Sarah Dobney

About me:

My love of birds began at the young age of 13. I was very lucky to grow up near Long Point, Ontario, home of the excellent Long Point Bird Observatory, where I spent many weekends during my teenage years, learning to band and appreciate wild birds.

I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Guelph, studying Zoology and Psychology: Brain and Cognition. While completing my degree, I was fortunate enough to be hired at Birds Canada as a Forest Birds at Risk Field Technician. Here is where my passion for nest searching and research on reproductive behaviour began.

After completing my degree in 2015, I spent the next 5 years traveling to new places to work on various projects studying avian breeding biology. These positions included Australia studying Red-winged Fairy-wrens, New Hampshire studying Black-throated Blue Warblers, Hawaii studying Akikiki, Akeke’e, and Puiohi, and Oregon studying Marbled Murrelets. Each of these positions involved searching for and monitoring nests, and each position grew my passion for breeding biology even more.

I started my graduate studies in 2020 as an MSc student in Dr. Dan Mennill’s research lab at the University of Windsor. I loved my team and project so much, that I decided to transfer to the PhD program at the University of Windsor, continuing under the supervision of Dan Mennill. My research project is a dream come true! With an excellent team of collaborators, I study a population of Savannah Sparrows on Kent Island, New Brunswick, where I find and monitor nests and learn how vocalizations are used during the breeding season.

In addition to birding, I love spending time outside, taking photos, traveling, camping, watching movies, and goofing around with my family and friends.