provided to The Santiva Chronicle
San-Cap Audubon’s third lecture program of the 2022 season will bring back, by popular demand, Dr. Ken Meyer, executive director and co-founder of the Avian Research and Conservation Institute. Dr. Meyer will summarize what ARCI’s research has taught us about the conservation ecology of Swallow-tailed Kites and Snail Kites during his virtual presentation at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 20. To register, visit the SanCap Audubon website.
Meyer received his B.S. in Zoology from the University of Maine and his Ph.D. in Zoology/Behavioral Ecology from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill). Meyer has studied the conservation biology of birds in Florida since the 1980’s beginning with his research on Swallow-tailed Kites, which continues to this day.
After serving as a post-doctoral associate and research associate at the University of Florida from 1988-1992, he conducted studies of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers and the bird communities of south Florida pinelands for the National Park Service in Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park. In 1997, Meyer co-founded ARCI and soon branched out to other research challenges on a broader range of species.
In this lecture, Meyer will elaborate on the evidence that, despite the stark contrasts in the diets, essential habitats, and seasonal movements of Swallow-tailed Kites and Snail Kites, both species face the same threats: reckless human behaviors. These behaviors are destroying the places and systems that support their prey and reproductive efforts including how our actions – and inactions – cloud their futures. Mostly importantly, however, he will show you how informed management and skillful conservation planning can capitalize on these birds’ natural resilience to build sustainable populations.
This is the third of eight Sanibel-Captiva Audubon Society lectures to be held in 2022 on consecutive Thursday evenings. Unlike the first two lectures, this one will be virtual due to the Omicron variant. After registering at the SanCap Audubon website, a link to the webinar will be emailed to you. Save the link as you will need it to join. Each webinar will have a different link.
A $10.00 donation per attendee is appreciated with proceeds after costs being used to promote conservation on Sanibel and in Florida. Attendees can also donate directly by mail to the address on the website home page or via PayPal.
Please do not hesitate to reach out via Facebook or our website for updates. For additional information regarding all San-Cap Audubon offerings can be found at www.san-capaudubon.org.
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