BRI News Archive
A feature article that compiles the scientific evidence for why bird conservation is so critical to humanity. BRI's Adirondack Loon Study is quoted under the section "Winged Sentinels."
Still endangered in Maine, the species is recovering from devastating effects of DDT in the 1960s.
By North Cairn
BRI research is featured in the March issue of Discover Magazine.
Scientists are only beginning to understand the impacts of mercury contamination on birds, fish, and other wildlife populations. But what they are finding is alarming — even low levels can cause harm, and chronic exposure has unexpected and troubling effects.
by Rebecca Kessler
David Evers speaks to Steve Curwood, host of NPR's Living on Earth, about BRI's new report that describes hotspots of unsafe mercury levels around the world.
Negotiators Seek to Finalize Mercury Treaty As Groups Warn About Cost of Inaction
By: International Environment Reporter
Mercury poisoning is a growing global menace we have to address
Progressive Radio Network
84% of fish have mercury contamination, new study finds; united nations seeks treaty to reduce mercury poisoning
Mercury poisoning is a growing global menace we have to address
By: Robert F Kennedy Jr and Marc A Yaggi
Study By Researchers in Gorham Warns of Mercury in Fish
Maine Public Broadcasting Network
NEARLY A year ago, I interviewed David Evers, the executive director of Maine’s Biodiversity Research Institute, on the revelation that insect-eating inland songbirds can accumulate mercury at dangerous levels every bit as much as fish-eating river and coastal birds. He called the findings a “game-changing paradigm shift” for understanding mercury’s pernicious presence.
A new scientific report finds that humans and marine ecosystems around the world are contaminated with mercury and that mercury levels in humans and fish regularly exceed health advisory guidelines. The report, a collaboration between IPEN and Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI), highlights the urgent need for an overall reduction in mercury emissions when government delegates convene next week in Geneva in their final negotiating session to establish an international mercury treaty – the first global treaty on the environment in more than a decade by the United Nations Environment Programme.
Biodiversity Research Institute announced that the Institute has endorsed a technical-scientific cooperation agreement on the issue of mercury with México’s major federal environmental agency, the National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change (INECC). The agreement allows the Maine wildlife research group to conduct scientific research in México in full cooperation with that country’s federal government.
TORONTO – The current health benchmarks for mercury levels in fish are outdated and inadequate and should be strengthened worldwide, according to two international reports released on Tuesday.
Scientists say that consuming fish may be more hazardous to your health than you think, according to new reports published this week.
New reports released today find that mercury is widespread in fish, and that mercury exposure can be dangerous to human health at lower levels than previously thought. Maine Things Considered host Tom Porter spoke with Dr. David Evers, the executive director and chief scientist of the Biodiversity Research Institute, in Gorham, Maine, which released the latest data.
A report to be released Tuesday by the Biodiversity Research Institute in Gorham evaluates the amount of mercury in fish species around the world and suggests that levels of the toxin previously deemed safe are probably not.
Biodiversity Research Institute Invites You to a Global Webinar on New Findings on Mercury Exposure and Contamination
On December 4, 2012, the Zero Mercury Working Group, in cooperation with scientists from Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) and other prominent scientists, is organizing a global webinar to release new findings that demonstrate extensive mercury contamination of seafood and to summarize recent studies that show health effects from methylmercury occurring below the level that was considered “safe” just a few years ago. Scientists will highlight new research and explain why current government “safety limits” should be strengthened worldwide. The report will be released accompanied by a press release on December 4. This comes ahead of the final round of United Nations negotiations, scheduled in January 2013, for a global mercury treaty.
Click here for more information: http://www.briloon.org/uploads/BRI/index/FINALZMWG_MEDIA_%20ADVISORY.pdf
If you have questions please contact Deborah McKew at 207-839-7600 X222
The Maine Medical Center Research Institute Vector-borne Disease Lab (MMC) announces that it has received funding support from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund to conduct surveillance for Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEv) in Maine’s songbirds in 2013. This funding was awarded following a collaborative pilot study in 2012 between MMC and the Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI), which found 7.4% of 28 songbirds sampled in the spring tested positive, indicating exposure to the disease. An additional 46 samples from the fall will be processed at the Centers for Disease Control in Fort Collins, CO.
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) announces its fourth annual Spotlight on Ecoscience event, which will feature internationally renowned conservation biologist Thomas E. Lovejoy, Ph.D. This public presentation will be held on Wednesday, November 14 in the Hannaford Lecture Hall, Abromsom Center, at the University of Southern Maine's Portland campus. Opening remarks will begin at 7:00 pm, with a cocktail reception preceding at 6:00 pm.
Dr. H. Bruce Rinker, BRI’s director of scientific advancement and development, will speak at the 4th international EcoSummit in Columbus, Ohio (September 30 to October 5, 2012) on forest systems and Gaia theory.
BRI's Executive Director and naturalist Jim Fowler speak about biodiversity on MPBN's Maine Calling. Listen to the entire show here.
Reported By: Susan Sharon
BRI has been featured in a story by Portland Press Herald staff writer North Caim.
BRI's Executive Director to Speak at the International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment
David C. Evers, Ph.D., executive director of Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI), will present current mercury research at a special session at the 16th International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment (ICHMET) on September 26 in Rome, Italy.
BRI biologist Mike Chickering is featured in a National Public Radio broadcast.
You can listen to the full story here.
BRI biologist Mike Chickering is featured in a Maine Public Radio broadcast.
You can listen to the full story here.
In the early 1960s, a visionary American scientist named Gene Likens and his team were the first to show that acidified precipitation was damaging to ecosystems and human health, and this harmful “acid rain” was the direct result of smokestack and other emissions.
Read the entire piece here.
Wing asymmetry spells trouble for long-distance migrators like willets, says Dave Evers of the Biodiversity Research Institute. He's been researching the effects of mercury on wildlife for years and first discovered the problem of wing asymmetry in loons. More recently, he's documented mercury's impact on insect-eating songbirds.
Read the full story here.
Albany, NY–An extensive study of New York’s Adirondack loon population has revealed that mercury contamination can lead to population declines of the iconic bird. The research effort was a joint project between the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).
With Senator James Inhofe's (R-OK) move to roll back the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate mercury -- both now and in the future -- the threat to the health of Americans is in the balance.
Dr. David Evers To Speak As Part Of The Great Lakes Air Deposition Atmospheric Toxics Webinar Series
The Atmospheric Toxics Webinar Series showcases recent research findings supported by the Great Lakes Air Deposition (GLAD) program. Dr. David Evers speaks about Intergrating Multimedia Measurements of Mercury in the Great Lakes Region on July 24, 2012, 2pm-4pm (ET).
Ever wonder what 's lurking in Falmouth's River Point Conservation Area? The Falmouth Conservation Commission and the Biodiversity Research Institute of Gorham are hoping to find out when they conduct one of the state's largest "Bio Blitzes" June 29-30.
Recently the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) and the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) came together in a major effort to assess the seabirds of the Cay Sal Bank.
Recently, the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) and the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) came together in a major effort to assess the searbirds of the Cay Sal Bank.
Recently the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, Biodiversity Research Institute and the Bahamas National Trust came together in a major effort to assess the seabirds of the Cay Sal Bank.
BRI Executive Director, David Evers, Ph.D., speaks with the WAMC radio program EarthWise about the dangers of mercury in the environment.
BRI’s director of scientific advancement and development is featured in a new documentary called “Mahahual: Paradise Is Not Recyclable,” which draws attention to the problem of plastics pollution in our oceans. The documentary, an initiative by Sustenta.com and produced by Calypso Films, will debut on May 29 in Mexico.
The Muskie School of Public Service features BRI’s osprey work in their spring newsletter Connections: Environment, Economy, Community. The article, written by Chris DeSorbo, director of BRI’s raptor program, describes our surveys of osprey populations on Casco Bay.
One of the biggest contributors to the decline in migratory bird populations has gone largely unnoticed: white-tailed deer.
Last night, the first of four Peregrine Falcon eggs hatched at a nest site being monitored by Biodiversity Research Institute’s Peregrinecam live webcam.
BRI executive director, David Evers, published an editorial in the March issue of Science Chronicles. He collaborated on this piece with Tim Tear, director of conservation science for The Nature Conservancy in New York, and David Higby, director of federal government relations for The Nature Conservancy in New York.
Biologists at Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) confirmed today that the NextEra Maine Eaglecam1, located in Hancock Co., ME, has captured a bald eagle laying its first egg of the season; the egg was laid on March 26 and eagle behavior confirmed the egg on March 27. The webcam is one of two eagle web cameras set up and sponsored by NextEra Energy Resources and hosted and monitored by BRI that captures the breeding activity of these raptors in real time.
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) announced today that its webcam has captured a peregrine falcon laying its first egg of the season; the egg was dropped in the early morning on Friday, March 16.
BRI marine bird scientist, Dr. Iain Stenhouse, is featured in the March-April 2012 issue of Audubon Magazine, Scott Weidensaul’s story, “Unlocking Migration’s Secrets.” Scientists are tapping into new technologies to uncover these secrets, and in the process are transforming everything we know – or think we know – about birds.
The Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) has an opening for a Wildlife Biologist with experience in boat surveys for marine birds and/or cetaceans. BRI is a growing non-profit based out of Gorham, ME. The mission is to assess emerging threats to wildlife and ecosystems through collaborative research, and to use scientific findings to advance environmental awareness and inform decision makers. Duties will include species identification of seabirds, cetaceans and other wildlife in aerial video footage; acting as an observer on offshore boat surveys; and project administration responsibilities. This is a full-time, one year position with possibility of extension. Approximate start date is March 19, 2012. Weather and other factors determine the work schedule. Position will be based in Maine, but the successful applicant must have ability to travel.
An exquisite Mexico beach, cursed by plastic
Sea currents act like a conveyor belt, depositing trash on a remote stretch of sand in an ecologically rich region of coral reef and mangrove forests. Locals can only pick up the pieces, bit by bit.
By Ken Ellingwood, Los Angeles Times
Written by Robert Lalasz
Published on January 24th, 2012
THIRTY YEARS AGO, WHEN I RETURNED TO NEW HAMPSHIRE’S Loon Preservation Committee as its director, the outfit was distributing a brochure entitled !e Vanishing Loon.
Reported By: Susan Sharon
A new report by the Gorham-based Biodiversity Research Institute and the Nature Conservancy finds high levels of mercury contamination in songbirds and bats throughout 11 Northeastern states. While the risk of the pollutant to people is well documented through the consumption of fish, this study finds that mercury concentrations in a wide-ranging number of birds and bats are enough to cause physiological and reproductive harm. And it's expected to cause a shift in ecotoxicological research and monitoring.
Written by Robert Lalasz
Published on January 24th, 2012
By ANTHONY DePALMA
Songbirds and bats suffer some of the same types of neurological disorders from mercury as humans and especially children do, says the study, “Hidden Risk,” by the Biodiversity Research Institute, a nonprofit organization in Gorham, Me., that investigates emerging environmental threats.
Topic: Wind Power Development and Wildlife
BRI Partners with the International POPs Elimination Network for a Global Mercury Monitoring Project
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) announced today its partnership with IPEN (International POPs Elimination Network*) to conduct a joint mercury research and monitoring study. The goals of this Global Fish and Community Mercury Monitoring Project include generating new scientific data, raising awareness about global mercury pollution, and identifying mercury hotspots, primarily in developing and transition countries throughout Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
Listen as BRI biologists Patrick Keenan and Kate Williams set out into the field in search of saw-whet owls, and Susan Sharon of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network tags along.
Gorham, ME -- Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) announced today the launch of its new Wildlife Science and Marine Wind Energy Initiative, an international collaborative effort to inform policy makers and the public about areas of scientific consensus regarding the effects of marine wind energy development to wildlife.
The Initiative will kick off with a two day workshop that will bring leaders in this field together for the first time to pool their knowledge base.
Please join us for a discussion of the state of the science on mercury pollution and its long-term impacts on the nation’s ecosystems. This panel discussion will highlight policy-relevant findings from a major new scientific study by the Biodiversity Research Institute on mercury in the Great Lakes region that has been widely reported on in the media. The research suggests that the extent and severity of mercury in the Great Lakes region is greater than previously documented. New information will be presented on mercury levels in fish and wildlife and the health risks they pose. Highlights from mercury research in the Northeast will be provided. The panel will also introduce an upcoming national report by the Ecological Society of America on a range of air pollutants and their impacts on natural resources.
HEALTH RISK: ‘If you’re pregnant or planning to get pregnant you want to reduce fish consumption as much as possible’
By JOHN MINER, THE LONDON FREE PRESS
This is a test
Gorham, ME – Biodiversity Research Institute announces the award of a three-year, $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to collect ecological data--on birds, sea turtles, and marine mammals--that is required to inform siting and permitting processes for offshore wind energy development in the mid-Atlantic.
Gorham, ME — Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) today announced the appointment of Jonathan L. Atwood, Ph.D. as science director. In this newly created position, Atwood, educator, ornithologist, and conservation biologist, will be responsible for managing the Institute’s staff of 20 researchers working in 10 wildlife science programs.
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) today announced the appointment of H. Bruce Rinker, Ph.D. as director of scientific advancement and development. In this newly created position, Rinker will build on the Institute’s strength as an innovator of wildlife science to further develop external relationships within the scientific and philanthropic communities.
In early 2012 Dr. Jim Paruk will be leading an Earthwatch Institute expedition studying the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the common loon population in the Gulf of Mexico.
Seabirds declining as eagles in Maine recover - By Bill Trotter, BDN Staff
Bill Trotter speaks with Dr. Iain Stenhouse regarding declines in Marine birds on the coast of Maine.
Call of the Wild - BRI scientists provide insight about the common loon in this in-depth story by Kristen Laine.
Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI) has established a new Wildlife and Renewable Energy Program to study and understand the movements of birds and bats and to assess the potential interactions between energy facilities and wildlife.
In partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), BRI is contributing in multiple ways toward the first international treaty of a globally binding instrument on mercury. The goal is for the intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) to complete a document for the Governing Council by 2013.
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins has introduced legislation to create a comprehensive new program to measure mercury levels across the United States. The bipartisan "Comprehensive National Mercury Monitoring Act" is cosponsored by Senator Tom Carper (D-DE).
BRI's work with Northern Saw-Whet Owls in coastal Maine featured in Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Magazine.