Terry Chesser, Ph.D. (Former Employee)

The Red Knot ( Calidris canutus roselaari) is long-distance migrant in the Pacific-Americas Flyway. The subspecies relies on a small number of stopover sites between Mexico and Alaska during migration. Extreme site fidelity and small population size make it vulnerable to environmental impacts and the effects of climate change.

The collection of North American birds housed in the National Museum of Natural History is one of outstanding quality. It totals about 370,000 specimens, including approximately 222,000 skins, 31,000 skeletons, 13,000 fluid-preserved, and about 26,500 egg sets and nests. Of the 3,949 specimens in the type collection, 2,120 specimens are holotypes of North American taxa. A major portion of the...

The Challenge: The Akeke’e (Loxops caeruleirostris) and the Akikiki (Oreomystis bairdi), two species of Hawaiian honeycreeper, are critically endangered bird species endemic to high elevation ohia forests on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Both species have suffered severe population declines and range contractions in recent decades. Akeke’e are currently thought to number ca. 950 wild individuals...

The Challenge: The Canada Goose Branta canadensis was historically a highly migratory species. However, this species has recently established resident populations in urban, suburban, and agricultural areas in many parts of the U.S., including the Chesapeake Bay region. The enormous success of these populations has led to consideration of this species as a nuisance, largely due to its excessive...

The Challenge: The Federal Aviation Administration has long relied on the expertise provided by the Smithsonian Feather Identification Lab for identification of bird remains recovered from bird-aircraft (birdstrike) collisions. Recently, these identifications are increasingly reliant on data from mitochondrial DNA. While generally successful in delimiting species, mitochondrial DNA is not...

The Challenge: Accurate taxonomic delineation of species and subspecies provides the biological and legal foundation for effective conservation action, whether by domestic resource management agencies or by other countries throughout the hemisphere that may be involved through international treaties or common conservation threats. Although birds are among the most well-known groups of organisms...

The Challenge: The Channel Islands, sometimes called “The Galapagos of North America,” consist of 8 islands off the coast of southern California. The islands are managed by a variety of agencies, including the National Park Service, the Nature Conservancy, and the US Navy, as well as private owners, and they have had a wide variety of uses through time, from occupancy by Native American hunter...

The Challenge: Federal and state government agencies, NGOs, scientists, and authors of field guides and other literature need a standardized classification of birds to provide the taxonomic and nomenclatural foundation for bird research, conservation, and education in North America. These public agencies, private individuals, and organizations rely on the latest developments in systematics...