IRES Track I: International Research in The Bahamas: Conservation Biology of the Critically Endangered Bahama Oriole

该提案的基本目标是增加学习环境科学的学生的多样性，并培养下一代全球科学家。美国学生将与来自UMBC和巴哈马的科学家合作，研究极度濒危的巴哈马黄鹂。每年有六名学生将与导师一起在巴哈马进行国际研究，然后在UMBC进行数据分析和演示。这些项目将使学生能够深入了解与岛屿生态系统，灭绝和气候动态有关的环境科学的一系列主题。岛屿生态系统一直很容易受到人类的影响，许多岛屿物种濒临灭绝或已经灭绝。加勒比岛屿是生物多样性热点，受到气候变化的严重威胁。加勒比海是15种濒危鸣禽的家园，包括极度濒危的巴哈马黄鹂（Icterus northropi）。提议的学生研究体验是马里兰州大学、巴尔的摩县（UMBC）和巴哈马国家信托基金（BNT）之间的合作，以确定巴哈马黄鹂的地位，并了解栖息地和气候变化可能如何影响它。在当前的全球灭绝危机中，岛屿特别脆弱，大多数濒危和灭绝的鸟类物种都是（或曾经是）岛屿物种。巴哈马黄鹂现在仅限于安德罗斯，在20世纪90年代从阿巴科灭绝。巴哈马黄鹂面临的可能威胁是典型的岛屿物种，从引进的捕食者到人为栖息地的变化。气候变化对加勒比特有物种的影响可能特别严重，干旱和变暖正在改变火灾状况，而海平面上升和飓风强度增加正在造成森林死亡。拟议的学生研究项目解决了这种极度濒危的鸣禽面临的这些问题的全部范围。巴哈马和美国的导师团队将共同为本科生提供一系列独立研究项目的建议。一名UMBC博士生将继续在巴哈马现场帮助指导学生。学生项目将教授学生可以在一系列STEM职业中应用的技能。项目主题包括：1）种群生态学（例如，估计人口规模），2）遥感（例如，气候变化对松树栖息地的影响），以及3）捕食（例如，无线电追踪以研究年存活率）。最近，研究小组与来自UMBC和巴哈马的不同学生团队进行了两次试点旅行。这些由学生主导的努力证实了这些项目的可行性，并表明人们对巴哈马黄鹂知之甚少。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The fundamental goals of this proposal are increasing the diversity of students studying environmental science and training the next generation of global scientists. US students will work in collaborative teams with scientists from UMBC and the Bahamas to study the critically endangered Bahama Oriole. Six students per year will work with mentors doing international research in the Bahamas, followed by data analysis and presentation back at UMBC. These projects will enable students to develop deep understanding of a range of topics in environmental science related to island ecosystems, extinction and climate dynamics. Island ecosystems have always been vulnerable to human impacts, and many island species are endangered or have become extinct. The islands of the Caribbean represent a biodiversity hotspot that is acutely threatened by climate variations. The Caribbean is home to fifteen endangered songbird species, including the critically endangered Bahama Oriole (Icterus northropi). The proposed student research experience is a collaboration between the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and The Bahamas National Trust (BNT) to determine the status of the Bahama Oriole and to understand how habitat and climate change may affect it.In the current global extinction crisis, islands are especially vulnerable, and most endangered and extinct avian species are (or were) island species. The Bahama Oriole is now restricted to Andros, having been extirpated from Abaco in the 1990s. The likely threats facing the Bahama Oriole are typical for island species, ranging from introduced predators to anthropogenic habitat change. The impacts of climate change on endemic species in the Caribbean may be especially intense drying and warming are altering fire regimes while rising sea levels and increased hurricane intensity are causing forest mortality. The proposed student research projects address the full scope of these issues facing this critically endangered songbird. Teams of Bahamian and US mentors will together advise undergraduate students on a series of independent research projects. One UMBC PhD student will be continually on-site in the Bahamas to help mentor the students. Student projects will teach the students skills that can be applied in a range of STEM careers. Project topics include 1) population ecology (e.g., estimating population size), 2) remote sensing (e.g., effects of climate change on pine habitat), and 3) predation (e.g., radio tracking to study annual survival). Recently, the research team conducted two pilot trips with diverse teams of students from UMBC and The Bahamas. These student-led efforts confirmed the feasibility of these projects and demonstrated how little is known about the Bahama Oriole.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.