PRBO Science, Outreach, Administration, and Policy Staff (listed alphabetically)

Sara Acosta, Marine Program Biologist, (sacosta at prbo dot org) (707) 781-2555 ext.322
Sara Acosta came to PRBO in 2004 as an intern for the Alcatraz and Año Nuevo seabird projects. She graduated with a B.S. in biology and earned a Graduate Certificate in Geospatial Analysis from Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas. Before PRBO, she worked in the wet prairie and bottomland forest habitats of the Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge in Missouri, conducting point count surveys and working on a shorebird telemetry project. Sara is currently working as the Alcatraz Island seabird biologist and assisting in a new Predator-Based Sampling project examining marine food web dynamics.

Lishka Arata, Conservation Educator, (707) 781-2555 ext.354
Lishka joined PRBO in 2004 as a bird banding intern at the Palomarin Field Station in Bolinas, CA. Since then she has worked as a field biologist in PRBO's Tidal Marsh, Central Valley Winter Riparian, and Northern Sierra projects. She has also done Marbled Murrelet surveys, Yellow-billed Cuckoo monitoring, and tropical liverwort research outside of PRBO. Currently she works as a bird science educator with PRBO's Education and Outreach division. She graduated from Humboldt State University in 2003 with a B.S. in Biology. She's a native of San Francisco and grew up in Northern California.

John Baker, Program Development Director, (707) 781-2555 ext.312
John brings valuable perspectives from his 15 years of conservation experience in Southeast Asia. He set up innovative rural development projects in Thailand, managed a conservation program for the largest protected area in Laos, and won an award from the Vietnam Women's Union for helping them establish a successful family planning program. He also coordinated the publication of a guidebook to Thai national parks and a coffee table book on Thai flora and fauna. During one watershed moment in recent Thai political history, he wrote speeches for Thailand's Prime Minister. When not in the water or in the forest, he enjoys gardening and cooking at his home on the Sonoma Coast.

Grant Ballard, Ph.D., Informatics Division Director & Antarctic Program Leader, (gballard at prbo dot org) (707) 781-2555 ext.340. Grant is director of PRBO's Informatics Division, leads the Adélie penguin program (see www.penguinscience.com), and the California Avian Data Center. He has helped oversee the development of the California Partners In flight Bird Conservation Plans and interactive databases (see www.prbo.org/calpif). Originally from the Virgin Islands, Grant came to PRBO in 1991 as an intern at the Palomarin Field Station, having graduated from Cornell University in 1989 with a degree in writing and four semesters of electrical engineering. He also has a PhD in Biological Sciences (Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior) from the University of Auckland, New Zealand (2010). He has spent austral summers in Antarctica since 1996, seven seasons on the Sacramento River studying riparian songbirds (1991-1997), several autumns on the Farallon Islands, and helped design and start PRBO's Eastern Sierra Program in 1998. Current research interests include links between behavioral ecology and population structure and the effects of large scale physical forcing on ecosystems.

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Russell Bradley, Farallon Program Manager, (707) 781-2555 ext.314
Russ Bradley is a seabird biologist with the Farallon Islands program of PRBO's Marine Ecology Division. He grew up in British Columbia, Canada and graduated with a BSc in Biology from Simon Fraser University in 1998. After conducting seabird ecology field work at the Farallon Islands, Nova Scotia, and the northwest Hawaiian islands, he returned to SFU's Centre of Wildlife Ecology for his MSc with Fred Cooke. His thesis work focused on the breeding ecology of radio marked Marbled Murrelets in coastal British Columbia. Russ joined PRBO in January 2002 and his research interests include the effects of life history strategies and environmental variability on seabird population ecology.

Ryan Burnett, Terrestrial Program Biologist
Ryan is the Northern Sierra and Sacramento Valley Program Leader in PRBO's Terrestrial Division. He came to PRBO in 1997 as an intern and has studied birds on the Farallon Islands, San Clemente Island, Midway Atoll, and throughout Northern California. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Biology from the University of California, Davis. His current projects include studying the ecology and conservation of birds on actively managed National Forest lands in the Sierra Nevada. Specific projects are designed to help guide management of chaparral, aspen, hardwood, and meadow habitats in an adaptive management framework. Additional, projects include monitoring songbird response to riparian restoration and the conservation of Blue Oak Woodland birds in the Sierra Nevada Foothills.

Lee Callero, Payroll/Accounts Payable/HR, (707) 781-2555 ext.332

Renée Cormier , Terrestrial Program Biologist, (415) 868-0655 ext.316
Renée joined PRBO in 2002 working on several terrestrial and education/outreach projects throughout California. Recently she has been working on riparian landbird projects in the Central Valley, and on the Northern Spotted Owl project in Marin County. Originally from eastern Canada, Renée received a B.Sc. from Acadia University in Nova Scotia.

Mark Dettling, Terrestrial Ecologist, (mdettling at prbo dot org)
Mark first came to PRBO in 2006 as an intern for the Tidal Marsh project. After a couple of internships at the Palomarin Field Station, he began his current work on the Least Bell’s Vireo project in California’s San Joaquin Valley. He has also volunteered out on Southeast Farallon Island during the fall season. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering, then decided to change his focus and earned an M.S. in Natural Resources from Cornell University. Mark developed his passion for birding in Michigan, where he was born and raised.

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Ryan DiGaudio, CalPIF Coordinator, Ecologist
Ryan first came to PRBO in 1996 as a saltmarsh project intern in the terrestrial program.  Since then, he has worked on a variety of PRBO research projects, including songbird monitoring in the Central Valley, Snowy Plover monitoring in Monterey Bay, and fall banding on SE Farallon Island.  He graduated with a B.A. in Environmental Studies/Biology in 1995 from the University of California, Santa Cruz and later earned an M.S. in Resource Ecology and Management in 2003 from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.  Ryan is currently a terrestrial division ecologist and the California Partners in Flight coordinator.  He is particularly interested in restoring and enhancing wildlife habitat on private lands throughout California.

Dave Dixon, Wetlands Ecology Division Biologist 

Meredith Elliott , Marine Program Biologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.304
Meredith Elliott came to PRBO in 1999 as a volunteer on the Farallon Islands. She earned a B.S. degree in zoology from the University of California, Davis in 1996 and an M.S. degree in biology (concentration in marine biology) from San Francisco State University in 2005. She has investigated the Double-crested Cormorant colonies inhabiting the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. She has also monitored the California Least Tern colony at Alameda Point, Alameda (the former Naval Air Station) and investigated Least Tern diet and prey availability in the San Francisco Bay.  She is currently researching zooplankton communities (particularly krill) in the Gulf of the Farallones and examining the effects of varying oceanographic conditions on krill and other important zooplankton taxa.

Jenny Erbes, Wetlands Ecology Division Biologist
Jenny first started working for PRBO full time in 2003 on the Monterey Bay Snowy Plover Project. In 2002, in her joint position with California State Parks and the US Fish and Wildlife Service Salinas River Refuge, Jenny assisted with habitat management and plover monitoring in collaboration with PRBO. Prior to that, Jenny conducted internships at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratory and the Alaska SeaLife Center.

Carleton Eyster, Snowy Plover Biologist

Michael Fitzgibbon, Senior Informatics Engineer (707) 781-2555 ext.309
Since joining PRBO in late 2007, Michael has built the California Avian Data Center website (http://www.prbo.org/cadc), as well as a suite of applications for managing and accessing avian data at PRBO and their partners.  Prior to coming to PRBO, Michael spent over 20 years in software development, working most recently at Intuit on the new Quicken online products.  He also helped form Autodesk's GIS Market Group, and worked at ESRI as a member of the Arc/Info development team and developing custom applications.  Michael holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, and a Masters of Landscape Architecture from University of California at Berkeley.

Alissa Fogg, Terrestrial Program Biologist (415) 233-0615
Alissa is a biologist with PRBO’s Sierra Nevada program and helps coordinate the monitoring indicator species (MIS) project in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service. She first came to PRBO in 2005 as an intern with the Tidal Marsh project and spent a season exploring dry washes with PRBO’s Sonoran desert program.  Alissa received her B.A. in Environmental Studies from Guilford College in 2001 and M.S. in Wildlife Ecology from Humboldt State University in 2009. Her thesis work focused on effects from cattle grazing on the foraging ecology of Western Wood-Pewees in Sierra Nevada montane meadows. Alissa has spent the last 6 years studying songbirds in the Sierra Nevada with a special focus on meadow and aspen habitat, fire ecology and the importance of oaks to Sierra birds.  Alissa lives in Placerville with her husband, Chad, where they spend their free time exploring the Sierra foothills by bicycle.

Debbie Flynn, Office and Facilities Manager, (707) 781-2555 ext.311  

Nancy Gamble, Director of Individual Giving (707) 781-2555 ext.324
Nancy came to PRBO in May of 2005 with over 20 years of development experience. Nancy was the Director of Donor Development for the Northern California Division of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society where she raised significant funds for cancer research, and launched a new fundraising program that raised over $2 million for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Nancy worked closely with the Board of Directors for the San Francisco Chapter and recruited the first Board of Directors for the San Jose Chapter. In 2002 Nancy relocated to California from Chicago, Illinois. While in Chicago Nancy worked for a medical center where she was instrumental in raising funds for a new digital cardiac catheterization laboratory, a new emergency room, new oncology center, and several other projects.  At PRBO Nancy currently works with individuals and family foundations to raise funds for PRBO’s priority science initiatives. Nancy also assists donors with estate planning and oversees membership and events.

Thomas Gardali, Terrestrial Program Associate Director, (415) 868-0655 ext.381
Tom grew up in California's Great Central Valley. He earned an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1992 and has been an ecologist for the Terrestrial Ecology Division of PRBO since 1993. His research interests are conservation oriented and range from natural history to restoration to the effects of habitat succession and climate patterns on birds.

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Doug George, Snowy Plover Biologist
Doug received a B.S. in Biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.  After volunteering for several years on PRBO’s Monterey Bay Snowy Plover Project he joined PRBO in 1989 to continue working on this long-term study.  Since 2002 he has been involved with an intensive monitoring and management effort to protect breeding Snowy Plovers and California Least Terns within a state park in San Luis Obispo County.  Focused interests include development of adaptive management strategies to support sustained recovery of the federally threatened Snowy Plover and endangered California Least Tern in central coastal California. 

Geoffrey R. Geupel, Terrestrial Program Director (415) 868-0655 ext.301
Geoff has over 23 years of experience in ornithological monitoring and conservation research. Geoff has a B.S. in Biology from Lewis and Clark College and has authored over 30 publications, many which have helped define bird-monitoring protocols throughout North America and Mexico. He has worked closely with private, state and federal agencies in California and other Western states to assess the impact of land management practices and restoration efforts on landbird populations. Geoff has taught numerous technical workshops on bird monitoring and conservation planning. He oversees 8 program areas including projects in The Great Valley, Eastern Sierra, Intermountain west shrub steppe, the Sierra Nevada, Latin America, and oak woodland and desert regions of California, that employ over 40 field biologists annually. He is currently co-Chair of California Partners in Flight, head of the Science Committee of the Riparian Habitat Joint Venture, member of the California State Steering Committee of the Intermountain West Joint Venture, technical committee member of the Central Valley Habitat Joint Venture, board member of the Sonora Joint Venture and member of the National Cowbird Advisory Council and International Important Bird Area Technical Committee. Geoff currently lives in Bolinas with his wife of 20 years Janet Kjelmyr and his two daughters and is a director on the Mesa Park Board. 

Sacha Heath, Terrestrial Program Biologist
Sacha arrived at PRBO in 1996 as an intern nest searcher at PRBO's Palomarin Field Staion. She currently directs PRBO's Eastern Sierra Nevada Program. Since 1998, Sacha has designed studies, overseen field crews, and collaborated with a wide range of governmental and non-governmental organizations for over ten monitoring projects throughout the Eastern Sierra region. She has authored or co-authored peer-reviewed publications pertaining to these projects, and has co-authored several habitat-based California Partners in Flight Bird Conservation Plans. Sacha's research interests include bird responses to restoration and habitat management, population viability, and influences on avian reproductive output. She has also conducted research in Alaska, Antarctica, and southern California for the National Biological Service, H.T. Harvey Associates, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Sacha holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from the Universtiy of California at Santa Cruz.

Mark Herzog, PhD., Informatics Division Co-director
Mark Herzog is the co-director of PRBO's Informatics Division and is leading PRBO's Climate Change Initiative. Mark's expertise is in quantitative ecology, avian ecology, and population dynamics. Previously, he has performed extensive research in waterfowl ecology and population modeling. Mark received his Master of Science in 1995 at New Mexico State University, where he collaborated on a state-wide fishery model, and received his doctorate in 2001 at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. His dissertation examined density dependent effects on growth and development of Black Brant goslings on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in Alaska. Recently, Mark has developed population models for western Mallards for the Pacific Flyway and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Recently completed projects at PRBO
include developing spatial optimization models for waterbirds and land birds within the south San Francisco Bay salt pond restoration areas. Mark is also analyzing population data within the tidal marsh communities of San Francisco Bay, and developing statistical tools for PRBO's biologists to use to analyze and visualize their data. Mark lives in Cotati.

Catherine Hickey, Wetlands Division Associate Director, (415) 868-0371 ext.307
Catherine first came to PRBO from the University of California Santa Cruz as an intern with the Terrestrial Program in spring 1993. In winter 1993/94 she began working for the Wetlands Ecology Division as a biologist on the Pacific Flyway Project, surveying shorebirds throughout the west. She has led Snowy Plover monitoring projects at multiple inland and coastal sites. After completing her M.S. in Conservation Ecology at the University of California Davis and working at Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences on the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan, she returned to PRBO as the Southern Pacific Shorebird Conservation Coordinator. Catherine currently is an active leader at the national level with the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network, serves as Chair of the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Council, and represents the shorebird initiative on the U.S. North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) Committee.

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Aaron Holmes, Terrestrial Program Biologist
Aaron came to PRBO in 1994 as an intern at our Palomarin Field Station. Since then he has worked on numerous projects within the Terrestrial Ecology Division and currently serves as lead investigator for PRBO's shrubsteppe bird program. Current projects include the development of an international, multi-organization monitoring network to coordinate research and monitoring of sagebrush birds throughout Western North America. His research interests focus on large-scale impacts of human land use on arid ecosystems. Current projects include investigations of impacts related to energy development in SW Wyoming, response of songbirds to fire in high and low elevation sagebrush systems at multiple spatial and temporal scales (OR, NV), impacts of Off-Highway Vehicle use to songbirds (CA), the role of fire suppression in shaping avian communities in sagebrush ecosystems (OR, CA), and effects of fuel treatments on wildlife in a sagebrush - juniper woodland (OR).

Julie Howar, Marine Program Biologist, (jhowar at prbo.org), (8O5) 735-73OO
Julie Howar, Seabird Biologist and GIS Specialist, joined PRBO's seabird program at Vandenberg Air Force Base in 2004. She received her bachelor's degrees in Aquatic Biology and Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara, and her master's in Applied Geography with a minor in Wildlife Science from New Mexico State University. Prior to coming to PRBO, Julie worked on Marbled Murrelet habitat use and radio telemetry projects, created a GIS-based habitat suitability model for Aplomado Falcons, and volunteered for the California Raptor Center and the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory. She currently volunteers as a transporter, rehabilitator, and database manager for the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network.

Chrissy Howell, PhD., Sr. Conservation Scientist, (chowell at prbo.org), (707) 781-2555 ext.315
Chrissy has degrees from the University of California Berkeley (B.A. Biology 1991) and the University of Missouri Columbia (PhD Ecology 1999). Her doctoral research focused on avian demography and life history evolution in a coastal California population of Song Sparrows. In 2000 she received an National Science Foundation Post-doctoral Fellowship in Biological Informatics to pursue research in collaboration with Missouri Botanical Garden and the International Center for Tropical Ecology at the University of Missouri Saint Louis. Her NSF research focused on the development and use of spatially explicit models and statistics (applying Geographic Information System technology) as practical tools in coarse-grain conservation studies. She uses these approaches to test hypotheses about the distributions of rare species, conservation reserve design, and the implications of global climate change. In 2004 she joined the staff of PRBO as a Conservation Scientist.

Diana Humple , Terrestrial Program Biologist, (415) 868-0655 ext.386
Diana started as an intern with PRBO in 1996 working with Loggerhead Shrikes in shrubsteppe habitat in Oregon. She has since been involved in a variety of projects, predominantly in the Terrestrial Ecology Division, including the Palomarin Field Station where she supervised the banding program for 5 years and continues involvement. Her main roles today include: 1) banding coordinator, managing banding data and permits for the organization; 2) leader of PRBO's oil spill response team, and 3) data manager and landbird biologist for PRBO’s Terrestrial Ecology Division. She is also currently finishing a Master's Degree in Biology at Sonoma State University studying genetics and oil spill demographics of Western and Clark's Grebes.
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Jaime Jahncke, PhD, Marine Ecology Division Director, (jjahncke at prbo dot org), (707) 781-2555 ext.335
Jaime Jahncke is a Peruvian biologist who joined PRBO Conservation Science in 2004. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of California, Irvine under the supervision of Dr. George L. Hunt Jr. His doctoral dissertation research focused on how physical processes associated with coastal waters affect the abundance and distribution of seabirds in these regions. His previous experience included 5 years as Senior Seabird Biologist at the Instituto del Mar del Perú (IMARPE) where much of his research focused on the study of guano-producing seabirds: the use of diet to monitor fish prey abundance and distribution; the effects of changes in food availability on population dynamics and breeding biology; and the spatial and numerical relationships between seabirds and prey distribution. His current research focuses on the physical-biological interactions among the oceanography of the Gulf of the Farallones and the abundance and distribution of top predators in this region. This project will provide the scientific basis for the design an implementation of a potential Farallones Marine Protected Area.

Scott Jennings, Terrestrial Program Biologist, (415) 868-0655 ext.302  

Brandy Johnson , Farallon Patrol Coordinator, 707-781-2555 ext.321
Brandy came to PRBO in July 2004 as the Farallon Patrol Coordinator:
coordinates boats and people to and from Southeast Farallon Island.

Dennis Jongsomjit, GIS Specialist
Dennis escaped from the jungles of Los Angeles to earn his Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Conservation Biology from the University of California, Davis. He came to PRBO in 2001 as an intern nest searcher at the Palomarin field station. At Palomarin he worked on the creation of a guide to aging altricial nestlings to help better our understanding of factors affecting nest success. He is now a GIS specialist and biologist for the Informatics Division, focusing his efforts on landscape and climate change factors affecting bird distributions.

Marilyn Kihara, Controller (707) 781-2555 ext.352

Derek Lee, Marine Program Biologist
Derek Lee, Farallones Biologist, B.A. UC Santa Barbara, M.S. Humboldt State University. He came to PRBO in 2002 as a population modeller/demographer working on the California Current System Marine Bird Adaptive Conservation Plan. Previous work included studying migration of Black Brant on Humboldt Bay, and fire effects on woodrat survival in oak woodlands of San Luis Obispo. He is the winter Farallones biologist continuing the long-term study of elephant seal population biology.

Leonard Liu, Wetlands Ecology Division Biologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.303
Len currently monitors wetlands within the San Francisco Bay Estuary. He joined PRBO in 2003 as a seasonal biologist on the Terrestrial Ecology Division’s San Joaquin Watershed Songbird Inventory and Monitoring project. Some of the research projects he has been involved with in the past include studies on Common Loons in Wisconsin and raptor migration monitoring in Florida. He received a BA in Environmental Science from University of California, Berkeley.

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Chris McCreedy, Terrestrial Program Biologist
Altered forever by the deserts of New Mexico and Arizona, he has since worked in the Chihuahuan, Great Basin, Mojave, Sonoran, and Antarctic deserts. Chris leads PRBO’s terrestrial projects in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, as well as the Mono Basin Willow Flycatcher project at Mono Lake. Of late, Chris has spent the non-breeding seasons drafting the California Partners In Flight Desert Bird Conservation Plan.

Doug Moody, Web Specialist, Informatics Division

Stella Moss, Terrestrial Program Biologist
Stella came to PRBO in 2005 to work as a nest searcher on Mono Lake’s tributary streams. She has returned to the Eastern Sierra every season since and now leads PRBO’s Eastern Sierra projects. She coordinates studies in Sagebrush, Aspen, Pinion Pine and Riparian habitats. Stella has a B.A. in Outdoor Experiential Education and Natural History from Prescott College.

Kriss Neuman, Wetlands Ecology Division Biologist
Kriss Neuman has been a Biologist with PRBO's Wetlands Ecology Division since 1996. She received her B.A. in Environmental Studies at the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1993. Prior to joining PRBO, Kriss studied seabird reproductive biology in Alaska and Maine and shorebird migration in the Midwest. Since 1996, Kriss has been responsible for monitoring nesting success of snowy plovers in central and southern Monterey Bay. In 2003 she completed an M.S. in Environmental Studies at San Jose State University where her thesis work focused on the effect of predator management on reproductive success of snowy plovers. Kriss’s primary interests are snowy plover conservation and management, ecology of sandy beach shorebirds and the impacts of human disturbance on shorebirds.

Nadav Nur, PhD, Quantitative Ecology Program Director (707) 781-2555 ext.301
Nadav works with our long term data on landbirds and seabirds. Research interests include developing and applying new statistical methods to the study of bird demography and development of population models to study the impact of toxic spills on bird populations. He shares an avid interest in folk dancing with his children Alana and Rafi, and his wife, Linda. 

Gary W. Page, Wetlands Ecology Division Director, (415) 868-0371 ext.309
Gary came to PRBO in 1971 from his native Canada, where he had studied shorebirds as part of his job as warden of Long Point Bird Observatory. During his tenure at PRBO his work has included an ecological study, focused on shorebirds, of Bolinas Lagoon; a long-term study of the geographic distribution, status, life history, and population ecology of the Snowy Plover in central California; waterbird surveys of Point Reyes wetlands; the assessment of the effects of several major oil spills on marine bird populations; a large study of the distribution and abundance of shorebirds in wetlands west of the Rocky Mountains; and currently with other researchers at PRBO, an intensive study of bird use of San Francisco Bay wetlands.

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Claire Peaslee, Editor PRBO Newsletter
Claire produces PRBO's quarterly journal, The Observer, as well as other member publications. She has been on PRBO's communications staff since 1985, having served as a volunteer field biologist since 1977. Claire is also a graphic designer, naturalist, and public radio speaker; she appears occasionally on Sedge Thomson's NPR program "West Coast Live" and has her own natural history show on KWMR, West Marin's community FM station.

Melissa Pitkin, Education and Outreach Director, (707) 781-2555 ext.307
Melissa holds an M.S. in Environmental Education from Southern Oregon University. Melissa has worked for PRBO Conservation Science since 1997 as both a field biologist and as the director of PRBO’s Education and Outreach Program. As director, Melissa develops and implements projects that focus on translating the science of bird and ecosystem conservation to a wide variety of audiences including adults and youth, partners, and special interest groups.

Libby Porzig, Terrestrial Program Biologist  

Glena Records, Membership and Events Manager, (707) 781-2555 ext.320

Matt Reiter, Avian and Wetland Quantitative Ecologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.351
Matt joined in the Wetland Division at PRBO in May 2009 and will be developing a shorebird monitoring program for California. He grew up in Massachusetts and received his B.A. from Boston College in 1998. He worked for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Pacific Island Ecosystem Research Center in Hawaii from 1998 – 2003 studying the impacts of avian malaria on Hawaii’s native birds and developing disease management strategies for Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. In 2003, Matt started graduate school at the University of Minnesota and spent his summers studying the nesting ecology of Eastern Prairie Population Canada geese within Wapusk National Park in northern Manitoba, Canada.  Particularly, he evaluated the potential impacts of increasing numbers of nesting lesser snow geese, fluctuations in arctic fox abundance, and cycles of lemming populations on Canada goose nest survival and spatial distribution.  Matt received both his M.S. (2006) and Ph.D. (2009) in Wildlife Conservation from the University of Minnesota.   

L. Jay Roberts, Avian Forest Ecologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.323
Jay came to PRBO in January 2009 to work in the Sierra Nevada program on a project aimed at monitoring management indicator species (MIS) for the USDA Forest Service.  His work up until then had been mainly in the forests of the Great Lakes region where he focused on using bird surveys and forest inventory tools to inform large-scale forest and land management.  Jay received his M.S. in 2002 from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (Environmental Science and Policy) and PhD in 2008 from Michigan State University (Fisheries and Wildlife).  His expertise is in landscape ecology, wildlife-habitat relationships, ecological modeling, and macroecology.  When not herding his summer field crews through the Sierra Nevada mountains, he lets his daughter Anja and wife Susan herd him through northern California.     

Dan Robinette, Marine Program Biologist
Dan Robinette manages PRBO's seabird program at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. He was born in Manhattan Beach, California, but grew up in the San Bernardino Mountains. He received his B.S. in marine biology and his M.S. in biology from California State University, Long Beach. His research interests include studying the population, breeding, dietary, and foraging ecology of seabirds in relation to local oceanographic conditions. Dan is currently living in Lompoc, California with his wife, Michelle, and his 3 children, Heather, Stephen, and Sophia.

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Jennifer Roth, Marine Program Biologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.305
Jennifer’s work at PRBO began with an internship on the Farallon Islands in 1995. She went on to spend several years studying seabirds on the Channel Islands. She left to pursue a Master’s at Humboldt State University in 2000. Her thesis work focused on Common Raven space use in western Marin County. She returned to participate in a study of Least Tern foraging ecology in San Francisco Bay in 2004. She is currently focusing on the relationships between seabirds and their prey and the use of seabirds as indicators of commercially important fish populations in the California Current System. 

Leo Salas, PhD., Informatics Division Sr. Scientist
Leo's expertise is in quantitative ecology, mammal ecology, and population dynamics. Prior to coming to PRBO, he conducted research on birds, mammals and tree communities. Leo received his Master of Science in 1995 and PhD in 2001, at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His Masters thesis focused on the ecology of tapirs and on a sustainable hunting model. His doctoral work was on the comparative ecology of three arboreal marsupials in New Guinea.  After completing his studies, Leo led the Latin American program of The Peregrine Fund, until his wife took him to Indonesian Borneo, where he worked with The Nature Conservancy conducting research on orangutans and surveying remote limestone karst areas.  He returned to New Guinea to work with The Wildlife Conservation Society developing a Masters-level curriculum for the University of Papua New Guinea and mentoring honors students. He joined PRBO in 2007, while based in Arcata, helping develop data management and visualization tools for partner organizations. Leo is currently developing statistical tools for PRBO's biologists and partners to analyze and visualize banding data. He now lives in Cotati with his wife Suzette, daughter Camille and son Tycho.
 

Rich Stallcup, PRBO Naturalist
Rich has been involved with California Field Ornithology for many years. In the early 1960's he (with CJ Ralph) discovered the amazing Spring and fall "vagrant" phenomenon on outer Point Reyes and other "migrant traps" along the coast. Rich was also a founder of PRBO and has served on it's Board of Directors, was president of Western Field Ornithologists, was regional editor for American Birds, was a member of the California Bird Records Committee and is a new grandpa. He has published many scientific papers, 4 books about birds and 60 "Focus" articles in PRBO's newsletter, the Observer. From 1976-1988, Rich was an owner and tour leader for WINGS birding tours and led many PRBO tours prior to that. In 2002 the American Birding Association presented Rich the Ludlow Griscom Award for outstanding contributions to American ornithology. Rich now serves as PRBO's Naturalist and works with the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Beachwatch Program (In 1998 he was designated "star of the sanctuary" for Cordell Bank). Each year he brings nature to hundreds of humans through his tours, trips, and trainings.

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Lynne E . Stenzel, Wetlands Program Biologist, (415) 868-0371 ext.303
Lynne Stenzel started as a intern at PRBO in 1971 and her mission was to identify the invertebrate prey of shorebirds, as well as their digested parts in shorebird pellets and droppings from Bolinas Lagoon. Since those early days, her work has included ongoing participation in the Wetlands research program; serving as the Observatory's volunteer librarian in the 70s; managing and analyzing the Beached Bird Project data from 1977 to 1988; and analyzing the data from studies of Clapper Rails, Black Rails, and Double-crested Cormorants on San Francisco Bay. From the beginning, her primary interest has been estuarine and shorebird research, particularly the population ecology and life history of Snowy Plovers in the west, monitoring shorebird populations, and restoration of wetland habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Diana Stralberg, Landscape Ecologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.325
Diana Stralberg has been with PRBO Conservation Science since September 2000.  She holds an M.S. in Resource Ecology and Management from the University of Michigan, and a B.S. in Mathematics/Applied Science from UCLA. Diana's primary areas of expertise include landscape ecology, spatial analysis, statistical modeling, and the intersections of these disciplines.  Her recent research pursuits have focused on modeling avian distributional responses to climate, vegetation, and land use patterns, at scales ranging from individual sites to the western U.S.  Her major ongoing projects include modeling the potential effects of climate change on California terrestrial bird distributions, as well as San Francisco Bay tidal marsh communities; and developing spatial models and conservation priorities for California migratory waterbirds. She has also developed habitat-based distribution models for the Northern Spotted Owl and passerine birds within California's central coast, and for Central Valley and foothill riparian and oak woodland species.  Diana has also been involved in the study of San Francisco Bay wetland ecosystems for over eight years, with an emphasis on avian responses to tidal marsh restoration. 

Laurie Talcott, Chief Financial Officer (707) 781-2555 ext.328
Laurie has brought valuable financial and administrative management expertise to PRBO based on her 30 years experience as a business and financial manager. In that time, she has been the Finance Director of or provided financial consulting to over 20 businesses, non-profits and other organizations including the California Democratic Party, Service Employees International Union, Frontline Campaigns, Santa Cruz Community Housing Corporation, El Pajaro Community Development Corporation, Community Printers, and Democratic Management Services.  Laurie has served on the City of Santa Cruz’s Economic Development Task Force and on numerous Boards including the Santa Cruz Community Credit Union. Laurie has a B.A. in Community Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Born in San Francisco, she lives in Santa Cruz, has earned a 2nd degree black belt in Aikido and enjoys gardening, hiking, art, and travel.

Jill Talmage, Contracts and Revenue Manager (707) 781-2555 ext.330
Jill joined PRBO in May 2005 working in both the finance and development departments.  She has since transitioned to a full-time finance member managing PRBO’s many government contracts and other revenue sources.  Before coming to PRBO, she spent two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Bulgaria working with rural NGOs on economic development and education projects.  She received her B.S. in Finance and International Business in 2001 from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

Jim Tietz, Marine Program Biologist
Jim is the fall biologist on the Farallon Islands where his primary interests are studying landbird migration. Other ongoing Farallon projects that he is involved with include research on white sharks, butterflies and dragonflies, and fur seals. Jim received a master’s degree in 2006 from Humboldt State University in wildlife biology studying the stopover ecology of Swainson’s Thrush along the Northern California coast. In addition, he has 14 years of experience banding birds and conducting surveys for landbirds throughout North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Jim has supervised and trained bird survey and banding crews at several locations in California and is a certified trainer for the North American Banding Council.

Nils Warnock, Ph.D,
Nils Warnock has moved to Davis for a new position as the leader of recovery and transport of wildlife after an oil spill, with the Oiled Wildlife Care Network. Nils and his family are missed at PRBO but we look forward to collaborating with him on future projects. His contact information can be found here: http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/owcn/contact.html

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Peter Warzybok, Marine Program Biologist
Pete Warzybok joined PRBO a volunteer seabird research assistant on the Farallon Islands in the spring of 2000, and was hired as a seabird biologist the following year. Prior to coming to PRBO, he worked on a waterfowl management project in surburban NY, and on seabird monitoring projects with USGS in Alaska and USFWS in Maine. Pete received his B.S. in biology from the State University of New York at Purchase in 1996, where his undergraduate research focused on geographic variation in the song of Brown-headed Cowbirds. His current research interests include diet, prey availability, and ecosystem variability and their effects on the breeding success and population dynamics of Farallon seabirds.

John A. Wiens, Chief Conservation Science Officer (707) 781-2555 ext.319
John Wiens grew up in Oklahoma as an avid birdwatcher. This led to degrees from the University of Oklahoma and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (M.S., Ph.D.). With this training under his belt, he joined the faculty of Oregon State University and, subsequently, the University of New Mexico and Colorado State University, where he was a Professor of Ecology and University Distinguished Professor. His work, which has emphasized landscape ecology and the ecology of birds, has led to over 200 scientific papers and 7 books.

John left academia in 2002 to join The Nature Conservancy as a Lead Scientist, with the challenge of putting years of classroom teaching and academic research into conservation practice in the real world. In 2008, he “downsized” by joining PRBO Conservation Science as Chief Conservation Science Officer. His aim is to help the science staff and leadership build on the long-standing work of PRBO on bird populations to address the broad issue of conservation in a rapidly changing world – “conservation futures.” Climate change is affecting the distributions of many species, economic globalization is altering local and regional land uses, and the increasing demand for the goods and services provided by natural systems is changing the ways in which people relate to nature. John is working with PRBO staff and partners to develop guidance for assessing how landscapes are likely to change and how management practices can help to mitigate or adjust to the changes.  [Click Here] to read essays on conservation by Dr. Wiens.

Eve Williams, Development Coordinator, (707) 781-2555 ext.356
Eve came to PRBO in August of 2008.  Before coming to PRBO she spent 14 years working for a non-profit cultural exchange program. Eve also has a background in financial services and banking.  As Development Coordinator at PRBO, Eve handles processing of new and renewing memberships, assists with event planning and maintains PRBO membership and donor databases.  A local girl, Eve has lived in Petaluma since she was 11.  She loves to travel with her family, read, spend time with friends and learn.  She is now studying Italian with her 17-year old son!

Missy Wipf, Conservation Educator (707) 781-2555 ext.302
Missy came to PRBO as an intern in 1999 after graduating with a BS in biology from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. She has worked as a field biologist in PRBO’s Terrestrial Ecology Division, managed the Palomarin Field Station, worked in Education and Outreach, and in Membership and Events. As a Conservation Educator in PRBO’s Education and Outreach Division, she is helping to bring bird science to diverse communities in the Bay Area and also leads monthly bird walks for the organization. 

Julian Wood, Terrestrial Program Biologist, (707) 781-2555 ext.313
Julian joined PRBO as an intern bander in 1996 and now works on riparian songbird monitoring projects in the Central Valley at the Cosumnes River Preserve, the Mokelumne River and two projects on the San Joaquin River. Julian has worked on PRBO projects in Montana, Chiapas, San Clemente Island, and Clear Creek in Redding, California.

Alicia Young, Terrestrial Program Biologist, (ayoung@prbo.org) 415.734.6458
Alicia graduated with a B.A. in Biology from Knox College in 2003 where she first discovered her passion for bird conservation at the Green Oaks Field Station.  Alicia joined PRBO in 2005 as an intern on the Clear Creek Floodway Restoration Songbird Monitoring Project and has since become the project leader.  In addition to her work in the northern Sacramento Valley, in 2009 Alicia branched into PRBO’s Avian Monitoring on Private Lands project, and is currently studying wetlands in the north-eastern mountains of California.