A landscape ecologist studies how different land uses influence and shape ecological communities. I am particularly interested in how birds and forests respond to a changing environment.
For my work, it starts with a curiosity about the natural world and how plants and animals interact and live. Then it comes to asking careful questions and remaining persistent to see where the data leads.
How do forests and the climate influence where bird species occur across the Eastern U.S.? How do these habitats change in response to climate change and land use change?
I use a wide variety of technology from radio telemetry to track individual birds during migration to powerful computers to understand species across their distributions.
I have two exciting discoveries because they are so different: 1) Even small forest patches in urban areas can be important for birds during migration; and 2) To describe where forest birds live across the Eastern U.S., you need to understand relationships between climate and tree species.
From an early age I was interested in wildlife and had a desire to understand more about animals. This interest and desire led naturally towards my career in science.
