Ava Hayes

Conducted field research, monitoring, management, and protection of coastal birds and natural resources

• Collected biological data on nesting, foraging and migrating species of threatened coastal waterbirds, including abundance and distribution of target species
• Performed the wildlife management, protection, and education objectives of the Coastal Waterbird Program
• Assisted in management of databases including abundance, productivity and behavioral data; created and maintained online maps for nesting and management activities

Investigated crucial ecological factors influencing the habitat suitability and utilization of the endemic New Zealand long-tailed bat in fragmented landscapes

• Surveyed vegetation diversity and abundance via Reconnaissance plot analysis of 4500+ plants and 50+ species across private lands, with usage of iNaturalist
• Inspected insect diversity and abundance by use of trapping, guano collection, and microscopic analysis of 1200+ insects to investigate bat foraging habits
• Analyzed correlated mass data sets and identified significant trends using relevant statistical methods

Performed in-depth audio analysis to explore the extent of intraspecific acoustic communication spectrum and identify potential distress calls

• Analyzed 500+ spectrogram audio files in Audacity and RavenPro software to identify the presence of low frequency vocalizations
• Investigated potential trends within audio data, including temporal factors and presence of potential disruptors such as high amplitude ambient noise