Dr. Jamie Cornelius

Birds have incredible adaptations for coping with environmental challenges such as wildfire and storms, but these strategies have evolved alongside historical climate patterns. Rapid shifts in climate can alter the consequences for birds that use different coping strategies. In this era of rapid climate change many birds are exposed to more extreme conditions and resilience will be key to maintaining populations and biodiversity.

What are the strategies that birds use to deal with stressors? How do things like ice storms and thick plumes of wildfire smoke impact birds? The news surrounding climate change can bring a sense of doom to those of us who love and appreciate the diverse world we live in, but we have discovered some incredible strategies that they use to survive when the going gets tough.

Dr. Cornelius will discuss the unique challenges facing birds of central Oregon and describe how some birds listen to their neighbors, digest their intestines, and create more heat to help survive challenging conditions. Join her at the…

Dr. Cornelius is an Associate Professor of Integrative Biology at Oregon State University and is head of the Little Bird Lab. She is a 2023 National Geographic Society Explorer, a National Science Foundation CAREER fellow and recently completed a residency at the Roundhouse Foundation’s PMR investigating the role of art in scientific creative-thinking. She is also a singer-songwriter and will share a few songs about her life as a field biologist during her presentation.

Find out more about the Little Bird Lab at https://www.corneliuslab.org

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