Success and positive accomplishments have been foregone conclusions in the life and career of Doug Brimeyer. He has always excelled in every endeavor that he has undertaken. His first accomplishment was earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Biology from one of the most prestigious and highly regarded universities in North American – the University of Montana.
It did not take Doug long to matriculate from Montana to Wyoming and the Game and Fish Department. One of his first jobs as a Habitat Biologist in the Jackson Region resulted in a collaborative and groundbreaking initiative to develop habitat improvement projects on ranges of the largest elk and moose populations in North American – the legendary Jackson herds. From his station in Jackson, Doug was promoted to a Biologist position in the Department’s Biological Services section in Cheyenne Headquarters. While in Cheyenne, he garnered the respect and attention of Department administrators who soon realized the positive influence Doug would provide to the Department by posting him to the field. That sentiment led to Doug’s promotion to his first biologist district in Newcastle.
It was as the Newcastle wildlife biologist that Doug learned and mastered the nuances of big game management. It was here that he fine-tuned and gained the valuable experience of the day-to-day management of one of the state’s most visible, and potentially controversial, deer populations in the Black Hills. To compound the challenges of game management, Doug’s guidance and management of the Black Hills turkey population received accolades from the turkey hunters of Wyoming and biologists from western state wildlife agencies.
Upon his arrival in Jackson in 1996, Doug transitioned into the role of the North Jackson wildlife biologist. It was in this role that he quickly and seamlessly came to understand the intricacies and political challenges of managing the world’s largest elk population in a collaborative and professional manner. Doug seized upon this challenge with confidence, while gaining the valuable public support and respect from the wide diversity of people who view the Jackson elk herd as their own. In this capacity, Doug will be forever remembered as Everyman’s biologist because he did what few of us have, or ever will accomplish, namely winning over the respect from those stakeholders with vested interests in Wyoming’s wildlife populations. With amazing people skills and armed with formidable big game data sets, Doug built connections with hunting outfitters, personnel from 3 agencies – The Forest Service (BTNF), Fish and Wildlife Service (NER), and The National Park Service (GTNP), and people of every political persuasion and socio-economic background from Teton County, Lincoln and Sublette Counties, and across the entire State of Wyoming. This fact is an undeniable truth and cannot be overstated.
Doug’s tenure in Jackson was highlighted by his negotiations with the Fish and Wildlife Service in the development of the Elk and Bison Management Plan. The contents of this Plan would guide elk and bison management on the National Elk Refuge for decades, and Doug’s experience and wisdom set that standard to ensure the state’s interests were accounted for and incorporated into the document. Doug also contributed to the research design, goals and objectives, and methodology for several university-based research projects associated with the Jackson elk herd and the Jackson moose herd. His interest in better understanding the ecology and biology of the Jackson moose herd, arguably, one of the largest Shiras moose populations in North American resulted in research projects in collaboration with the University of Wyoming. Because of Doug’s acumen and persuasive powers, this work resulted in pioneering, never-before-attempted moose research in Wyoming.
Perhaps one of Doug’s crowning achievements was his promotion to the Jackson and Pinedale wildlife management coordinator in 2014, which set the stage for future advancement in the agency. Doug’s responsibilities as the wildlife management coordinator included maintaining and understanding the allocation of funding for two regional budgets, and his remarkable ability to partner wildlife and land management issues between federal agencies, private landowners, and public stakeholders that often times had competing interests. Doug’s attention to detail allowed him to excel at this challenge, while serving as a catalyst in coalescing these differences into a cohesive, acceptable management program for the Jackson and Pinedale Regions. Doug’s job might be described by today’s standards as daunting and nearly impossible to manage. Yet Doug succeeded through his ability to build connections with personnel in the two regions, with federal, state and county governments, with private landowners, and with diverse public stakeholders. This is further evidence that Doug possesses the enviable ability to connect with people while simultaneously building respect with a keen understanding of the process and the dynamic that guides the Game and Fish Department in the management of wildlife and the habitats they depend on.
There was no doubt that Doug’s tenure as a wildlife management coordinator in Jackson and Pinedale would be short lived. Doug possesses the qualities of wisdom, experience, and understanding, which were assurances that he would be a highly sought after candidate for the highest administrative echelons in the Game and Fish Department. That foregone conclusion came true in 2016 when Doug was promoted to the Wildlife Division’s Deputy Division Chief.
When Doug moved to Cheyenne to become one of the Wildlife Division’s Deputies, he stepped into a position that would become the envy of many. He brought with him those qualities to the job that allowed him to flourish in Jackson and Pinedale, and quickly learned how to navigate and integrate the biological and political aspects of the job into a coherent management program that field personnel were quick to understand and accept. As a deputy division chief, Doug would be responsible for management of regional terrestrial wildlife populations, with emphasis on the state’s big game populations. Each April Doug would review regional big game season recommendations and then present those recommendations to the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission for their approval. The pressure must have been daunting, especially for those herds and in regions of the state where management was contested by public stakeholders. Under these conditions, Doug’s presentations were thoughtful and professional and resulted in Commission approval and support of the regions’ recommendations.
Doug’s next achievement was his promotion to Deputy Director for External Operations in 2024. Doug was clearly and unequivocally the Department’s ambassador to all political entities, internal and external federal and state agencies, the Wyoming Legislature, and Governor’s office, to name just a few. Doug spearheaded and oversaw the political groundwork and connections that promoted the process forward for official designation of big game migration corridors. Doug was the primary contact during each Wyoming Legislative session where he was called upon to present the Department’s regulations to the Legislature on matters related to the state’s wildlife. Doug performed these duties with insight, confidence, and a keen ability to predict what issues could be forthcoming from Legislative committees.
Doug is the consummate, professional wildlife biologist. His career accomplishments have been, and will always be, his defining moments for someone who possesses those elusive and enviable personality traits of understanding, wisdom, and experience. These traits ultimately led to Doug’s promotion to one of the pinnacles of professional achievement in the Game and Fish Department – that of Deputy Director.
In the 30+ years that I have known Doug Brimeyer and through his accession to positions of authority and influence, I have never know him to succumb to Hubris. His integrity is above reproach. It is this integrity that I, and many others, will remember and cherish about him most. His innate ability to positively motivate, inspire, and connect with his colleagues and people of all political persuasions, demographics, and socio-economic backgrounds will be forever remembered and valued; he is a titan in this regard. As a result, he has gained their respect and support. His many positive and professional accomplishments have been recorded and will be referenced for decades to come in the historical annals of the Game and Fish Department’s wildlife management programs. His positive contributions to big game migration ecology, big game management, especially of mule deer, elk, bighorn sheep, moose and bison, and the connections he made with state and federal agency colleagues, outfitters, landowners, livestock producers, and public stakeholders in Wyoming and throughout North American will live on. In many ways he truly can be, and should be, defined in part, by the Everyman brand and persona, which is fundamentally built upon respect for others.
These are the personal and professional qualities of Doug Brimeyer – a man who will forever remain in a class of his own.
Prepared by:
Gary L. Fralick
Wildlife Biologist
Wyoming Game and Fish Dept.
Thayne-Big Piney/LaBarge
Thayne, WY.
December 10, 2025
The WYOGA 2026 Annual Convention and Big Game Awards Banquet will be held, March 26-28 at the Ramkota in Casper. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend this great event! Invitations with a tentative agenda will be mailed in February.
The 2025-2026 Wyoming Outdoors publication was mailed last week and should be hitting the mail boxes of the non-residents. I hope your phones ring off the hook! The Wyoming Outdoors is also in digital format on the WYOGA website and also listed on our Facebook page. Enjoy!
