Diann Prosser, Ph.D.

While nest attentiveness plays a critical role in the reproductive success of avian species, little nest attentiveness data with high temporal resolution is available for many species. However, improvements in both video monitoring and temperature logging devices present an opportunity to improve our understanding of this aspect of avian behavior...

Population monitoring of nesting waterbirds often involves frequent entries into the colony, but alternative methods such as local remotely sensed thermal imaging may help reduce disturbance while providing a cost-effective way to survey breeding populations. Such an approach can have high initial costs, however, which may have reduced the number...

Beaches and islands provide economic value to humans and critical habitat for breeding and foraging wildlife. These ecosystems, however, are being severely impacted by global climate change and sea level rise through increased erosion and frequency of inundation. The case study presented here aimed to document island loss in the Chesapeake Bay and...

With dramatic declines in waterbird populations around the globe, wildlife managers have taken great care to minimize disturbance to breeding waterbird colonies. However, sometimes disturbance cannot be avoided and other actions must be considered. During the 2017 breeding season, a colony of Sterna hirundo (Common terns) were deterred from a...

Estimating the distribution and abundance of wildlife is an essential task in species conservation, wildlife management and habitat prioritization. Although a host of methods and tools have been proposed to accomplish this undertaking, several challenges remain in accurately forecasting occurrence and abundance for highly mobile species....