#20: Dr. Yiwei Wang - Bird Observatories, Plovers, and Pumas, Oh My!

My guest in this episode is Dr. Yiwei Wang.

Yiwei is the Executive Director at the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory, or SFBBO for short (find SFBBO on FB and IG). Yiwei grew up in the South Bay (San Francisco Bay Area) and has called that area home for most of her life. She attended Cornell University and double majored in Biology and Psychology. Returning to the west coast, she worked for a variety of organizations that focused on birds and mammals, including an internship with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory and a season as a field technician in SFBBO's Snowy Plover Program. ​She then attended UC Santa Cruz and received her PhD in Environmental Studies. Her dissertation focused on learning how human development impacts mountain lions and their relationships with other smaller carnivores.

In this episode we discuss the mission and projects of SFBBO, and what it means to be a “bird observatory”. Yiwei reveals some of the inner workings of such an organization, including what it is like to run an environmental organization, SFBBO’s volunteer program, how they engage with science advisors, some new and future projects, and a deep dive into the bird banding operation.

Since we jump into the topic of bird banding, a little background. Bird banding is the process of collecting detailed scientific measurements of individual birds by temporarily capturing birds using nearly invisible mist nets. These measurements are used to create datasets that track bird populations, morphologies, migration patterns, and more. Additionally, a small band is added to the leg of the bird to facilitate future tracking. Doing this in a way that is safe for the birds and scientifically rigorous is a fascinating subject, and requires thorough training.

We also discuss Yiwei’s and SFBBO’s commitment to diversity, inclusivity, and equity, and how they embody it.

Additionally, we get to hear about some of Yiwei’s other interesting projects, including her PhD project documenting the energetics of mountain lions around human habitation, and her eye opening experiences in Australia that redirected her career path to the one she is on today.

Find Yiwei on Twitter. And be sure to follow SFBBO - they have many 40th anniversary events planned!

LINKS
Center for Excellence in Nonprofits
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Marshmallow Minds
National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to SFBBO, Stanford University, San Jose State University, Santa Clara University, and West Valley College to create a research coordination network include Coyote Creek and Jasper Ridge Field Stations
Santa Cruz Puma Project
South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project

Books and More
Birdy Hour Talks - SFBBO series
Invisible Women - Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez - Yiwei recommends this book to give perspective about how society inherently biases against women
Salt Marsh Harvest Mice
Ridgway's Rail
Snowy Plover