Principal Investigator
Dr. Sara Kaiser
I am a Research Ecologist and the Director of the Hubbard Brook Field Ornithology Program at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Research Associate at Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.
My research program provides training and research opportunities for undergraduates and postdoctoral researchers as part of my ongoing research on the effects of changing seasonality on migratory black-throated blue warblers, based during the summer months at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Ph.D. Cornell University
M.S. Michigan State University B.S. Iowa State University |
Postdoc
Current Students
My highly motivated students have conducted independent research on a variety of topics.
Student field projects have included lab components during the academic year and leveraged long-term data (behavioral, genetic, environmental) collected as part of long-term population studies. I encourage my students to develop original research, to write grant proposals to support their research, and to submit senior theses and scientific publications to further their development as scholars.
cornell university
Amaya Bechler
Cornell University Class of 2024, Environment & Sustainability - Environmental Biology, Applied Ecology
Characterizing variation in gut microbiome composition and diet from breeding through molt in the migratory black-throated blue warbler
Collaborators: Dr. Brian Trevelline, Kent State University Dr. Gemma Clucas, Cornell Lab of Ornithology |
Brian Hofstetter
Cornell University Class of 2026, Biological Sciences - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Male post-fledging parental care and paternity in the black-throated blue warbler
Collaborator: Dr. Todd Jones, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center |
Hannah Pryor
Cornell University Class of 2026, Environment and Sustainability with a student-designed Ornithology concentration
Geographic song variation and subspecies recognition in the yellow-rumped warbler complex
|
Braeden Thomson
Cornell University Class of 2024, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Environment & Sustainability
Oxidative costs and constraints of territory quality on reproductive effort in male black-throated blue warblers
|
Eryn Woernley
Cornell University Class of 2024, Environment & Sustainability
Effects of timing of breeding on post-fledging parental care and survival in the black-throated blue warbler
Collaborator: Dr. Todd Jones, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center |
41st Black-throated Blue Warbler Field Crew 2023
Front row (L to R): Sara Kaiser (Director), Amaya Bechler '25, August Davidson-Onsgard '24, Grace Guo '25, Brian Hofstetter '26, Hannah Pryor '26, Jackson Hutchison '23, Megan Miller (Field technician), Braeden Thomson '24, Kim Savides (Crew leader), Alicia Brunner (PhD student), Bridget Tweedie (PhD student), Todd Jones (Postdoc), Gilberto Pasinelli (Swiss Ornithological Institute)
Lab Alumni
cornell university
Lezhi (Stella) Hao
Cornell University Class of 2023, Biological Sciences - Genetics, Genomics and Development
Female plumage traits as signals of mate quality, competitive ability, and stress resilience in the black-throated blue warbler
Graduate School: Ph.D. Student, Michigan State University (Dr. Kevin McGraw's lab) |
Jackson Hutchison
Cornell University Class of 2023, Biological Sciences - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Post-fledging survival, movement, and habitat use of migratory black-throated blue warblers in high- and low-risk habitat
Collaborator: Dr. Todd Jones, Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center Professional position: ACE-EPIC (American Conservation Experience-Emerging Professionals in Conservation) Program, Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge |
John Deitsch
Cornell University Class of 2022, Entomology, Biological Sciences - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Artificial light at night increases top-down pressure on caterpillars: experimental evidence from a light-naïve forest
Graduate School: Ph.D. Student, University of Texas, El Paso (Dr. Brett Seymoure's lab) |
Lindsey Forg
Cornell University Class of 2022, Environment & Sustainability
DNA metabarcoding reveals within-season variation in the diet of the insectivorous black-throated blue warbler
Collaborators: Dr. Gemma Clucas, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Dr. Andrew Stillman, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Graduate School: M.S. Student, Northeastern University |
Raisa Kochmaruk
Cornell University Class of 2021, Environment & Sustainability - Science Communication
Hubbard Brook Artist in Residence Program: Scientific illustration series of female plumage variation and nestling development in the black-throated blue warbler Hubbard Brook Mural Collaborator: Jillian Ditner, Cornell Lab of Ornithology Professional position: Communications Specialist, Hubbard Brook Research Foundation |
Sophie Rabinowicz
Cornell University Class of 2021, Animal Science, Environment & Sustainability
Impacts of research disturbance on avian nest defense behaviors and nest survival across a landscape of risk
Graduate School: M.S. Student, College of William & Mary (Dr. Daniel Cristol's lab) |
Maria Smith
Cornell University Class of 2016, Biological Sciences - Neurobiology and Behavior
Functional variation in nest morphology and brooding behavior along a climate gradient
Graduate school: Ph.D. Candidate, Princeton University (Dr. Christina Riehl's lab)
Functional variation in nest morphology and brooding behavior along a climate gradient
- Received the prestigious Merrill Presidential Scholar Award from Cornell
- Awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship for Fall 2017
- Maria's first-authored paper "Variation in nest characteristics and brooding patterns by female Black-throated Blue Warblers is associated with thermal cues" was published in The Auk: Ornithological Advances!
Graduate school: Ph.D. Candidate, Princeton University (Dr. Christina Riehl's lab)
Dominique Hellmich
Cornell University Class of 2015, Biological Sciences - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Role of top-down selection pressure by predators on lay-date adjustment in response to spring temperature
Role of top-down selection pressure by predators on lay-date adjustment in response to spring temperature
- Tanner Dean Scholars Research Grant
- Charles Tracy Fund for student research from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Sarah Rubenstein, M.S.
Cornell University Class of 2015, Science of Natural Environmental Systems
Linking personality traits to parental behaviors and reproductive success
Graduate school: M.S., Wildlife Ecology, University of Maine (Dr. Joseph Zydlewski's lab)
Professional position: Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Linking personality traits to parental behaviors and reproductive success
Graduate school: M.S., Wildlife Ecology, University of Maine (Dr. Joseph Zydlewski's lab)
Professional position: Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Dr. Juliet Jacobson
Cornell University Class of 2016, Biological Sciences - General Biology
Lab-based training: Genotyping and paternity analyses
Professional School: New York Medical College
Lab-based training: Genotyping and paternity analyses
Professional School: New York Medical College
Dr. Kathryn Grabenstein
Cornell University Class of 2014, Biological Sciences - Neurobiology and Behavior
Resource-dependent offspring sex allocation
Graduate school: Ph.D., University of Colorado Boulder (Dr. Scott Taylor's lab)
Professional position: Rose Postdoctoral Fellow, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Resource-dependent offspring sex allocation
- Cynthia Kagarise Sherman Undergraduate Research Award for an Outstanding Honors Thesis in Behavior
- Honorable mention in the Undergraduate Poster Competition at the 51st Annual Conference of the Animal Behavior Society, Princeton, NJ August 2014, "No experimental support for resource-dependent sex allocation in a migratory songbird".
- Awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship for Fall 2017
Graduate school: Ph.D., University of Colorado Boulder (Dr. Scott Taylor's lab)
Professional position: Rose Postdoctoral Fellow, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Laura Stirling
Cornell University Class of 2011, Biological Sciences - Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Implications of trill rate and bandwidth trade-offs in mate choice and male reproductive success
Implications of trill rate and bandwidth trade-offs in mate choice and male reproductive success
smithsonian conservation biology institute
Ellie Ezekiel
Franklin & Marshall College Class of 2017, Biology
Prevalence of avian malaria in Old World tropical songbirds
Prevalence of avian malaria in Old World tropical songbirds
Conor Harbeck
Franklin & Marshall College Class of 2017, Biology
Offspring sex ratio bias in Old World tropical songbirds
Offspring sex ratio bias in Old World tropical songbirds
hubbard brook research experience
Alisa Muniz
Humboldt State University Class of 2015, Wildlife Biology
Spatial and temporal variation in songbird nest predation
Spatial and temporal variation in songbird nest predation
- Ranked top 20 in the undergraduate poster competition at the 20th Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society in Milwaukee, WI
Dr. Andre Moncrieff
Andrews University Class of 2014, Music, Biology
Song characteristics that predict extra-mating success
Graduate school: Ph.D. Candidate, Louisiana State University (Dr. Robb Brumfield's lab)
Professional position: Postdoc at LSU Museum of Natural Science
Song characteristics that predict extra-mating success
- Awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship for Fall 2015
Graduate school: Ph.D. Candidate, Louisiana State University (Dr. Robb Brumfield's lab)
Professional position: Postdoc at LSU Museum of Natural Science
Ryan Steiner
Frostburg State College Class of 2012
Effect of food supplementation on avian incubation behavior and hatchling mass
Graduate school: M.S., University of Minnesota Duluth (Dr. Gerald Niemi's lab)
Professional position: Researcher, Natural Resources Research Institute, Avian Ecology Lab
Effect of food supplementation on avian incubation behavior and hatchling mass
Graduate school: M.S., University of Minnesota Duluth (Dr. Gerald Niemi's lab)
Professional position: Researcher, Natural Resources Research Institute, Avian Ecology Lab
Jessica Sutt, M.S.
Warren Wilson College Class of 2011, Conservation Biology, Environmental Education
Influence of food availability and female constraints on sex differences in parental care
Graduate school: M.S., Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, University of Florida '14
Professional position: Digital Strategist at Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
Influence of food availability and female constraints on sex differences in parental care
- Undergraduate thesis awarded 1st place at the North Carolina Academy of Science
- Bonner Scholarship for summer fieldwork
Graduate school: M.S., Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, University of Florida '14
Professional position: Digital Strategist at Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
Dr. Lindsey Nietmann
Carlton College Class of 2009, Biology - Environmental Studies
Vocal consistency and extra-pair mating success
Graduate school: Ph.D., University of Washington (Dr. Renee Ha's lab)
Professional position: Wildlife Biologist, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Hawaii Department of Lands and Natural Resources
Vocal consistency and extra-pair mating success
- Awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Graduate school: Ph.D., University of Washington (Dr. Renee Ha's lab)
Professional position: Wildlife Biologist, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Hawaii Department of Lands and Natural Resources
Alexa Trimble (Branesky)
Washington State University Class of 2009, Biological Sciences
Effects of weather and climate on mating patterns in a migratory bird
Effects of weather and climate on mating patterns in a migratory bird
- Washington State University's Center for Environmental Research, Education, and Outreach Award (poster competition)
©S.A. Kaiser 2012