Chris & Ashley Bussard-NANFA members and dedicated Darter Nerds

We’re excited to welcome NANFA member and Darter collector, Chris Bussard as our featured May speaker! Join the Raleigh Aquarium Society for our May 2, 2026 meeting on Saturday the 2nd at 1:00PM! Chris will be sharing insights into his native fish collecting—knowledge that’s sure to inspire aquarists of all of us!

Chris was born and raised in western NC and grew up enjoying aquatic creatures from an early age. Since the time he could walk he always kept some sort of wild animal at home. As he got older his pursuits evolved from fly fishing to exploring native fish species and keeping them in aquaria. Chris and his wife have kept dozens of local species native to the Appalachian mountains.