Photo of a passive acoustic monitor or "song meter." Scientists use these tools to study the distribution of seabirds without causing damage to sensitive habitat or disturbing the animals.
Emily (Emma) Kelsey
Emily (Emma) Kelsey is a wildlife biologist with focuses on marine conservation biology and seabird ecology.
Emma is interested in seabirds’ role in the marine ecosystem as upper trophic level predators and how they are influenced by natural and anthropogenic changes in the marine environment. Currently, she is involved in research investigating the potential interactions of offshore wind energy infrastructure and seabirds in the California Current System and around the Main Hawaiian Islands. Emma is also part of several of long-term California seabird studies used to inform conservation and management decisions.
EDUCATION
MSc, Ecology and Conservation Biology, San Jose State University 2014
BS, Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Puget Sound 2010
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Marine Conservation
- Seabird Ecology
- Renewable energy infrastructure, wildlife interactions
- Telemetry
Science and Products
Assessing Mammalian Predator Control to Protect Endangered Birds at Haleakalā National Park
USGS researchers assessed trends in non-native mammalian predator trapping methods designed to protect endangered ʻuaʻu and nēnē at Haleakalā National Park, Hawaiʻi.
Seabird Vulnerability Assessment for Renewable Energy Projects
In 2017, the Western Ecological Research Center's seabird studies team developed a framework for quantifying seabird species vulnerability to offshore wind energy infrastructure in the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf portion of the California Current region. This tool supports marine resource-use planning by identifying sites where seabirds are most vulnerable and predicts how different species...
Breeding Seabirds of the Main Hawaiian Islands
The seabird research team at the USGS Western Ecological Research Center is working with many partners to map the terrestrial and marine distributions of breeding seabirds of the main Hawaiian islands.
Ashy Storm-Petrel Range and Colony Attendance Behavior
Together with Federal and non-profit partners, WERC's Josh Adams and team are using cutting-edge technology to study the range and colony attendance patterns of the Ashy Storm-Petrel, an elusive seabird native to offshore rocks and islands along the California coast. Their research informs management and conservation for this threatened seabird species.
Seabird Health and Adaptive Management
Dr. Josh Adams and his science team at WERC study seabird health and support adaptive management by quantifying abundance patterns and behaviors associated with habitats at sea, where seabirds spend the overwhelming majority of their lives. Adams’s team also employs conservation science to support resource managers on land, where seabirds are obligated to nest. His group provides scientific...
Seabird Ecology and Marine Planning
Seabirds are Department of the Interior (DOI) Trust Species and are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Endangered Species Act. To support science-based decision capacity and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) among U.S. Government resource managers, Dr. Josh Adams and the WERC seabird team have partnered with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service...
Santa Cruz Field Station
Scientists at the Santa Cruz Field Station study sea otters and seabirds in their environment. The USGS Western Ecological Research Center has two research missions based in the Santa Cruz region:
WERC Song Meter for Ashy Storm-petrel Surveys
Photo of a passive acoustic monitor or "song meter." Scientists use these tools to study the distribution of seabirds without causing damage to sensitive habitat or disturbing the animals.
Science and Products
Assessing Mammalian Predator Control to Protect Endangered Birds at Haleakalā National Park
USGS researchers assessed trends in non-native mammalian predator trapping methods designed to protect endangered ʻuaʻu and nēnē at Haleakalā National Park, Hawaiʻi.
Seabird Vulnerability Assessment for Renewable Energy Projects
In 2017, the Western Ecological Research Center's seabird studies team developed a framework for quantifying seabird species vulnerability to offshore wind energy infrastructure in the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf portion of the California Current region. This tool supports marine resource-use planning by identifying sites where seabirds are most vulnerable and predicts how different species...
Breeding Seabirds of the Main Hawaiian Islands
The seabird research team at the USGS Western Ecological Research Center is working with many partners to map the terrestrial and marine distributions of breeding seabirds of the main Hawaiian islands.
Ashy Storm-Petrel Range and Colony Attendance Behavior
Together with Federal and non-profit partners, WERC's Josh Adams and team are using cutting-edge technology to study the range and colony attendance patterns of the Ashy Storm-Petrel, an elusive seabird native to offshore rocks and islands along the California coast. Their research informs management and conservation for this threatened seabird species.
Seabird Health and Adaptive Management
Dr. Josh Adams and his science team at WERC study seabird health and support adaptive management by quantifying abundance patterns and behaviors associated with habitats at sea, where seabirds spend the overwhelming majority of their lives. Adams’s team also employs conservation science to support resource managers on land, where seabirds are obligated to nest. His group provides scientific...
Seabird Ecology and Marine Planning
Seabirds are Department of the Interior (DOI) Trust Species and are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Endangered Species Act. To support science-based decision capacity and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) among U.S. Government resource managers, Dr. Josh Adams and the WERC seabird team have partnered with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service...
Santa Cruz Field Station
Scientists at the Santa Cruz Field Station study sea otters and seabirds in their environment. The USGS Western Ecological Research Center has two research missions based in the Santa Cruz region:
WERC Song Meter for Ashy Storm-petrel Surveys
Photo of a passive acoustic monitor or "song meter." Scientists use these tools to study the distribution of seabirds without causing damage to sensitive habitat or disturbing the animals.
Photo of a passive acoustic monitor or "song meter." Scientists use these tools to study the distribution of seabirds without causing damage to sensitive habitat or disturbing the animals.