The Wisconsin Chapter of the American Fisheries Society was chartered on March 4, 1969 and held its first annual meeting in 1972. The prime impetus behind the formation of the Chapter was an ad hoc steering committee that included Bill Threinen, Lyle Christenson, Dan Coble and John Magnuson. The Chapter has held an annual meeting each year since 1972, which facilitates the exchange of fisheries information among biologists and researchers from universities and state, federal, and tribal agencies throughout Wisconsin.



The mission of Chapters within the American Fisheries Society is to advance Society goals by coordinating member activities related to information exchange, outreach, and aquatic stewardship within their geographic region, including coordinating with appropriate local, provincial, and state-level government and non-government agencies and organizations. Chapters serve member needs in local and provincial/state areas and represent those needs to the Division leadership.



Within the American Fisheries Society there are four Divisions. The North Central Division consists of 14 chapters from the US and Canada, including the Wisconsin Chapter. Overall, 51 chapters comprise AFS and Wisconsin is one of the larger chapters with more than 150 active members. The Wisconsin Chapter currently recognizes one student subunit, located at the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point campus.