People Type: Staff

From my first two-year stint at the (then) Manomet Bird Observatory in the 1970’s, I was immensely comfortable with the wide range of scientific work we do and the emphasis on conservation biology. Over the years, our long-term data and the ecological studies they inform have led to an ideal combination of research, conservation science, and education at all levels. Science is not a goal in itself, but at Manomet, it leads to communicating our results directly through teaching, publication, and the current media. This philosophy is supported by unified staff, boards, and members, so “Why not Manomet?”

Manomet is a science-based organization that allows us to engage any audience with the facts about conservation biology. Our bird research uses changes in migration ecology to showcase birds as sensitive indicators of environmental change that alert us to both local and international conservation and climate change effects. We communicate these concepts through direct programs at the banding lab, lectures, publications, web sites and especially through providing curriculum and field techniques to teachers at middle and high school levels. A sustainable world requires that people understand the results of our actions, good and bad, plus everyone appreciates birds.

An initial Honours B.Sc. in Zoology from the University of Wales was supplemented by graduate courses in ecology from Boston University. Training in ornithology and field biology at Bird Observatories and the British Trust for Ornithology was supplemented in the USA by banding and census techniques and practical teaching at the undergraduate level at Manomet. Fieldwork from the Arctic to the New World tropics, Europe and Africa has broadened all aspects of my background.

Birds and the places they take you to, plus the people you meet along the way provide an endless fascination and endless learning opportunities. I still have the privilege of working with dedicated banders and interns, being directly involved in teaching, and continuing to learn about and appreciate birds.

As Director of Landbird Conservation, Evan contributes to Manomet’s educational output and ornithological research goals.

Evan began his environmental education career in High School as a counselor for Mass Audubon summer camps. At Earlham College, he led tours of the campus natural history museum and studied reptiles and birds. Evan came to Manomet in 2008 and has worked off-and-on as a scientist and educator with the organization ever since. He completed an M.S. thesis on Wood Thrushes at UMass Amherst in 2014.

Whether it was catching frogs and salamanders where he grew up in Kingston, Massachusetts, or wandering through the woods as a boy scout, Evan has always been most comfortable outside. When he isn’t birding or fishing, he enjoys painting, playing drums, and daydreaming about the Everglades (his favorite National Park).

Why Manomet?

Manomet is an organization that places a heavy emphasis on relevant ornithological research and education. I love being able to play an active role in the science, while also delivering the lessons we’ve learned to the public. Everyone at the organization plays a role in facilitating a connection to nature, and I consider myself incredibly fortunate in that I get to see the connection firsthand, whether it’s at a bird banding demonstration, a nature walk, or a lecture on bird identification.

It is incredibly important to Marissa that her research addresses real-world problems and is applied to help create solutions to those problems. Much of her research focuses on restoring ecosystem productivity and strengthening and diversifying fisheries resources through diverse fishing industry partnerships, community engagement, and knowledge co-production. She also works to advance adaptive fisheries co-management and elevate the importance of fishing industry participation in decision-making processes.

Marissa received a Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology from Northeastern University in 2017, and an M.Sc. in Marine Biology from the University of Maine in 2011. She has studied marine ecology and fisheries in the Gulf of Maine for two decades. Much of her life has also revolved around working as a commercial fisher. She grew up on her father’s lobster boat and spent much of her young adult life lobstering. As a fisheries scientist, she has relied heavily on her industry background and collaborative partnerships with commercial fishermen.

Marissa is an avid Scuba diver and spends as much time as she possibly can underwater. She uses Scuba for research and as a hobby, but she is also a Scuba instructor. Introducing students to the wonders of the underwater world is one of her greatest joys in life.

Why Manomet?

Much of what drives my scientific curiosity is a deep connection to coastal ecosystems and fishing communities in the Gulf of Maine. Being exposed to commercial fishing as a child and young adult is what ultimately led me to marine science. As a result of my family’s history in commercial fisheries, and my career as a scientist, I strive to bridge the gap between scientists and fishermen and create productive collaborative partnerships. Manomet provides the perfect platform to achieve this goal.

As the coordinator for the American Oystercatcher Recovery Program, Shiloh is responsible for working with diverse partner organizations along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts to identify and foster research and management programs that will aid the recovery of American Oystercatchers and other beach-nesting birds. This work contributes to Manomet’s larger mission to use science-based collaborative solutions to recover shorebird populations.

Shiloh earned his doctorate at North Carolina State University, where he studied the ecology and population biology of American Oystercatchers on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. During his time in North Carolina, he helped coordinate a coast-wide banding and resighting effort with multiple research partners. Shiloh holds a B.S. in Wildlife Biology from the University of Vermont and has worked on a variety of landbird, seabird, and shorebird projects throughout North America.

As well as an avid birder, Shiloh is a competitive distance runner and holds a 2nd-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

Why Manomet?

At Manomet, I am privileged to work with an outstanding team of biologists dedicated to the conservation of shorebirds.  We have the freedom and flexibility to conduct applied research and conservation projects throughout the Americas.

From a very young age I have known that we human beings have a soul-deep need to be connected to nature, and that when this connection is broken, our spirit suffers.

Growing up in a rural town in Illinois, I spent hour-upon-hours playing in the country-side. Adventure-filled days were followed by magical summer evenings listening to the whippoorwill’s ethereal call as fireflies lit up the night.

Just before my 8^th birthday our family moved to Massachusetts. Our new home was an apartment in a tenement in the city. Gone were the golden fields and the call of the whippoorwills. They were replaced by broken slabs of asphalt and the nightly sounds of sirens. Gone were the fireflies – replaced by neon lights that lit up the night. I was overwhelmed with homesickness for the natural world.

But Nature will always find a way to restore the spirit. Beside the stoop of our apartment building, courageously busting its way through the asphalt, grew a hearty Catalpa tree. That tree was my sanctuary; it kept me connected to the natural world that my waning spirit so missed. The Catalpa grew mighty out of that sterile ground, reaching its way to the second floor of the tenement. The leaves, as big as dinner plates, provided perfect shelter on a hot summer day when I escaped upward into the arms of the Catalpa. There amongst all that earthy smelling green, my spirit was restored.

It is this same soul-deep need for a connection to nature that brought me to Manomet 33 years ago. It is a need to smell the scent of flowers and to see their delicious color splashed across a thirsty earth and to feel the warmth of soil in my hands. And it is a deep desire to nurture and protect this natural world, and to share it with others, however I can, that inspired me to become certified as a Master Gardener.

In addition to my Master Gardener role, it is my greatest privilege to be the Operations Manager at Manomet and have the opportunity to provide support to all the amazing staff that are the heart and soul of Manomet and who make it such a unique organization.

When not at work at Manomet, well, I’m still doing the same things – listening to birds, digging in the dirt, and hanging out with amazing people who love the earth. And even, occasionally, climbing a tree.