Speaker's Bureau

Smithsonian ornithologists are available to give the following list of talks, ordered by speaker's last name.

A speaker's fee of $100 is suggested, but not required.

Production of Field Guides and Good Museum Research

Speaker: John Anderton
Description: Draws on projects of south Asia and New Guinea (the former just published). Will touch on all sorts of issues from taxonomy, sytematics, museum fraud, field work, photography and its limitations, and will be lavishly illustrated.
Contact information: catbirdseat@att.net
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about John Anderton

NMNH Bird collection and different aspects of collection care

Speaker: Claudia Angle
Contact information: anglec@si.edu
Will travel to: MD, VA or DC
Time restrictions: weekdays best
more about Claudia Angle

Life on Feathers

Speaker: Isabelle Bisson
Description: A closer look at avian plumage.
Contact information: bissoni@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Isabelle Bisson

Birds of the Lost World: Tales of Avian Surveys in Guyana

Speaker: Mike Braun
Contact information: braun@lab.si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Mike Braun

Early Bird: A Project to Discover the Avian Tree of Life

Speaker: Mike Braun
Contact information: braun@lab.si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Mike Braun

Evolving Species and Species Concepts (or why the AOU just won't leave your life list alone)

Speaker: Mike Braun
Contact information: braun@lab.si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Mike Braun

Anthropology Feather Identification

Speaker: Carla Dove
Contact information: dovec@si.edu
Will travel to: MD, VA or DC
Time restrictions: none
more about Carla Dove

Bird Strikes

Speaker: Carla Dove
Contact information: dovec@si.edu
Will travel to: MD, VA or DC
Time restrictions: none
more about Carla Dove

Feather Identification

Speaker: Carla Dove
Contact information: dovec@si.edu
Will travel to: MD, VA or DC
Time restrictions: none
more about Carla Dove

DNA from the Past: Applying Ancient DNA in Evolutionary and Conservation Biology

Speaker: Robert Fleischer
Contact information: fleischr@si.edu
Will travel to: couple of hours by car in the DC area, but also would be willing to go further out of state if travel costs are covered.
Time restrictions: none
more about Robert Fleischer

The Lost Birds: Evolution, Extinction and Conservation of Hawaiian Birds

Who's Your Daddy?: Extra-pair Mating in Birds - How We Document It and Why They Do It

Bird from the Dark Lagoon: Our Own Coastal Plain Swamp Sparrow

Speaker: Russell Greenberg
Contact information: greenbergr@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Russell Greenberg

Fear and Loathing in Birds: Studies of Neophobia in Warblers, Sparrows, and Ducks

Speaker: Russell Greenberg
Contact information: greenbergr@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Russell Greenberg

Shade Grown Coffee: The Migratory Bird Connection

Speaker: Russell Greenberg
Contact information: greenbergr@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Russell Greenberg

Overview of the fossil record of Hawaiian birds

Speaker: Helen James
Contact information: jamesh@si.edu
Will travel to: not too far from DC/Arlington
Time restrictions: Evenings and weekends
more about Helen James

The paleoecology of endangered Hawaiian birds

Speaker: Helen James
Contact information: jamesh@si.edu
Will travel to: not too far from DC/Arlington
Time restrictions: Evenings and weekends
more about Helen James

Chivalry is Dead in Migratory Birds: Evidence from the Non-breeding Period

Speaker: Pete Marra
Description: Migration is one of the most spectacular behaviors we see in nature yet it also brings enormous complexity to our understanding of the biology of these fascinating animals. This talk describes how the periods of the annual cycle for migratory birds are are inextricably linked and that to understand events on breeding areas one must understand what's happening on non-breeding areas in the tropics.
Contact information: marrap@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Pete Marra

Science in the Urban Jungle

Speaker: Pete Marra
Description: The most serious threat facing animal populations in North America today is habitat destruction. Rampant urbanization in the eastern United States has caused declines or regional disappearance in many migratory songbird populations. Ironically, we know little about bird populations remaining in urban centers. Neighborhood Nestwatch addresses this problem by using a citizen science approach not just to gather important scientific data on birds, but also to give people a closer glimpse of wildlife found in their own backyard. Hear about all of exciting findings on birds liveng in our urban midst.
Contact information: marrap@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Pete Marra

The Migratory Connectivity of Birds

Speaker: Pete Marra
Description: Migratory birds spend different parts of the annual cycle in geographically disparate places. The conditions and pressures at winter locations are likely to affect individuals during the breeding season, and vice versa. This simple fact has important implications for the biology and conservation of migratory birds. This talk will introduce you to some of the cutting-edge approaches to connecting these dots as well as some of the biological insights this information is providing.
Contact information: marrap@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Pete Marra

The State of the Chesapeake Bay Bird Community

Speaker: Pete Marra
Description: The Chesapeake Bay is our nation's largest estuary, and its surrounding marshes have been polluted, over-fished, burned and developed. Learn how all of these anthropogenic impacts have influenced the marvelous birds that make the Chesapeake their home.
Contact information: marrap@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Pete Marra

West Nile Virus - the Silent Killer

Speaker: Pete Marra
Description: Since 1999, West Nile has spread with rage across the US leaving in its path hundreds of dead people and perhaps millions of dead birds. Discover some of the fascinating history and biology underlying the movement of this fascinating, but scary invasive virus.
Contact information: marrap@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Pete Marra

Baltimore Oriole

Speaker: Kevin Omland
Description: What they illustrate about general evolutionary ideas including speciation, mate choice and sexual dimorphism, and the evolution of migration.
Contact information: omland@UMBC.EDU
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Kevin Omland

Birds and Species Concepts, Barcoding, and Evolutionary Trees

Speaker: Kevin Omland
Contact information: omland@UMBC.EDU
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Kevin Omland

Bird of the Mid-Atlantic Region

Speaker: John Rappole
Contact information: jrappole@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about John Rappole

Birds of the Sub-Himalayan Region of Myanmar (Burma)

Speaker: John Rappole
Contact information: jrappole@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about John Rappole

Mid-Atlantic Birds in the Neotropics

Speaker: John Rappole
Contact information: jrappole@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about John Rappole

Migratory Birds and West Nile Virus

Speaker: John Rappole
Contact information: jrappole@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about John Rappole

Neighborhood Nestwatch

Speaker: Bob Reitsma
Contact information: reitsmar@si.edu
Will travel to: DC Metro Area
Time restrictions: none
more about Bob Reitsma

"Bird Friendly" Coffee

Speaker: Robert Rice
Description: The socioeconomic side of shade coffee--in terms of what it means to a coffee grower.
Contact information: ricer@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Robert Rice

Agroforesty Management Issues Related to Biodiversity

Speaker: Robert Rice
Contact information: ricer@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Robert Rice

Tropical Agricultural Landscapes

Speaker: Robert Rice
Contact information: ricer@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Robert Rice

Black-throated Blue Warbler Ecology: 20 Years of Research from Hubbard Brook

Speaker: Scott Sillett
Contact information: silletts@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Scott Sillett

Endemic Songbirds of the California Channel Islands

Speaker: Scott Sillett
Contact information: silletts@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Scott Sillett

Impacts of the El Niño Cycle on Migratory Birds

Speaker: Scott Sillett
Contact information: silletts@si.edu
Will travel to: no restrictions
Time restrictions: none
more about Scott Sillett