She began her new duties on Oct. 18 and
comes to Yreka from the Service’s Fisheries
Program in Lakewood, Colo.
A marine and wildlife biologist, Williams
has been with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service since 2002. She began her career in
the federal service at the Stockton Fish and
Wildlife Office (California) as non-native
invasive species program coordinator working
on invasive species issues. Later, she
served as injurious wildlife evaluations
coordinator in the Washington Headquarters
Office working on Asian carp, snakehead and
other ecologically harmful non-native
species.
“We’re pleased to have Erin leading the
Yreka field office of the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service,” Ren Lohoefener, regional
director of the service’s Pacific Southwest
Region stated in the release. “Her
knowledge, experience and energy will serve
the local community well on wildlife and
habitat conservation issues.”
As supervisor of the Yreka Fish and Wildlife
Office (Yreka FWO), Williams directs a staff
of 18 people and oversees activities in
support of a number of programs aimed at the
restoration and recovery of rare species and
the habitats on which they depend. She will
also oversee several voluntary landowner
conservation programs aimed at benefiting
the larger Klamath River watershed and
ecosystem.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be in
such a beautiful part of the country, and I
look forward to working with our longtime
partners, local landowners and other
dedicated stewards of our natural
resources,” Williams said in the release.
Prior to joining the service, Williams was
in Hawaii working at a bottlenosed dolphin
cognition facility and worked on invasive
species issues in Davis, Calif. She is from
central Minnesota and received a B.S. in
biology and B.A. in psychology from the
University of Minnesota-Duluth. She has a
master’s of science from Oregon State
University through the marine resource
management program.
An outdoor enthusiast, Williams said she is
looking forward to exploring the outdoors
and the many recreational opportunities that
the area offers.
