Final Project - Brais Marchena

AVES

By Brais Marchena

As a kid, I was always inspired by the natural world. For sixteen years I lived on the boundary of one of the most important national parks in Panama. I grew up with the privilege of having contact with wildlife daily. Toucans, macaws, and birds in general always called my attention more strongly. I come from a country with more bird species than Canada and the United States together, with 1,002 species as of December 2016.Through different internship opportunities I have developed a deep interest for birding, and the skills to identify several species.

As a Biology major, I have been taught the distinguishing characteristics of this taxon of animals. All birds fall into the class Aves, warm blooded endothermic animals covered in feathers. These animals are of great value to Biologist. They serve as indicators of the health of an ecosystem, because of their sensibility to stimuli. They are also the protagonists of on the most awe inspiring phenomena in the natural world, migration. Some travel over 40,000 miles driven by nothing more than their instinct to survive.

Birds are ubiquitous in human history. In Ancient Greece, pigeons were used to deliver the results of the Olympic Games. Today, exotic birds are a common occurrence in homes around the world. Because of this lots of species have been declared  endangered mainly due to illegal pet trade and habitat destruction. Some genera have been domesticated over course of the years, others have been exploited exclusively through “sports” like hunting. Under the believe that preserving natural resources results in greater benefit than over exploitation. A tradition of hundreds of years was changed for the better. In the early days of Wildlife Conservation, the proposal a new holiday tradition—a "Christmas Bird Census" that would count birds during the holidays rather than hunt them was born. My work hopes to mimic the idea of appreciating birds without causing any harm, and promote conservation.

A great inspiration for my fascination for birds is James Audubon’s work on documenting wildlife in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. He captured hundreds of portraits that depicted the animals around him. As a wildlife enthusiast with a camera, I was motivated to capture the wildlife around me. In my mind, birds are the best representatives of an ecosystem. This collection aims to shine light into this amazing animals, often disregarded because of lack of knowledge. With this work, I also hope to encourage others to get out there and document the birdlife of their community. Even if you are an amateur birder, there’s an array of apps that guide you through the process. This information serves biologists to assess the current status of an ecosystem. All the photos were shot in Sanpete County during May of 2017. For this project patience was key, with no deliberate design but rather one created by an opportunistic approach.