Happy holidays and best wishes for a wonderful new year.
We are pleased to have accomplished so much this year, and value the relationships with our clients and collaborators. We wish everyone a successful and productive 2016!
Dr. Bragin releasing the adult male Imperial eagle on September 23, 2015
Imperial eagle
Along with his intensive hours in the field throughout Southern California and Oregon, Dr. Peter Bloom, Zoologist and President at BBI was able to travel to Kazakhstan to assist Dr. Todd Katzner with the USGS and The Peregrine Fund and Dr. Evgeny Bravin with the Naurzum Zapovednik preserve, Kostanay State Pedagogical Institute and The Peregrine Fund in capturing an adult male Imperial eagle for their ongoing research project involving the ecology of raptors at the (Naurzum National Nature Reserve) in the Kostanay Oblast of north-central Kazakhstan (51°N, 64°E) which was initiated 40 years ago by Dr. Bragin. Using the data from the eagle's telemetry unit to date he has migrated south through Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iraq, and Iran, with the most recent data in Saudi Arabia, to learn more visit Bloomresearch.org
Peter also had the honor of being the plenary speaker at this years Raptor Research Conference in Sacramento CA. The conference which was hosted by the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory took place in November and was a great opportunity to discover the profound work being done in the field of raptor research and conservation. Peter opened the conference by presenting “Fifty Years of California Raptor Conservation — Success, Failure, Works in Progress, & Insights for Future Research.”
Michael Kuehn, Senior biologist and Statistical Analyst at BBI has had a very busy year, expanding his role in the company to be more hands on in development and administration, working with numerous new and potential future clients and collaborators. In addition, he spent copious hours in the field, working with Pete Bloom eagle trapping in SoCal and Oregon and completing training hours for California Gnatcatcher surveys. By far however, the most exciting news of 2015 was that Michael and his wife Jean Galang welcomed a baby girl into their family - Jade Galang Kuehn. We at BBI are so thrilled for Michael, Jean and JADE! and wish them health and happiness in the coming years.
Marcus C England, Vice President and Senior biologist had a great 2015. Here are his thoughts about some highlights of the year.
“Crested Caracara on a saguaro cactus. Photo taken in southern Baja California Sur, Mexico by Marcus C. England."
2015 has been a productive year, both for BBI and for me personally. The company has seen excellent growth, with a number of new projects and clients. While much of what we do in the field can’t be talked about in detail, some highlights for me this year were assisting in capturing my first Golden Eagle near the Mexican border, observing my first Mountain Lion during a nest survey in the Santa Susanna Mountains, and conducting bird surveys while walking in a knee-deep river. Much of my personal time is also spent in the outdoors, and this year saw a half-hearted attempt at a Los Angeles County birding Big Year (which currently stands at 255 species), a third attempt at running the Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run (but I will get it next year!), and the initiation of the San Gabriel Trails Project, which is my attempt to run every mile of the several thousand miles of trails in the San Gabriel Mountains. I’m also excited to have gotten back into wildlife art, photography, and illustration in a big way. I’m definitely looking forward to 2016!
Allen's Hummingbird by Marcus C. England http://art.mcengland.com
Vermilion Flycatcher (4th winter)
The famous Couch’s Kingbird (only 2nd state record)
On a birding trip with her stepfather last month, Jackie Catino, biologist at BBI was able to take some great pictures improvising with a cellphone, scope and tripod!. Her flexibility and fast thinking make her a true asset at BBI. Below you can read her thoughts on the past year.
Working for Bloom this past year has been more office work then field work but it makes the field work more fun since it was so limited! By far the best experience had to be banding Swainson’s Hawks chicks in the Antelope Valley. Even at a young age, the chicks have such personality making it one of the highlights of the year! - Jackie
