Staff

Long-term Monitoring & Community Science Director

Dave Oleyar, PhD

He/Him

Dr. Dave Oleyar is HawkWatch International’s Director of Long-term Monitoring and Community Science. A broadly trained ecologist with expertise in population ecology, avian conservation, climate change impacts on wildlife, and urban ecology, Dave leads research teams focused on a wide array of issues. These include a broadscale population monitoring network for diurnal raptors, the ecology and conservation of a declining cavity nesting falcon in an urban setting, and understanding climate change impacts on communities of cavity-nesting forest owls. Dave firmly believes that engaging people in research is the key to impactful conservation work and to creating invested decision-makers who trust science. Because of this, Dave’s research teams include HWI biologists and other staff, graduate students, interns, agency and non-profit partners, academics, and volunteers of all ages and backgrounds.

Dave joined the HWI team in November 2013. He holds a BS in Biology with an Ecology concentration from Baylor University, an MS in Raptor Biology from Boise State University, and a doctorate in Natural Resources and Wildlife Science from the University of Washington. When not in the field, Dave works from Moscow, Idaho where he lives with his wife and two children.

Favorite Raptors: Elf Owl and Merlin

Publications by Dave

  • Documenting Occurrence and Rates of Spraddle-Leg in American Kestrel Nestlings within a Nest Box Monitoring Network
  • Defining Raptors and Birds of Prey
  • Global Raptor Research and Conservation Priorities: Tropical Raptors Fall Prey to Knowledge Gaps

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