Renowned Bird Conservation Group Moves to Petaluma
By Jose L. Sanchez Jr.
Saturday, May 13, 2006
One of the country's most respected bird conservation research organizations has moved from Marin County to the edge of the Petaluma marsh.
PRBO Conservation Science's move to a specially designed building at a south Petaluma business park means it now has much more space -- 20,000 square feet -- and the kind of labs and high-speed Internet access to take its work to a higher level, said Ellie Cohen, the organization's executive director.The agency was formerly known as Point Reyes Bird Observatory.
``We use bird ecology studies to understand what is happening in the ecosystem and to advance more effective conservation,'' Cohen said.
``We're very excited to be here,'' she said as she pointed out different kinds of birds nesting on little islands in a restored marsh at Shollenberger Park, only a few steps from the new PRBO building.
``The Petaluma tidal marsh is one of the largest ancient marshes in the United States,'' Cohen said. ``It's very special habitat that supports many different kinds of birds. There is potential to do a lot more research on this marsh.''
PRBO already is studying two species of birds that live along the Petaluma River, she said.
PRBO had not originally thought to move so far north from its original home in Stinson Beach but was invited to check out Petaluma by local conservation enthusiasts such as Gerald Moore of the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance and David Yearsley of Friends of the Petaluma River, Cohen said.
``This is a feather in Sonoma County's cap,'' said Ted Eliot, co-chairman of the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District and a former PRBO board member.
``PRBO is a world-class provider of conservation science, one of the most respected organizations of its kind,'' said Mark Reynolds, a senior biologist with the Nature Conservancy in San Francisco. ``Those of us in the conservation world look to them to provide leadership on bird conservation and ecosystems,'' he said.
The organization has 85 permanent employees, 25 seasonal biologists and 80 interns who conduct research in western North America, from the Arctic to the Caribbean, and in Antarctica. It has 65 contracts with public and private entities and an annual budget of $5.9 million.
One of its specialties is the restoration of tidal marshes and it is providing advice on how to restore 100,000 acres of wetlands around San Francisco Bay, from the Sonoma Coast to the South Bay.
The science of wetlands restoration is still in its infancy, Cohen said. In studying the South Bay's ecology, PRBO scientists made an unexpected discovery, she said. It was first thought that all the salt evaporation ponds in the area needed to be removed. But researchers discovered that leaving some ponds with higher-than-normal salinity was beneficial to several species because the salt promotes the growth of some organisms on which they feed.
PRBO's presence in Petaluma will provide easier access for residents to the organizations' conferences and talks, some of which are open to the public, Cohen said. The agency's community room also will be made available for use by community groups, she said.
PRBO also conducts an extensive community education program that includes working with educators and students in conducting field studies and training teachers in project-based conservation education.
A public building dedication is scheduled for 9 a.m. May 21. For more information, call 781-2555.
You can reach Staff Writer Jose L. Sanchez Jr. at 762-7297 or jsanchez@pressdemocrat.com.Ellie Cohen is the director of PRBO Conservation Science, which has its new headquarters on the edge of Shollenberger Park in Petaluma.
© The Press Democrat. For copyright information visit our User Agreement page at
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/services/agreement.html