By Chris Lawrence in Outdoors March 03, 2015 at 1:12PM SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A veteran leader with the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources is out. Curtis Taylor, Chief of the Wildlife Section of DNR until Monday, abruptly retired.
“Curtis decided on his own to retire and Paul Johansen has been appointed acting director,” said Department of Commerce Spokesperson Chelsea Ruby. “We appreciate Curtis’ long time service to the division and look forward to working with Paul in his new role.”
Taylor’s decision to leave the agency where he worked for 35 years was abrupt. When contacted by MetroNews, he was upbeat about the decision.
“I had a long career and enjoyed what I was doing,” Taylor said from his home in Putnam County. “I think I made a difference and I hope the hunters and anglers benefited from it.”
When asked if his retirement was forced, Taylor said no, but admitted over the course of his career he had made a few enemies in an effort to defend sportsmen and the money they spent on hunting and fishing.
Taylor had been outspoken in recent months about several issues including a lack of pay raises for employees. He often complained many had not had a raise in years while counterparts in neighboring states earned substantially higher salaries.
He also threw up roadblocks to proposed plans to use gas drilling royalties on Wildlife Management Areas to fund the beleaguered State Park system. Taylor maintained federal law required those royalties to be plowed back into fish and wildlife management exclusively since the property and the mineral rights were paid for with hunting and fishing license dollars.
He was also critical of the recent decision by lawmakers to transfer regulatory authority of captive cervids from the DNR to the Department of Agriculture.
The McDowell County native earned his degree in wildlife biology at WVU and his graduate studies at the University of Tennessee. He started his career with the agency at McClintic Wildlife Management area as a part timer in 1979. His first official position came amid a rather unassuming interview process.
“I was at the McClintic station skinning a muskrat and Bob Miles, who was the director came in and said, ‘Taylor you want a job?’ I said ‘Yes sir.'” Taylor recalled. “He said, ‘Do you care where?’ I said ‘No sir.’ The next day I got a call and was told I was the Manager at R.D. Bailey Wildlife Management Area.”
Taylor worked his way through the ranks of the DNR as the mining coordination director in the Beckley office. He moved to Charleston and became the federal aid coordinator before he ascended to the role of chief.
Throughout his career wild turkeys were his passion. He was one of several who were instrumental in the research studies and the trap and transfer program of the 1980’s which helped restore wild turkey populations in every county of the state. He was particularly proud of the restoration done in Wyoming and McDowell Counties. The feat even impressed legendary turkey biologist Wayne Bailey.
“Wayne called me and couldn’t believe there were turkeys in Wyoming County,” he said. “He wanted me to take him hunting. We got out there the first morning at R.D. Bailey and heard several gobblers on the roost. He was amazed.”
Taylor was recognized for his work by the National Wild Turkey Federation with the Mosby Award given to those who have made significant contributions to the management and growth of wild turkey populations. He’s one of four West Virginians to have won the award.
He is also a past president of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and is the only president of the organization ever from West Virginia. The role enabled him to travel internationally and work on turkey management around the globe.
As for what’s next, it had only been a day, but Taylor was certain of one thing.
“I plan to put a hurting on the fish and game of this state with the amount of hunting and fishing I’m going to be doing,” he laughed.
