Meet the Team

The Woodpecker Cavity Cam project is part of larger work focused on red-headed woodpeckers at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve. Our collaborative effort is guided by a research committee that includes representatives from partner organizations, provides expertise in all areas of red-headed woodpecker monitoring and research, and helps provide direction for efforts to guide best management practices for landowners and land management agencies engaged in oak savanna restoration activities. Fieldwork is conducted by a large number of research technicians, volunteers and scientists: too many to list here! Below are a few of the people who specifically help collect and interpret our trail camera data:

Dr. Elena West

	Dr. West is the Lead Investigator on this project, and an assistant professor in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota. She has extensive experience conducting research on birds across North America, and has led the red-headed woodpecker research at Cedar Creek since 2017. Learn more about Dr. West's research on her blog!

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Dr. Caitlin Barale Potter

Dr. Potter is the education and community engagement coordinator at the Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve. Her day job involves organizing field trips for K-12 students, providing tours of Cedar Creek’s long-term research experiments, running citizen science projects, and more. Caitlin did her Ph.D work studying monkeys in Ethiopia and her true passions all revolve around animals, conservation and connecting people to wildlife. She helps recruit and manage volunteers on red-headed woodpecker project, as well as assisting with the scientific aspects of the work. Learn more about education and public programs at Cedar Creek!

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Dr. James Howitz

Jim received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and doctorate in zoology back when dinosaurs roamed the earth. He has been studying birds at Cedar Creek since 1976, especially Black-capped Chickadees. In 2012, the Red-headed Recovery Project recruited him to begin color-banding red-headed woodpeckers at Cedar Creek. He has assisted with the woodpecker project ever since. He also helps install and maintain trail cameras for this project and monitors the birds, nests, and roosts.

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Siah St. Clair

Siah has a MS degree in Environmental Interpretation from Michigan State University and for 42 years directed nature centers in Connecticut and Minnesota, focusing on environmental education, the lifelong interface of people and nature, and managing natural areas. He is chair of the Red-headed Woodpecker Recovery Project, and serves on the Board of Directors of the Audubon Chapter of Minneapolis. Siah has made 50+ portholes in nest cavities which helps researchers access nestlings for placement of tracking devices, banding, and other data collection. He installs and helps maintain trail cameras and data for this project.

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Kirsti Carr

Kirsti is a former Research Technician on the red-headed woodpecker project and has helped monitor nests, track and band adults and juveniles, and deploy trail cameras which capture the footage for the trail camera project. She has worked on a variety of avian field projects studying loons, montane songbirds, and migrating raptors with the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, and HawkWatch International. Kirsti is very passionate about avian ecology and plans to pursue graduate studies in the near future.

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April Strzelczyk Haverstock

April has been a Research Technician with the Red-headed Woodpecker Project since 2019. She has banded adult and juvenile woodpeckers, monitored nests, collected habitat data, tracked birds using radio-telemetry, and deployed trail cameras to capture images for the Woodpecker Cavity Cam Project. Since graduating with a B.S. degree from Bemidji State University, she has researched and monitored a variety of animals, including white-tailed deer, fisher, Blanding’s turtles, and a number of waterfowl and passerine species. April is passionate about researching human impacts on wildlife populations and hopes to pursue graduate school in the future.

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Funding Acknowledgement

	Funding for this project was provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative‐Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR). The Trust Fund is a permanent fund constitutionally established by the citizens of Minnesota to assist in the protection, conservation, preservation, and enhancement of the state’s air, water, land, fish, wildlife, and other natural resources. Currently 40% of net Minnesota State Lottery proceeds are dedicated to growing the Trust Fund and ensuring future benefits for Minnesota’s environment and natural resources.
	Ongoing financial, volunteer, and logistical support also comes from the Audubon Chapter of Minneapolis. Grants from the St Paul Audubon, Minnesota River Valley Audubon Chapter, Earth Cloud, Patagonia, and many private donors have also made this work possible.

To make a tax-deductible contribution to this work, please visit Dr. West's Bird Ecology and Conservation Research Fund through the University of Minnesota and indicate that you'd like your donation to support red-headed woodpecker research.