My interest in studying shorebirds is kindled by the classic model they provide us for investigating fundamental theories in ecology.  I have a research perspective that is focused on the population and community level.  Modeling demography of shorebirds is a research niche I believe is valuable for the future conservation of this diverse avian group.  My thesis will investigate the viability of the western snowy plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) population in Humboldt County.  I hope to quantify the key threats and factors that influence population growth of this federally threatened population and assess its outlook for the future.

Memorable field experience:  In summer 2009 I was conducting avian point counts in the backcountry of Denali National Park, Alaska.  After a routine 10 minute point count, my colleague and I proceed to hike along on our transect that followed the contour of a drainage covered with patches of thick willow stands.  When hiking in Alaska's wilderness, one must always be weary of letting other wildlife know where you are, and to do this it is custom make obnoxious noise.  It had only been about a minute since we had left out last point, but because of the survey, by that time we had been quiet for over 11 minutes.  However, we had just started hiking again and it seemed right to enjoy the early morning ambiance in peace and silence.  Yet, as we came around the next ridge we were confronted with a surprised sow grizzly bear and her two yearling cubs walking in our direction out of the willows.  The sow, as alarmed as we were, stood up on her hind legs and roared at us while her cubs ran back into the willows for cover.  At that moment I vividly remember when her roar met my ears, and how the adrenaline surged through my body as though I was switched immediately into survival mode.  My colleague and I attempted to maintain calm as we raised our hands, spoke confident words to the sow, and slowly backed away.  Fortunately, the sow felt that we were not worth attacking and so she turned around and charged after her cubs, leaving a fresh path bulldozed through the dense stand of willow.  While walking between points, we were quiet never again!