BIRDSwithFISH is a community science initiative exploring the diets of coastal Oregon birds through non-invasive community sourced photography. It is a project designed to engage experienced nature photographers in Oregon to submit both old and new photos of birds with fish in their bills and talons along the coastline including in the brackish water zones of estuaries and bays.
The inspiration for BIRDSwithFISH began with a review of the 2020 US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) decision not to list tufted puffins under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. In that decision, the USFWS identified some important data gaps for tufted puffins in Oregon, one of which included the question, what are these Oregon birds eating?
You can help researchers at Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center study seabird diet by submitting your photos and contributing to our research efforts. Seabirds are excellent indicators of marine health and by studying their diets we can better our understanding of local ocean conditions. Since the environment is always changing, so are the food sources available to seabirds! We want to continuously monitor seabird diets to understand how these animals are adapting to a changing climate and what threats they may currently face.