At the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, students discover a world of birds and more

Tackling Old Myths
Rebecca Lohnes, Ph.D. ’12

Brett Sandercock

“I love that nighthawks are so widespread, but have remained so mysterious. I like studying a common yet poorly known species.”

Rebecca is studying the social and genetic mating systems of Common Nighthawks, with support from the Joseph & Felicia Weber Family. She’s learned that males are not very territorial and have large, variable home ranges. She hopes to help this declining species by learning more about the nighthawk’s basic breeding ecology and working with corporate partnerships to provide nest sites on rooftops of large buildings.

Rebecca Lohnes

Nicole Mihnovets, Courtesy New York DEC

A Whale of a Research Project
Ingrid Biedron, M.S. ’10

“The real surprise was that we detected right whales only 10 to 15 miles from New York Harbor. It was exciting, but scary because these are some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.”

Ingrid monitors North Atlantic right whales in the New York Bight. Her work made national news when the Cornell Lab’s Bioacoustics Research Program launched a new underwater sound detection system to help ship captains avoid collisions with whales.

© New England Aquarium

Laura Erickson

Watching Shifting Populations
Shawn Billerman, ’09

“These particular Barn Swallows have completely shifted their breeding cycle and other aspects of their life history by six months to adopt a Southern Hemisphere breeding pattern.”

Diane Tessaglia-Hymes

Shawn, a Bartels Intern, studied the population genetics of a new breeding population of Barn Swallows in Argentina. His work will improve the understanding of invasive species and reintroduced populations of rare species.

Zev Ross

Let’s Rumble!
Mya Thompson, Ph.D. ’11

“As soon as I popped those earphones on and heard the bass tones of the elephants, I was hooked!”

Mya uses acoustic surveys of elephant rumbles to estimate their populations. Her work, soon to be published in the African Journal of Ecology, may help conservationists get an accurate assessment of threatened forest elephant populations and develop a plan to save them.

Andrea Turkalo

Courtesy Matthew Savoca

Playing Tag
Matthew Savoca, ‘10

“It was not unusual to have over 1,000 feeder visits per day, and during peak activity, over 150 visits per hour!”

Matthew Savoca

Matthew, a Bartels Intern, is using radio frequency identification technology to quantify how often individual birds visit feeders. This is the first time Whitebreasted Nuthatches have been tagged with these devices. He is developing field techniques that he hopes one day will help save or protect a species in peril.

Picture This!
Natalie Koscal, ’10

Natalie Koscal

“Drawing helps me to learn and to see variations in bill morphology, posture, the way plumage forms the shape, the textures, and patterns of the feathers. It is sublime how nature and time sculpted out these features.”

Natalie was the Spring 2009 Bartels Science Illustration Intern at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. At Cornell she’s studying ecology and neurobiology with a special interest in mammals and birds, and her passion for art has given this work an exciting twist. Natalie’s poster, produced for the Spring 2009 issue of BirdScope, is a stunning example of how she blends art and science. She hopes to use illustration to get people excited about conservation.

Courtesy Yula Kapetanakos

Monitoring Endangered Vultures
Yula Kapetanakos, Ph.D. ’12

“Watching a vulture soar is breathtaking. And their eyesight is unmatched. They rely on tremendous visual acuity to spot the movement of other vultures miles away that may be on the descent for food.”

Yula is studying whether scientists can use dropped feathers as well as marked individual birds to monitor elusive Old World vulture populations. A more accurate methodology for estimating population numbers is crucial for understanding their status and conservation needs.

Courtesy Yula Kapetanakos

BirdSleuth in the Tropics,
Lilly Briggs, Ph.D. ’11, York University

“We’re trying to get kids in Costa Rica inspired and interested in birds early on, just like I was, and to take an active role in conservation.”

Lilly introduced the Cornell Lab’s BirdSleuth curriculum to students in Costa Rica. Her work is a vital first step in tailoring BirdSleuth to the needs of students across the Western Hemisphere.

Courtesy Lilllly Briggs

Courtesy Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez

Saving Tropical Treasures
Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez, Ph.D. ’11

“Few experiences make me as happy, and motivate me more, than sharing the knowledge gained here at Cornell with fellow young scientists in Latin America.”

Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez

Viviana is studying the complex ways that human-induced habitat alterations impact tropical bird populations. Her work may lead to new conservation measures to mitigate human impacts on tropical birdlife.

Saving the New Zealand Kakapo
Ursula Poole, Home Study Course student

Courtesy Ursula Poole

“The course has inspired me to continue doing conservation work with birds in New Zealand.”

Ursula Poole

Ursula’s job involved monitoring and handling one of New Zealand’s most endangered birds, the Kakapo. A recipient of a Cornell Lab scholarship for the Home Study Course in Bird Biology, she found the course especially helpful in understanding how anatomy relates to behavior. Now Ursula is considering doing postgraduate study in conservation biology to help endangered birds long into the future.