CLAIRE STUYCK, Lead Bander (Master Permit Holder)
Born and raised along the Broad River in Columbia, South Carolina, Claire moved to Fairbanks in 2017 and joined the ASI team. She began her tenure in an education and research support role for the Alaska Swallow Monitoring Network and the Creamer’s Field Migration Station (CFMS). She is the Bander-in-Charge at CFMS, and enjoys sharing her curiosity and passion for birds with everyone who visits the station. Her research interests include studying the impacts of a changing climate, land use change, and disease on avian phenology, physiology, and population dynamics. She is also interested in how birds contribute to ecosystem services and citizen science.
LAURA MAKIELSKI, Bander
Laura found her way to Fairbanks in 2016.
Since then, she has worked on bird projects all across the state, from
Utqiagvik to Anchorage to Cold Bay. But she loves working with the birds at
Creamer’s Field: “You can’t help but admire them. Either they’re getting ready
to spend a winter at 40 below, or they’re about to embark on a
many-thousand-mile journey, and either option is an absolute feat of nature.”
Topics of interest include physiological adaptations in long-distance migrants
and the ecological roles they play in all the habitats they occupy. She has worked for ASI in several capacities
in the past (as volunteer, education intern, and bander) and is joining the
team as a full-time bander for the fall of 2020.
LAUREL DEVANEY, Banding Apprentice
Laurel is a retired education specialist with the US Fish & Wildlife Service. Since retiring, she has focused on her passion for all things avian. She currently volunteers on the Tree Swallow Project and is starting her third season as an apprentice at the banding station.
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DAVID HEJNA, Intern Banding AssistantOriginally from Western New York, David has spent the last 6 years of his professional career working and travelling both internationally, as well as throughout the U.S. He has had the chance to work with everything from cheetahs in Namibia, primates in Panama, and has done many bird and bat related jobs across the U.S. David has been in Fairbanks since the spring of 2018 and has loved every minute of being in Alaska and getting to observe some of the amazing bird species found in this part of the world. Over the years he has become interested in various wildlife topics including the use of acoustic recording units, GIS, and how wildlife species migrate and select habitat. David earned a B.S fro Paul Smith's College; mahoring in Fisheries and Wildlife Science and minoring in Geographic Information Systems.
CHELSEA ARNOLD, Intern Banding Assistant
In 2012 Chelsea started fieldwork in Arizona on a songbird nesting project. That summer job opened her eyes to a wonderful world of demanding, but rewarding work and she quickly fell in love working in the wildlife field. She finished her degree and moved around the country working on various wildlife projects over the next five years. In 2017 Chelsea came to Alaska for a seasonal job and fell in love with the state and all the wild places to explore. She stayed in Alaska since then and continued working with wildlife as well as substitute teaching in Fairbanks. She enjoys hiking, backpacking, packrafting, and skijoring with her dog Maggie.
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MELANIE GRAEFF, Science Education Intern (2019)
Melanie Graeff was born and raised near Dayton, Ohio. She grew up playing soccer and spending time outside. She was recruited to play collegiate soccer at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. During her studies, she expanded her interests to include environmental sciences and regional hydrology. After getting married, she moved west to Olympia, Washington to pursue an environmental degree. Her studies encompassed utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology for mapping the environment, environmental education, climate science, and natural resources management. Her favorite outdoor passions include kayaking, hiking, birding, trail running, fishing, and wildlife photography. After earning her master’s, she got the opportunity to work alongside the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to teach shorebird education along with being a bird guide on several wildlife refuges in WA. In December, 2018, she and her husband moved to Fairbanks and have been pursuing all of its outdoor adventures ever since. She has a B.A. in Geological Sciences and History from Capital University and a master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the Evergreen State College.
ELLEN MUNSHOWER, Boreal Songbird Intern (2019)
I'm a recent graduate from the College of Saint Benedict / Saint John's University in St. Joseph, MN. I graduated with a biology major and an environmental studies minor. While at college I worked as a naturalist aide for an outdoor program that led field trips for students pK-12. I'm originally from a small town in Minnesota. This past summer I worked as an intern at the North American Bear Center in Ely MN, a nonprofit with the goal of educating people about facts about black bears. In my spare time I like to crochet, paint, and birdwatch! I'm very excited to start at the Alaska Songbird Institute and can't wait to see Alaska for the first time!
LORI CHEDISTER, Banding Apprentice (2016 - 2019)
Lori has a BS in Education and an MS in Instructional Technology from Northern Illinois University. A former Illinois middle school Language Arts teacher, she thoroughly enjoys the "outdoor classroom" as well. She is an avid birder who likes traveling to diverse habitats. Southern Texas is her current favorite, with almost 300 species. Her husband works for the federal government in Alaska, where they enjoy hiking, biking, camping and (yes) birding. Their time is spent divided between Alaska, the Chicago suburbs, and enjoying the company of their two children and two grandchildren.
TAIT CHANDLER, Banding Apprentice (2018 - 2019)
Tait started paying attention to birds after spending the summer of 2015 in the Outer Banks of North Carolina as a kayak guide - he noticed that if he identified cool birds, he'd receive more tips! Nothing like a financial incentive to get one motivated. Moving back to Chapel Hill, NC he joined the Chapel Hill Bird Club and was graciously given a pair of his very own binoculars from a long-time birder in the club. He started joining the club on regular outings and logging his sightings on eBird - at one time he was the 24th best birder in all of Orange County! Riding on those laurels, Tait moved up to Fairbanks, Alaska in 2017 to join his now wife who is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Chemical Oceanography at UAF. As soon as he landed, he sought out the birding crowd in his new home, eventually volunteering as an apprentice with the Alaska Songbird Institute (ASI) in the fall of 2018. When not birding, you can find Tait rock climbing at Grapefruit, snowboard-patrolling at Ski Land, cross-country skiing on the Roxie trails or playing Magic: The Gathering with friends at the Comic Shop.
Laura found her way to Fairbanks in 2016.
Since then, she has worked on bird projects all across the state, from
Utqiagvik to Anchorage to Cold Bay. But she loves working with the birds at
Creamer’s Field: “You can’t help but admire them. Either they’re getting ready
to spend a winter at 40 below, or they’re about to embark on a
many-thousand-mile journey, and either option is an absolute feat of nature.”
Topics of interest include physiological adaptations in long-distance migrants
and the ecological roles they play in all the habitats they occupy. She has worked for ASI in several capacities
in the past (as volunteer, education intern, and bander) and is joining the
team as a full-time bander for the fall of 2020.
