Speaker: Ken Meyer, Senior Research Ecologist & Executive Director for ARCI - Avian Research & Conservation Institute
ARCI’s ongoing research on three fascinating species of Sanibel’s birds – the Reddish Egret, Mangrove Cuckoo, and Swallow-tailed Kite – helps illustrate Florida’s biological richness and the delicate, finely tuned ecological interplay of its diverse plants and animals. Illuminating data from direct observations, field surveys, and sophisticated tracking technologies point to the threats faced by these three spectacular birds of conservation concern. ARCI’s results reinforce the need for more sustainable land-use policies and wildlife management, and for insightful research that will teach us how to counter losses of habitat to development, as well as to sea-level rise and other imposing effects of climate change.
About the Speaker:
Ken Meyer has studied the behavior and ecology of rare and imperiled birds since pursuing his PhD, which he received from the University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill in 1987. His professional interest always has been to generate reliable data that informs management and conservation action, a quest that led to the formation of the nonprofit Avian Research and Conservation Institute (ARCI) in 1997, where he serves as Executive Director and Senior Research Ecologist. Studies by Meyer and his team, co-led by Gina Kent (now 20 years with ARCI), has helped address the conservation needs of 16 species of birds of critical concern in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. For these efforts, ARCI has received two Research Awards from Partners in Flight and a National Wildlife Stewardship Award from the Sustainable Forestry Initiative for cooperative studies that have advanced the conservation of Swallow-tailed Kites.