The study of bird specimens can provide information on population trends in northern bird species, and on changes in direct factors that cause bird mortality. Bird specimen collections also provide a valuable educational resource. The Yukon University ornithological specimen collection is used by YukonU faculty, students, and researchers in class-based and independent research projects, and is a key component of a larger Yukon natural history collection that is being established at Yukon University in collaboration with other researchers and government agencies.
In this project, Shyloh van Delft, a student in the B.Sc. in Northern Environmental and Conservation Sciences program at Yukon University/University of Alberta, conducted an inventory of the collection of avian study skins housed at YukonU; catalogued, assessed, measured, and prepared all frozen specimens as study skins; and entered data from all new skins (e.g. body length, wing length, foot length, bill length, cause of death, location of collection, etc.) in an existing database for analysis.
Project Team:
Shyloh van Delft, B.Sc. Northern ENCS Program, Yukon University/University of Alberta
Dave Mossop, Professor Emeritus, Yukon University
Dr. Kathryn Aitken, School of Science, Yukon University and Adjunct Professor, Dept. of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Co-supervisor
Project Funders:
This project was partially funded by Yukon University’s Scholarly Activity Grant program (formerly the Yukon College Research Fund), as well as by the YukonU Research Centre.