PIC PARADIS:--- This Thursday, 26 December, EPIC will begin its 13th year of research studying the songbird populations of St. Maarten. Since 2001, researchers with EPIC have been monitoring bird populations on the island using bird bands to track individual birds. The team is following individual bird health, population trends of resident and migratory birds, as well as the relationship between birds and the habitats they live in.
EPIC staff will be studying the birds in the dry forests on the northern flanks of Pic Paradis. This same site has been used by the team during the entire 13-year period and is one of the longest studied sites in the insular Caribbean. Says Adam Brown, a Senior Biologist with EPIC, "Long-term studies such as these are critical to understanding how environmental and man-made factors affect bird populations."
The public is welcome to come watch the team work and learn more about the birds of the island. Says Brown, "We will have a number of birds in the hand as we are weighing and measuring them, and this is an excellent opportunity for folks to get a close up and personal view of the wonderful birds on the island." After data is collected on the birds, they are released unharmed. EPIC urges persons interested in visiting the site to contact the research team ahead of time either through Facebook https://www.facebook.com/epicislands or it's webpage at www.epicislands.org.
EPIC Press Release