BOARD OF DIRECTORS NOMINATIONS
2010 Nominations Committee: Pat Kennedy (Chair), Tom Gardali, Fritz Knopf, and Matthias Leu.
The following 6 people (in alphabetical order) have agreed to be nominated for the Cooper Ornithological Society (COS) Board of Directors to serve from 2011 to 2014.
Anne Bartuszevige is the Conservation Science Director at the Playa Lakes Joint Venture (PLJV), a nonprofit whose mission is “to conserve playas, other wetlands and associated landscapes through partnerships for the benefit of birds, other wildlife and people.” Anne completed her undergraduate degree at Hope College, a master's degree at Illinois State University, and a Ph.D. at Miami University in Ohio. Prior to joining the PLJV, Anne was a post-doctoral researcher at Oregon State University (under the supervision of current COS board member Patricia Kennedy). Anne's early interest in avian ecology was piqued by her undergraduate research project on seed dispersal. However, her interests in avian ecology are broad, and she has studied organochlorine pesticide contamination in grassland passerines, how birds may facilitate the landscape-scale invasion of an exotic plant, and changes in site occupancy of three species of raptors in a privately owned prairie whose primary land use was cattle ranching. It was this last project, her post-doc research, that introduced Anne to the importance and value of conservation in working landscapes. As the Conservation Science Director at the PLJV, Anne is responsible for biological planning for birds in the southern short- and mixed-grass prairie region. She works with members of the various continental bird-conservation plans (North American Waterfowl Management Plan, Partners in Flight, Shorebird Conservation for the Americas, and Waterbird Conservation Plan). In addition, she is responsible for understanding the major scientific issues of concern in the southern Great Plains landscape such as effects of the Conservation Reserve Program on grassland birds, wind-energy development, and climate change, among others. This understanding of the scientific underpinnings of major conservation issues are then used to help develop decision-support systems for landscape-scale biological planning. Anne is also collaborating with a variety of scientists at various institutions to understand the dynamics of playa wetlands, which bear heavily on water-dependent birds in the southern Great Plains.
Anne first joined the Cooper Ornithological Society (COS) during her post-doc. She has since served on the Painton Award Committee and has served as a reviewer for the Journal of Raptor Research. Anne is eager to become more involved with the COS and thinks this is a great time to begin. The COS, like many professional societies, is going through a period of change that may be difficult but need not be scary. This is an opportunity to evaluate effectiveness of programs, re-dedicate to important objectives, and engage new target audiences for membership. For example, there are many scientists employed in what are considered nontraditional scientific careers who can benefit greatly from society membership. Anne would like to work to engage this sector of the ornithological community and determine how the COS could benefit them in their careers. Anne is also interested in working with the broader ornithological community on bringing scientific information to the applied level to create better tools for making conservation decisions.
Anna Chalfoun is a Research Scientist with the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and Department of Zoology and Physiology at the University of Wyoming. Anna has been a COS member since beginning her master's research in 1997 with Frank Thompson at the University of MissouriColumbia, research that focused on avian nest predators and habitat fragmentation. She received her Ph.D. in 2006 from the University of Montana under the mentorship of Thomas Martin, past president of the COS. Her doctoral work focused on understanding patterns of avian habitat selection at multiple spatial scales, nest predation, and parental care behaviors. Anna began her position at the University of Wyoming in 2008 following post-doctoral study with Craig Benkman. Current work in her lab centers on investigations of wildlife—habitat relationships and applied ecological questions including the effects of energy development, the epidemic of pine beetles in lodgepole pine forests of the western U.S., road networks, and climate change on birds and other wildlife. She has taught undergraduate and graduatelevel seminars in conservation biology and habitat ecology. Anna recently served on the Student Awards Committee at the joint AOU/COS/SCO conference in San Diego, where she also organized a symposium focused on understanding avian habitat relationships. The symposium resulted in an invitation to write a Perspectives paper for the Auk, and she currently has a paper in press in the Condor. She looks forward to continued participation in the Cooper Ornithological Society and would bring an enthusiasm for and dedication toward ornithological research, conservation, education, service, and rejuvenating membership and involvement in the ornithological societies.
Victoria J. Dreitz is a research scientist in the Avian Research Program of the Colorado Division of Wildlife in Fort Collins, Colorado. She holds a B. S. degree in Biological Sciences from Colorado State University and a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Miami-Florida. Her research focuses on understanding the population dynamics, particularly survival of young birds, and regulation of avifauna in relation to natural and anthropogenic changes in the environment, including habitat characteristics and predator-prey interactions. While as a post-doc with Fritz Knopf at the U.S. Geological Survey and Colorado Natural Heritage Program, Vicky began her research on grassland birds, specifically the Mountain Plover, which she continues to focus on today. For approximately the last 10 years her research has involved collaboration with private landowners, mainly agricultural producers and ranchers in the Great Plains region of the U.S. The Department of Interior recognized this collaboration by awarding the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Colorado Farm Bureau its Conservation Service Award in 2005. Vicky has authored or co-authored >35 peer-reviewed research articles in diverse array of journals from Journal of Field Ornithology to Journal of Applied Statistics, articles on a variety of bird-related topics including development of novel field and analytical methods to estimate demographic parameters, descriptions of methods to monitor populations of special concern, and approaches to working with private landowners to enhance efforts to conserve species. She is also a faculty affiliate in the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology at Colorado State University, where she mentors and co-advises undergraduate and graduate students. Vicky has been a member of the Cooper Ornithological Society for more than 10 years and, having obtained her Ph.D. within the past decade, will provide the society a perspective from a young professional. She is enthusiastic about having an opportunity to serve on the COS board and wants to ensure that COS continues to lead the way in transferring information on the conservation and management of avian populations.
Scott Sillett is a Research Wildlife Biologist at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC. He completed his B. A. at the University of Arizona, joined the COS while a master's student with J. V. Remsen at Louisiana State University, earned his Ph.D. with Richard Holmes at Dartmouth College, and was a post-doc with James Nichols at the U.S. Geological Survey's Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Scott has published about 35 papers. His research focuses on population regulation and life history of migratory passerines and the ecology of landbirds on California's Channel Islands. He co-advises graduate students at Colorado State University, Cornell University, the University of Nebraska, and the University of Vermont. Scott regularly attends COS and other ornithological meetings. He served on the Student Awards committees of the COS and AOU from 2002 to 2007. Scott is convinced that budget limitations and declining membership place a strong imperative on the integration of the North American ornithological societies and their journals. The COS should and can play a leadership role in this exciting, transformative process. Scott believes that while a primary advantage of COS membership will continue to be access to an excellent scientific journal, additional benefits will be needed to attract and retain new members. Therefore, the COS must work with the other ornithological societies to increase funding opportunities for their members, particularly students and young professionals, to foster enhanced interactions with policy makers and the public and to develop common standards for the curation and management of ornithological datasets.
Wayne Thogmartin is a quantitative avian ecologist (research statistician [biology]) with the U.S. Geological Survey's Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He holds a B.A. in Ecology/Behavior/Evolution from the University of California, San Diego, an M.S. in Zoology from the University of Arkansas, and a Ph.D. in Zoology from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. He has published papers on a wide array of ecological issues, but his primary research focus has been conservation design, primarily improving the effectiveness of conservation through the modeling and mapping of bird abundance over large spatial scales. Among his >40 technical papers and book chapters are four articles in the Condor and three in the Auk. Wayne is actively involved in bridging the gap between research and management, serving on the Science Committee of Partners in Flight, the technical board for the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Joint Venture, and working groups for the Cerulean Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Henslow's Sparrow, and American Woodcock. Wayne has previously served the COS by co-organizing the 74th meeting in La Crosse and serving as a manuscript reviewer. Election to the Board would allow him to increase his service to the COS and other ornithological societies. Relevant experience includes co-organizing the 26th meeting of the Waterbird Society and the 3rd International Environmetrics Society North American Regional Meeting, and serving as chair of the Spatial Technology and Telemetry Working Group and as a member of the board of the Biometrics Working Group of the Wildlife Society.
Michael Wunder is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Colorado, Denver. He teaches courses in biostatistics and biogeography and studies the ecology of migratory birds. He received his B. A. degree in Biology from the University of Colorado, Boulder, before working as a field zoologist for the Colorado Division of Wildlife, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Colorado Natural Heritage Program for a collective decade or so. He received his Ph.D. in Ecology from Colorado State University, where he studied Mountain Plovers under the guidance of Fritz Knopf and Barry Noon. He is a life member of the Cooper Ornithological Society and has refereed for and published in the Condor, Auk, Journal of Field Ornithology, Ornithological Monographs, and Wilson Journal of Ornithology. He currently serves as associate editor for the Journal of Animal Ecology and has served on the board of the Colorado chapter of the Wildlife Society. Mike's perspectives on the value of avian research and on the role of ornithological societies have been shaped by his experiences in both academic and applied settings. As a member of the Board of Directors, he would work to ensure that the COS remains among the world's leading ornithological societies by continuing to facilitate broad dissemination and archiving of high-quality research results through sponsorship of student support, dynamic annual meetings, and providing a high-quality publication outlet.
