes an understanding of the role invertebrate populations play in fish, particularly salmonid, ecology is critical to fisheries management, conservation, and the pursuit of catching trout on the fly. He has now graduated with his Phd, and occasionally comes over to guide fly fishing trips and upland bird hunting trips these days.