The seabirds you did not know you love

There are 58 bird species living in Canadian oceans, 95% of them are in trouble worldwide, furthermore, we don't really understand how 62% of Canadian seabirds are doing due to unknown population trends.  In this episode, you will discover the Seabirds you did not know you love, the reasons for their decrease and what you can do to help them with your everyday choices. Dr. Sarah Gutowsky will take us on a discovery journey that starts with the career path of a talented, unconventional, and inspiring biologist to the conservation and threats facing the enigmatic seabirds that defined her journey.

Please send us your voice memo with any bird question to -> [email protected]
Alternatively, call  519-586-3531, extension 128 and leave a voice mail!

Continue your journey by reading the very short seabird section of the State of Canada’s Birds Report 2019 to find out reasons for their decline and ways to help these bird species.

Dr. Sarah Gutowsky is a Research Adjunct and Instructor in Biology at Dalhousie University and a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Acadia University. She has been working in the field of Ornithology for 15 years, studying an array of species and ecosystems. From albatrosses and murrelets in the North Pacific to woodcocks and gulls in Nova Scotia, penguins in the sub-Antarctic to seabirds in the Arctic, all of her research projects have found a way to tackle conservation issues threatening birds all over the planet, on land or at sea. If she had to pick a specialty, she might say studying the movements of seabirds in their marine environment. She loves to share her passion for birds, and finds all sorts of ways to do so, including teaching in the academic and public realms but also guiding tourists in the Polar Regions. Her current research focus is on studying the drivers of regional trends in Common eiders on the east coast, supported through the Mitacs Accelerate Program in partnership with Ducks Unlimited Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada. 

Andrea Gress studied Renewable Resource Management at the University of Saskatchewan. She pivoted towards birds, after an internship in South Africa. Upon returning, she worked with Piping Plovers in Saskatchewan and now coordinates the Ontario Piping Plover Conservation Program for Birds Canada. Follow her work at @ontarioplovers

Andrés Jiménez is a Costa Rican wildlife biologist with a keen interest in snakes, frogs, birds and how human relationships are interconnected with the living world. He studied Tropical Biology in Costa Rica and has a Masters in Environmental Problem Solving from York University. He is Birds Canada's Urban Program Coordinator and you can follow him at @andresjimo

Beginner Seabirder Reading List*:

•  Eye of the Albatross - Carl Safina (also try Song for the Blue Ocean by the same author)
• The Seabird's Cry: The Lives and Loves of the Planet's Great Ocean Voyagers - Adam Nicolson
• Far from Land: The Mysterious Lives of Seabirds - Michael Brooke
• Great Auk Islands: A Field Biologist in the Arctic - Tim Birkhead
• The Puffin - Mike Harris and Sarah Wanless
• The Herring Gull's World: A Study of the Social Behaviour of Birds - Niko Tinbergen
• The Island - R.M. Lockley
• Seabirds Beyond the Mountain Crest - Richard J. Cuthbert
• Rat Island: Predators in Paradise and the World's Greatest Wildlife Rescue - William Stolzenburg
• Holy Mōlī: Albatross and Other Ancestors - Hob Osterlund

 * list based on recommendations from Sarah and her international network of seabird biologist peers

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