As part of my course-based masters degree, I completed a self-guided research project that focused on using geospatial strategies to answer an ecologically-rooted question. Having previously worked as a Wildlife Care Assistant at the Wildlife Rescue Association of BC – where I was primarily treating injured wildlife and raising baby birds –  I recognized a unique way in which GIS could be used to investigate patterns with the injured wildlife that we were treating.

Using information collected about each animal upon arrival at the wildlife hospital, I created a unique dataset consisting of a range of variables specific to each ‘patient’. Since I worked primarily with avians (or birds), my research project was focused on injuries pertaining to birds within the city of Vancouver. Once my dataset was complied, I mapped the locations of each injured bird throughout Vancouver and performed spatial analyses to investigate if there were certain characteristics of the urban environment that were particularly problematic for birds and evaluate the extent to which these characteristics could impact urban bird populations.

For more details or to view the final report, please see the following document: MGEM_Final_Project_Report

Pictured above: myself with a ‘friendly’ Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus). Note that we received this bird at the wildlife hospital as a nestling and raised her until she was old enough to be released. In this picture, she had been released back to the wild and stopped by for a final goodbye before heading on her way. We do not endorse unnecessary handling of wildlife at our facility as this can be detrimental to their survival. In this case, she landed on me while I was doing patient rounds and I was lucky enough to have the moment captured by one of the wildlife veterinarians. Fun fact: You can tell the difference between the females and males of this species because the females are primarily white and black in colour, while the males have a red patch on their head.