Name:
Talk: It's Not Only Fine Feathers That Make Fine Birds
Date:
December 7, 2023
Time:
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM MST
Erik C. Atckinson in the field.
Event Description:
Join us for our December Lunchtime Expedition, "It's Not Only Fine Feathers That Make Fine Birds," presented by Eric C. Atkinson.
The in-person talk takes place in the Center’s Coe Auditorium, with a virtual option available at https://us02web.zoom.us/.../reg.../WN_1PDSIV9NQqqDlic8ubs_Vw
The in-person talk takes place in the Center’s Coe Auditorium, with a virtual option available at https://us02web.zoom.us/.../reg.../WN_1PDSIV9NQqqDlic8ubs_Vw
Since 2013, Eric C. Atkinson has been involving Northwest College undergraduate students in studying a multipathogen assemblage infecting the avian community of the northeastern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Atkinson’s students gain important research skills all within their first two years of college. They do everything from:
- Capturing, measuring, bleeding, and banding birds (released unharmed)...
- Laboratory techniques including enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for West Nile virus and antibodies, DNA extraction of malaria, PCR amplification, and bioinformatics of Next Generation Sequences
- Characterizing the fecal microbiome.
Furthermore, the multipathogen landscape shown by nearly 1000 encounters across 57 avian species shows a diverse pathogen assemblage, disease state, and community network. Contrary to published accounts, some birds recover from WNV, and Atkinson continues with analyses assessing the interactions of pathogens on the health of our native and nonnative songbirds.
Support for the Draper’s Lunchtime Expedition series has been made possible by Sage Creek Ranch and the Nancy-Carroll Draper Charitable Foundation.
