Kelseyville >> The Oct. 15 Redbud Audubon program welcomes, Robert J. Meese, Ph.D., who will present a program on California’s blackbird, the tricolor, Agelaius tricolor. The tricolor is a near-endemic passerine that forms the largest breeding colonies of any songbird in North America. Originally almost exclusively a marsh-dweller, the tricolor now inhabits landscapes that differ fundamentally from the ones in which it evolved. Due to its gregarious nature and insect-dependence during the breeding season, the tricolor places huge demands upon lands within 3 miles of its breeding colonies.
Through a multimedia presentation that includes still images, videos and digital sound files, Meese will explore the tricolor’s natural history, field identification and population trends. Drawing on his more than a decade of work with the species, Meese will illustrate the tricolor’s breeding and foraging habits, the relationship between insect abundance and reproductive success, discuss the results and implications of the 2014 statewide survey and evaluate the prospects for the species’ future.
Meese has been with the Information Center for the Environment (ICE) in the Department of Environmental Science & Policy at U.C. Davis for 21 years and has worked with tricolored blackbirds for 11 years. His work was highlighted in a segment on the CBS Evening News on June 28, 2014.
Prior to his work with tricolors, Meese served as a member of the Peregrine Falcon recovery team for the Colorado Division of Wildlife, studied peregrine falcons in Greenland for five summers, was a consultant to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, helped to design an inventory and monitoring program for the biota of State Vehicular Recreation Areas for California State Parks and is currently a member of the World Commission on Protected Areas, an international network of protected area experts administered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with members in 140 countries.
Refreshments will be available at 7 p.m. and the program starts at 7:15 p.m. in the Glebe Social Hall of St. Peter’s Catholic Church, 4085 Main St. in Kelseyville.
