Our research uses movement ecology as a framework to understand how individuals and populations respond to changes in their environment in order to project how future change may alter a population’s dynamics and evolutionary trajectory.
Our Philosophy
The natural world knows no political boundaries. That means that we are all stakeholders in the conservation of our biodiversity and our lab welcomes the involvement of anyone and everyone, no matter where they come from or how they identify themselves. We are also working to overcome our own biases, as well as those that have long prevailed in the scientific and conservation communities, by learning from and engaging with the communities whose lives intersect with the species we study.
The natural world knows no political boundaries. That means that we are all stakeholders in the conservation of our biodiversity and our lab welcomes the involvement of anyone and everyone, no matter where they come from or how they identify themselves. We are also working to overcome our own biases, as well as those that have long prevailed in the scientific and conservation communities, by learning from and engaging with the communities whose lives intersect with the species we study.
Breaking News
- Spring bird migration is getting earlier, right? Not necessarily! Take a look at the first chapter from Lauren Puleo's MSc thesis, which is out today in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Lauren found that Hudsonian Godwits breeding in Beluga, Alaska are now arriving 6 days later than they did in 2012. In turn, she found that these changes in arrival timing are driven by changes in departure timing from southern Chile -- something that has only rarely been documented in long-distance migratory birds. What's more, it appears that individual godwits are able to shift their migration timing over the course of their lives. Taken together, these results run counter to many studies that have investigated the ability of trans-hemispheric migrants to shift their migrations in response to climate change. Unfortunately, in the case of godwits, the shift toward later migrations is not in line with recent climatic changes in Alaska and godwits are now increasingly experienced phenological mismatches and reduced reproductive success.
- Window collisions frequently prove deadly for birds and have been identified as one of the leading causes of direct, human-induced mortalities for birds around the world. In the U.S. alone, as many as 1.25 billion birds may die each year after hitting windows. With the help of nearly 200 students, we have surveyed the UMass Amherst campus for bird window collisions each morning for the past two years. We have documented hundreds of collisions involving dozens of species over this time. To begin mitigating the threat posed by windows on campus, we have begun a fundraising campaign to raise money to place bird-safe window coverings on one of UMass' deadliest buildings. If you are interested in contributing funds, you can do so here. Or, if you are interested in helping with surveys, you can sign up here. This is one conservation problem that we know we can solve -- please help out if you can!
nsenner at umass.edu
Mass Audubon Bertrand Chair for Ornithology
Department of Environmental Conservation
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Holdsworth Hall 219
Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Mass Audubon Bertrand Chair for Ornithology
Department of Environmental Conservation
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Holdsworth Hall 219
Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.A.