J. Douglas Roseborough

Doug Roseborough was born in Toronto, 1927, and ten years later he had an extended summer vacation when during a polio epidemic, city schools remained closed until October. Doug spent his time hunting and fishing at the family cottage on the Credit River.

At University his interests initially were physiological and biochemical, but his summer employment at the provincial fisheries laboratory in Algonquin Park caused him to major in biology. Subsequently Doug became a naturalist at the park interpretive museum.

Doug Roseborough was hired by the Ministry of Natural Resources, Aylmer District, 1951. By 1961 he was supervisor of game management, which included hunting, trapping, plus conservation of land and species. Doug served as Director of Wildlife Research and Wildlife Brand Director, plus eight years in Fisheries Branch, again as Director. Doug found fisheries a most rewarding experience, which included an assessment of status of fish stocks and introduction of an angling license in 1970’s. Doug experienced first hand the conflicts between conservationists vs. timber harvesters, trappers vs. animal rights activists, hunters vs. anti-hunters, and the diversity of views on acceptable activities within protected areas.

Douglas Roseborough retired as Director of Wildlife Branch, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. He died in 1998, having directed the creation of a scholarship which bears his name.