THE LINNAEAN SOCIETY OF NEW YORK SPEAKERS PROGRAM
Tuesday, March 23, 2010, 7:30 p.m.
The American Museum of Natural History, Linder Theater
Speaker: Shaibal Mitra, Assistant Professor of Biology, College of Staten
Island of the City University of New York
Subject: Recent Changes in Status and Distribution of New York State Birds:
Detection vs. Population Expansion and Contraction
The natural communities of the New York Metro area have been studied longer and
more intensively than all but a few on the planet, and this area's avifauna has
received a disproportionate share of this prolonged and expert attention. Even
so, considerable uncertainty remains concerning the distribution and abundance
of many bird species in this area. A series of case studies will be used to
illustrate these gaps in our understanding of New York's avifauna, especially
the difficulties involved in distinguishing between historical trends in
detection and identification vs. shifts in actual distribution and abundance,
arising from population expansion or contraction. Methods for distinguishing
detection issues from actual changes in status will be described and the value
of data collected via citizen science initiatives in this regard will be
emphasized. Finally, the lessons drawn from this well known faunal group in
this closely studied geographical region will be discussed in relation to the
urgent challenges of monitoring and conserving biodiversity in more general
contexts.
>From 1996 to 2000 Shaibal Mitra operated a major bird- banding station at the
>Fire Island Lighthouse. He is probably best known to us as a birder and the
>Editor of The Kingbird. His research focuses on avian ecology, evolution, and
>conservation.
The meeting is open to the public, without charge. Please join us
for what promises to be a very exciting talk. Enter the Museum at West 77th
Street. If you would like to meet Dr. Mitra prior to the talk, join us at
Pappardella's Restaurant, 75th Street and Columbus Avenue at 6 p.m. The
reservation will be in the name of Alice.
Alice Deutsch, Vice President
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