Tom Gavin's December 8, 2011 lecture provided a panoramic reprise of his research career as a field biologist by way of four major projects, all using marked individuals to illuminate larger aspects of animal behavior and ecology.
Gavin explored 1) the naturally skewed mortality pattern in an isolated, non-hunted population of Columbian white-tailed deer; 2) the adult Bobolink's propensity to return to its previously used nesting site despite its annual migratory trip of thousands of miles; 3) how understory forest birds in Costa Rica live in a landscape that has been fragmented by humans; and 4) and the demise and conservation of the Idaho ground squirrel.
The event was hosted by the Cornell Association of Professors Emeriti (CAPE).