Rodney joined IBP in 1998 as a research scientist, after completing his B.A. at Yale and his Ph.D. at U.C. Davis. He was appointed Executive Director in 2008. Rodney's research interests include effects of fire and forest management on birds, conservation of meadow birds in the Sierra Nevada, ecology and conservation of owls, and effects of climate change on forest birds. He is particularly interested in research that has practical applications for management and conservation. Rodney has published approximately 80 papers in peer-reviewed journals and co-authored multiple conservation strategies for California birds. Phone (707) 789-3224.

Steve is assisting IBP’s efforts to expand the MAPS and MoSI monitoring networks across North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean. One of his primary interests is exploring how research, management, and policy can work together to protect migratory birds through their full annual cycle. He is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles and the co-editor of two books: the award-winning We Feel Our Place In Our Soul: Wildlife Stewardship on Tribal Lands, with collaborator Serra Hoagland; and the forthcoming Neotropical Perspectives in Ornithology, both from Johns Hopkins University Press. Phone (505) 870-3735.

Ramiro received his Master’s degree in Natural Resources from Oregon State University, where he studied the use of LiDAR-derived variables in spatially explicit models. Ram first joined IBP in 2001 as a MAPS intern at Fort Hood, Texas. After his second MAPS internship in Yosemite National Park, he became a field biologist supervisor, leading MAPS banding crews in Texas and Oregon. He also set up and ran five MoSI stations in his home state of Oaxaca, Mexico, and has worked on projects such as Barred Owl surveys and Marbled Murrelet nesting habitat modeling in Oregon; and Black Oystercatcher population monitoring and Marbled Murrelet habitat management in Alaska. Ram is currently co-coordinating Spotted Owl and Northern Goshawk surveys and research in California’s Sierra Nevada. He lives in Eugene, Oregon. Phone (541) 228-6143.

Lee started with IBP in 2021 as a backcountry avian surveyor in Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks, and became a fully fledged staff biologist in 2023 working with a variety of projects on the ecology of birds in the Sierra Nevada. Prior to finding a second home in the Sierra, Lee traveled the country studying birds and teaching, and completed her M.S. in Biology at Arkansas State University. When not chasing birds, Lee can be found peak seeking, sipping on home roasted coffee, and backpacking, running, and biking in the great outdoors.

Mary joined IBP in early 2023, and works on integrating acoustic monitoring techniques into various avian conservation and monitoring projects. Her research to date has focused on how wild birds– from individuals to communities– respond to environmental disturbances such as non-native species introductions, prescribed fire, and climate change. She received a BA in Biology and English from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 2009, and spent a few years working seasonally on bird conservation projects throughout the United States before earning her PhD in Ecology from UC-Davis in 2021. Her preferred habitat is the remote headwater lake basins of the high Sierra. When she isn't up there with the gray-crowned rosy finches, she works from her home in the Mono Basin. Reach out by email about bioacoustics, occupancy models, aquatic-terrestrial subsidies, or anything alpine.

Jerry has a M.S. in Biology from the University of North Dakota where he studied the effects of grassland management on birds in tallgrass prairie. He has worked on various avian projects throughout the West, ranging from tracking Clark's Nutcrackers to helping capture California Condors in southern California. Jerry works on analyzing bird point count and acoustic survey data collected within California, Colorado, and other western states. He is also interested in the development of automated methods for classification of species on audio recordings. He enjoys exploring new places throughout California, but especially in the Sierra Nevada. Phone (434) 480-0535.

Emma joined IBP in 2021 as a staff biologist helping to verify MAPS data and assisting as needed on various field projects. Her background is field-heavy, having worked as a technician on projects all over the world since graduating with a BS in Wildlife Biology from UC Davis in 2013. In the wild, she can be found birding, biking, or backpacking, or sometimes even birding while bikepacking. Phone (341) 400-8131.

Lauren graduated from Whitman College in 2008 with a B.A. in Biology. She began banding with IBP's MAPS Program in 2009 as an intern in Oregon and then in 2010 on Saipan before becoming a MAPS crew leader for IBP in Oregon in 2011. She joined the IBP team in the fall of 2014, where she works to recruit, train, and supervise MAPS crews, receive and verify banding data, and teach bird banding courses. Additionally, Lauren produces artwork, illustrations, and figures for IBP's publications. Phone (971) 227-5326.
Lauren's art portfolio

Mandy Mandy received a B.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont. She began working for IBP as a volunteer in 2004, conducting bird surveys at Mt. Rainier National Park, and has been leading IBP bird monitoring crews in Pacific Northwest national parks since 2006. She worked seasonally for IBP and on other field projects until she became a year-round biologist with IBP in 2010. During the field season, Mandy trains technicians in bird ID, supervises crews, and leads field work. During the rest of the year, besides planning and organizing, Mandy’s main responsibilities include data management and field crew hiring. She lives and works on the Olympic Peninsula and Cascades in Washington State. Phone (360) 461-2294.

Harry is developing a bird monitoring plan for the National Park Service’s Southern Colorado Plateau Regional Monitoring Network and analyzing bird population trends in this region. He joined IBP in 2021. Harry received a B.S. in Biology from Haverford College, and an M.S. in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation and a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Florida. His dissertation project focused on understanding the effects of forest fragmentation and selective logging on cloud forest bird communities in the Colombian Andes. His research interests focus on understanding the driving mechanisms and scales at which anthropogenic change affects bird communities, populations, and behaviors. Harry works from his home in Flagstaff, Arizona. Phone (317) 523-7460.

Dani received her B.S. in Zoology from the University of Calgary, where she studied longspurs, shrikes, bats, and arthropods. She joined the IBP's MAPS Program as a summer intern in 1995, then moved to an office position later the same year. Since starting at IBP, she has worked in many capacities, including being a data quality verifier, supervising field biologist, data analyst and bander trainer. Her current roles include data analyst, Coordinator of the MAPS Program, and travelling around North America and Canada to coordinate IBP's bird bander training. She works part-time for IBP from her home office in Post Falls in Northern Idaho. Phone (609) 892-0445.

Helen (Bombay) received her B.S. in Wildlife Biology from the University of California Davis, and her M.S. in Biology from California State University Sacramento. She has spent the last 20 years studying Willow Flycatchers and other meadow birds, raptors, carnivores, insects, plants, and fish, primarily in the Sierra Nevada. She is particularly interested in the complex disturbance regimes and associated ecological relationships in Sierra meadows and for the last 5 years has worked on multi-species bird monitoring protocols for meadow restoration. She is now expanding her research into pollinator use of ephemeral riparian and upland habitats in post-fire landscapes. Phone (209) 283-4028.

Deborah joined IBP in 2016. She currently serves as Chief Financial Officer for the organization and was elected Treasurer in 2019. Deborah is a Certified Financial Planner and has spent 30 years building businesses. Her passion lives in finance, technology and operations. Her mission: making the world a better place. Deborah is an avid environmentalist and bird lover.

Peter attended Swarthmore College while also working on forest bird surveys in Hawaii and the South Pacific. He was a biologist on the Farallon Islands for 24 years. He has been affiliated with IBP since its inception and has been an employee since 1996, where his main focus is on conducting research on molt and age determination of birds. Peter is a Research Associate at the California Academy of Sciences and the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, and has authored or co-authored over 20 peer-reviewed papers, five books, and a monograph on the birds of Hawaii. In 2011 he had the good fortune of describing a new species, Bryan's Shearwater, and naming it after his grandfather. He is perhaps best known for his two part Identification Guide to North American Birds (2008 and 2022), which provides detailed criteria for ageing and sexing birds in the hand, and is widely used in IBP's MAPS and MoSI programs.

Chris joined us in 2015 as a Postdoctoral Researcher focused on hierarchical modeling of point count data on landbirds in several national parks. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of California-Davis and has been a Research Associate with the University of Colorado-Boulder since 2002. She has studied population biology in a variety of plant and animal systems with a number of research teams, and has a special interest in the population dynamics of species responding to habitat fragmentation and climate change. Chris works remotely from her home high in the Rocky Mountains. Phone (303) 489-8863.

Keke graduated with her B.A. in Biology from Kalamazoo College in 2014 and spent many years as a field biologist, working her way across the country on various avian, mammalian, and vegetation projects. She joined IBP for the first time in 2018 as a volunteer doing backcountry point counts in the Washington Parks projects and loved it so much that she spent 3 more years working seasonally for IBP. In 2024 she graduated with an M.S. in Biology from Western Michigan University where she studied red-winged blackbird communication with a focus on call repertoire and alarm call combinations. Keke became a full time IBP staff member in 2024 where she conducts bird surveys and verifies and manages acoustic data on a variety of projects. When she’s not birding for work she’s birding for fun, hiking, baking, running, x-country skiing, and obsessing over her cat; (Princess) Buttercup.

Jim joined the IBP staff in 2003 after completing his Ph.D. at North Carolina State University. He has served as the Program Director for IBP's tropical and winter bird monitoring programs (the MoSI, MAWS, and TMAPS Programs) and has been the lead data analyst for a variety of IBP's research. His current research projects include the development and application of models for analyzing count and capture-recapture data, integrated population models, the ecology and dynamics of migratory songbirds during the non-breeding season, and acoustic bird monitoring in northern Alaska. Jim currently works for IBP remotely from his home in Pittsburgh, PA. Phone (907) 957-4790.

Lynn received her M.S. in biology from Eastern Illinois University where she studied migration patterns and movement ecology in passerines crossing the Gulf of Mexico. She began her career in biology as an intern with The Institute for Bird Populations doing Great Gray Owl surveys on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and has been involved in bird conservation and research in the Sierras ever since then. Lynn has a wide range of research interests and has worked as part of many projects relating to avian biology across both North and South America. Currently, Lynn is involved in Willow Flycatcher conservation projects occurring throughout the northern Sierras. Phone (612) 799-8630.

Meredith joined IBP in 2019 after working several years as a freelance science writer. Prior to writing about science, she assisted on various field ornithology projects and completed a Ph.D. at the University of Montana studying hormones and behavior in White-throated Sparrows. Meredith's role as communications specialist is to spread the word about IBP's fantastic research and to tell the stories behind the science. She works remotely from her home in the high desert of western Colorado. She is happy to assist with all press and media inquiries. Phone (970) 712-9699.

Bob has a B.S. in Ecology and Systematic Biology from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He started at IBP in 1998 doing point counts on Yosemite National Park's Avian Inventory.  Bob spends summers training and supervising monitoring crews throughout the Sierra Nevada, and conducting Black-backed Woodpecker monitoring in Sierra Nevada National Forests. Bob's other responsibilities include project design, planning, and field crew recruitment.  He specializes in database management and GIS, and website design and management. Phone (415) 233-0684.