DPhil. Student

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Kurt Burnham

Kurt Burnham

Details

Name: Kurt Burnham
Position: DPhil. Student
Email: kurt@peregrinefund.org

Autobiography

I graduated from Albertson College of Idaho in 1997 with a B.S. in biology. Since then I have worked for The Peregrine Fund, www.peregrinefund.org, as their Arctic Projects Director. In 2001 I began work on my DPhil at the EGI under the supervision of Ian Newton and Andrew Gosler. My research is focused on the biology and ecology of Gyrfalcons and Peregrine Falcons in Greenland.

Research Activities

The primary focus of my research on Gyrfalcons and Peregrine Falcons in Greenland includes five main topics (1) the use of satellite telemetry to track falcons year round, (2) the use of mitochondrial DNA and microsatellites to identify whether genetically different populations of Peregrines exist in Greenland and to create a phylogeography of Gyrfalcons, (3) analyses of long-term population trends of both falcon species in Greenland, (4) carbon dating of accumulated guano samples at Gyrfalcon eyries to determine colonization and long-term nest site use, and (5) effects of climate change on falcon populations throughout Greenland.

Selected Recent Papers

Hunt, W.G, Burnham, W., Parish, C.N., Burnham, K.K., Mutch, B. & Oaks, J.L. 2006. Bullet Fragments in Deer Remains: Implications for Lead Exposure in Avian Scavengers. Wildlife Society Bulletin. 34(1): 167-170

Burnham, W., Burnham, K.K. & Cade, T.J. 2005. Past and present assessments of bird life in Uummannaq District, West Greenland. Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidsskr. 99: 196-208.

Burnham, K.K. & Burnham, W. 2005. Dovekie response to Glaucous Gull behavior and approach in North Greenland. Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidsskr. 99: 115-118

Johnson, J.A., Burnham, K.K., Burnham, W.A. & Mindell, D.P. (in review) Phylogeography of a circumpolar Arctic species: the Gyrfalcon. Molecular Ecology.

Burnham, K.K. & Burnham, W.A. (in prep) Biology and population history of Peregrine Falcons in High Arctic Greenland.

Burnham, K.K. & Burnham, W.A. (in prep) Migration strategies of Gyrfalcons in Greenland.

Burnham, K.K. & Burnham, W.A. (in prep) Gyrfalcon colonization and long-term use of nest sites in central-west Greenland.