USGS Science at The Waterbird Society and Atlantic Marine Bird Cooperative Meeting 2023

By Ecosystems Mission Area September 29, 2023

USGS bird biologists share results from their latest research at the Atlantic Marine Bird Cooperative and Waterbird Society Annual Meeting, October 9-13, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Studies are focused on developing a better understanding of bird migration and movement, and how birds use available habitat, including coastal and freshwater wetlands and agricultural lands.

More USGS Research on Birds

Lesser Scaup — A male lesser scaup at the USGS Eastern Ecological Science Center in Maryland. This bird was not part of this new research. Photograph taken in 2017. Credit: Jeffrey Sullivan, USGS.

Scientists from five USGS Ecosystems Science Centers and three Fish and Wildlife Cooperative Research Units will present new findings important for advancing waterbird conservation efforts. Their work includes studies of waterfowl, waterbirds, shorebirds, and seabirds, and addresses potential threats to these birds from disease such as highly pathogenic avian influenza, contamination with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and potential collision risks to seabirds from future offshore wind energy development along the Atlantic coast.

The Waterbird Society 2023 Full Program includes research abstracts, and is available from the Waterbird Society’s Annual Meeting website: The Waterbird Society Meeting 2023 (dryfta.com)

USGS scientists contributing research abstracts and presentations include James E Lyons, Ph.D., Diann Prosser, Ph.D., Michael Runge, Ph.D., Evan Grant, Ph.D. and Jeffrey Spendelow, Ph.D. at the Eastern Ecological Science Center; Laurie Hall and Susan De La Cruz at the Western Ecological Science Center; Christine Custer at the Upper Midwest Ecological Science Center; Stephanie Romañach, Ph.D. at the Wetland and Aquatic Research Center; Rose J. Swift, PhD at the Northern Prairie Research Center; Drew N. Fowler, PhD and Sammy King, PhD at the Louisiana Fish & Wildlife Cooperative Research Unit; Abby Powell, PhD at the Florida Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, and Yvan Satgé, at the South Carolina Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit.