Experience Reflection: Hannah Clipp
“I am incredibly grateful to Field Inclusive and Wilson Ornithological Society for providing the funding that allowed me to attend the 2024 AOS conference… . Importantly, this was my first scientific conference presentation since graduating with my doctorate degree in August 2023, and this was the first time presenting my completed dissertation research to a public audience of ornithology professionals.”
BY HANNAH CLIPP
The Opportunity
Thanks to Field Inclusive and a generous sponsorship by the Wilson Ornithological Society, I was able to attend and present my research at the annual conference of the American Ornithological Society (AOS) in Estes Park, Colorado. The AOS is the largest international ornithological society, comprised of a diverse, global network of professionals working together to advance the scientific study and conservation of birds. The 2024 conference offered an invaluable opportunity to share and discuss findings from scientific research projects conducted across the world, as well as engage in a number of training and networking opportunities. Over the course of the entire week of the conference, I participated in a workshop and several volunteer activities, attended plenaries delivered by three superstar early-career professionals, perused hundreds of scientific posters, and learned from oral presentations that ranged in topic from global change ecology and integrative modeling to bioacoustics and diet sampling.
Presenting My Research
I was fortunate to be selected by the Scientific Program Committee to give an oral presentation about the results from a scientific investigation that I conducted as part of my PhD dissertation research. Importantly, this was my first scientific conference presentation since graduating with my doctorate degree in August 2023, and this was the first time presenting my completed dissertation research to a public audience of ornithology professionals. My talk was entitled, “Climate change effects on forest songbirds breeding in the Appalachian Mountains are mediated by latitude and elevation”, and it was a summary of one of my four dissertation chapters. In my presentation, I first reviewed how warming temperatures and shifting precipitation patterns may be contributing to historical and ongoing declines in forest songbird populations that breed in eastern North America, which has prompted recent efforts to forecast the effects of climate change on forest songbird species into the future. However, climate relationships are commonly assumed to be static across latitudinal and elevational gradients. To improve accuracy of predictions and to better inform conservation efforts, I believe that we need to evaluate whether the influence of climate is mediated by latitude and elevation, especially in mountainous regions. Therefore, in this study, I quantified differences in how forest songbirds are affected by climate factors across latitudinal and elevational gradients within the Appalachian Mountains. I used nearly 30 years of bird survey data from 1,733 sites at various elevations in National Forests located within the Northern, Central, and Southern Appalachians to model responses in climate-related guild richness and focal species abundance. Indeed, my model results indicated that climate effects on forest songbird communities during the breeding season are dynamic along latitudinal and elevational gradients in the Appalachian Mountains! Specifically, guild-specific relationships with temperature and precipitation variables changed in direction and magnitude across latitudes and elevations. In addition, my findings suggested that cold-associated species are at highest risk from warming temperatures and that future climate change could potentially result in the steepest declines in forest songbird species at low elevations in the Southern Appalachians. These are pretty important implications, and I was pleased to have a full audience for my presentation. I was even approached after my talk by a professor who is working on the Mountain Bird Network and is interested in collaborating — which is exactly the benefit of presenting at conferences!
Attending Workshops
Conference attendance is critical not only to keep abreast of current scientific research in the field of ornithology, but to also engage in educational / training opportunities. On the first day of the conference, I attended a workshop entitled “The Rocky Mountain Avian Data Center 2.0: Connecting Natural Resource Practitioners with IMBCR Breeding Bird Monitoring Data.” IMBCR refers to the Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions program, which was created in 2008 by the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies and partners. It is the second largest breeding bird monitoring program in the nation, spanning the Great Plains to the Great Basin. Through the Rocky Mountain Avian Data Center, scientists and land managers have access to annual population metrics for more than 300 bird species, including estimates of uncertainty. During the workshop, we were introduced to the online data portal, the available information and their interpretation, and potential data applications. My main takeaway from the workshop was that I think that these data are going to be a valuable resource to access for future research projects that span the USA.
Networking
One of the best things about attending conferences is catching up with old friends and meeting new ones. I was able to re-connect with acquaintances from across the country, including graduate students, post-doctoral researchers, and established professionals. Through those connections, I was also introduced to people whom I have cited in my manuscripts or seen from afar at previous events but had never met in person before. Notably, the AOS facilitated an Early Professional Mentor Meetup, which allowed me to meet up with a professor from Oregon State University and discuss career prospects. Overall, I think I did pretty well for a self- professed introvert — I met many new people, conversed with several USDA Forest Service research scientists (my ideal career), learned about some intriguing post-doctoral research opportunities, and networked with potential future employers and research collaborators.
Conclusions
I am incredibly grateful to Field Inclusive and Wilson Ornithological Society for providing the funding that allowed me to attend the 2024 AOS conference. There was no way that I could have managed the costs of the conference registration, travel, and accommodations without their support, and I would have missed out on so much. This was a fantastic conference in a fantastic location — I haven’t even mentioned the beautiful mountain scenery, incredible bird lifers, or the majestic elk that roamed the conference grounds! If you want more on the latter topics, then check out my social media (@AllThatWildlife). Otherwise, I’ll wrap up with a final thought: I truly believe that attending this AOS conference was a pivotal moment in my early
career, and I look forward to seeing how the interactions and experiences during the conference
come to fruition in my future career!
Hannah Clipp (she/her) is a postdoctoral researcher with the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station and was the recipient of Field Inclusive’s 2024 Fall Travel Award, sponsored by Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS).