BIOLOGY PROFESSOR WINS HARVARD FELLOWSHIP

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A University of Arkansas biology professor has won a Charles Bullard Fellowship for Forest Research, which will provide him with a year-long stipend to continue his ongoing research on avian ecology at Harvard University.

Kimberly Smith, professor of biological sciences, will spend a year dividing his time between the Cambridge campus and the Harvard Forest at Petersham, Mass., located two hours west of Boston. The Harvard Forest is one of 24 Long Term Ecological Research sites for ongoing ecology studies. He will use his time to finish writing the Arkansas Breeding Bird Atlas, and to finish work on three other projects involving conservation priorities for birds in North and South America.

The Arkansas Breeding Bird Atlas will synthesize the work of volunteers who have taken censuses of 875 plots of 25 square kilometers each, seeking evidence of breeding birds. Over the past eight years, these volunteers have analyzed the distribution of 140 species of breeding birds in the state.

"The purpose of the atlas is to establish a historical record of what the breeding distribution was in the 1990s," Smith said. This will help state governmental and conservation organizations make decisions about environmental planning and conservation.

"Sometime in the future the breeding bird atlas would be done again so trends and dynamics can be compared," Smith said.

The Arkansas Breeding Bird Atlas has been funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, the U.S. Forest Service, the Nature Conservancy and the Arkansas Audubon Society.

Smith will also finish editing Conservation Priorities for Birds at Risk in Latin America, a compilation of 12-14 manuscripts by avian conservation researchers from various countries in Central and South America. These papers resulted from a day-long workshop at a neotropical ornithologists conference in Mexico. Topics range from the impact of deforestation on Atlantic forest birds in Brazil to predicting species competition and biodiversity strategies in Mexico. Contributors will also bring perspectives on avian conservation issues in other Latin American countries, including Colombia, Ecuador, Nicaragua and the Caribbean.

"The manuscript will combine all of this work for the first time" to give a comprehensive look at avian ecology and conservation issues in the region, Smith said.

During his stay in Massachusetts, Smith will also complete a regional map that shows the biodiversity of Southeast Massachusetts, a project he began while a visiting research associate at Bridgewater State College in the fall of 1999.

During his time at the college, Smith assisted in the creation of a natural resources project for Southeast Massachusetts, one of the fastest growing regions on the Eastern Seaboard. In recent years, new commuter train lines have allowed a large influx of people to move into the area.

"You have people who need to make decisions about this region," Smith said. "We want to give them useful data to help them make those decisions."

Smith will work with two undergraduate students at Bridgewater State College to finish a regional map that shows the highest regions of biodiversity in the area studied, so that towns can use the information for regional planning purposes. The map will include species of birds, reptiles, mammals, amphibians and fish.

Smith will also edit book chapters for Management of Migratory Land Birds in the Southeastern United States. The chapters stem from a regional meeting of Partners in Flight, a group of governmental organizations and non-profit groups that share an interest in migratory birds. The book chapters will address diverse issues that face migratory birds and land-use practices, including grazing, grassland habitat and bird species; forestry; fire; pesticide use; and habitat restoration for songbirds.

Bullard Fellowships are awarded to individuals in mid-career who have established themselves in their field and whose projects have contributed significantly to forestry.