BHAS Monthly Speaker Series – Western Bluebird/Gary Slater

The Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana) was a common inhabitant in oak-prairie and other open habitats in western Washington and southwestern British Columbia until the early-1900’s when habitat loss and fragmentation and competition for nest cavities from exotic species triggered a wave of extirpations across the region. Since 2007, the Western Bluebird has been the subject of a large-scale reintroduction project. Join us as Gary Slater, Avian Ecologist for CNLM, provides an update on the reintroduction, discusses the progress and setbacks to this conservation program, and describes the important role that South Puget Sound and private landowners play in the recovery of this iconic species.

Gary Slater is an Avian Ecologist for the Center for Natural Lands Management (CNLM). His current research focuses on the reintroduction ecology of passerine and avian-habitat relationships in prairie-oak habitats in South Puget Sound.

He received a B.S. in Wildlife Science from Purdue University (1989) and a M.S. in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Florida (1997).

BHAS speaker series is held on the second Thursday of each month (except March, June, July, and August) at the Temple Beth Hatfiloh (corner of 8th and Washington in downtown Olympia, a block west of Timberland Library). Arrive at 7 p.m. to socialize; programs begin promptly at 7:30 pm.