Birdsong Study

Join us at the Circle for a morning of local birdsong! Leading us through this avian portal is Dr. Zeka Glucs, Director of the Predatory Bird Research Group also at UC Santa Cruz.

Discover how to pick up more information from your surroundings and begin to dissect the wall of sound that is the dawn chorus of birdsong. There will be something for both true novice bird observers to more experienced bird nerds. 

Zeka will introduce us to bird language and behavior, including what to do when you see a fledgling who might need assistance (or not!). After attending this class, Zeka is also offering forever "email a friend" privileges if you have any questions regarding local birds! Each participant will also receive a recording of the class to keep. 

About Zeka:
Zeka Glucs grew up in the redwood forest just outside of Santa Cruz. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Biology and Management at UC Davis, and then went on to study birds across the state: monitoring migrating hawks in the Marin Headlands with the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, establishing breeding bird survey transects in the Sierra backcountry for the Institute for Bird Populations, and stewarding urban peregrine falcon nest sites for the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group.

Zeka ultimately joined the California Condor Recovery Program, first as a field intern for Ventana Wildlife Society and Pinnacles National Park, then as a doctoral student studying the impacts of lead poisoning on the central coast condor flock. Zeka completed her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology at UC Santa Cruz in 2018, and began her role as Director of the Predatory Bird Research Group also at UC Santa Cruz.

Today you can find her climbing into falcon nests, teaching natural history to undergraduate students, and palling around town with her daughter Phoebe.