Cornell's world famous Lab of Ornithology celebrated 100 years of research, discoveries and innovation Saturday, Sept. 12, at its annual Migration Celebration.
The lab has a rich history, with lore surrounding its 1915 beginnings. It was founded by Arthur Allen, who was hired by Cornell as one of the nation's first ornithology professors, according to Miyoko Chu, senior communications director for the lab.
According to stories told by members of the lab, he posted a handwritten sign outside of the attic of the entomology building that read "Laboratory of Ornithology," and so began one of the world's leading institutions of ornithology research.
While the lab has grown and changed since its humble start in an attic, it has retained some of Allen's original goals and practices.
The lab's role as a leader in technology and its focus on community outreach have not changed, even though the technology itself and the methods of outreach have evolved, according to Chu.
"[Allen] was always on the forefront of technology and using technology in really new and exciting ways to reveal insights about birds," she said.
One of the first technological innovations that stemmed from the lab helped to answer a long-debated question about bird behavior, according to Chu.
Allen was the first person to use a motion picture film to study bird behavior. Use of this technology, which was novel at the time, enabled researchers to determine how certain species of birds make their unique sounds.
In addition, Allen and his colleagues were the first to record bird songs in North America, according to Chu. The recording equipment that existed at the time was heavy and impractical, so Allen worked on improving upon the technology to make it more suitable for capturing wildlife sounds. Today, the lab has the world's largest archive of natural sounds.
Chu said the lab has always involved the public in its study of birds. In the early days of the lab, Allen led bird walks in the Sapsucker Woods and had a radio show about the biology of birds, which helped establish connections between the public and birds.
Scientists at the lab are currently working on a project that is "an inspirational blend of the technology, the public engagement and the science, as well as conservation, which is ever more important today than it was in Arthur Allen's time," Chu said.
The project, "eBird," allows people all over the world to record online what birds they have seen. More than 200 million observations of bird have already been reported.
"What is so powerful about that is that it has basically turned bird study into a big data engine," Chu said. "We can now create dynamic maps of where birds are migrating, which we could never do with such precision before."
eBird is helping to advance the Lab's mission of "discovery, interpretation and conservation," Chu said. eBird data has helped the nature conservancy efficiently spend conservation dollars to create temporary habitats for migrating birds at the exact time and place they are needed.
"This has really changed the landscape for understanding big phenomena like migration, climate change, and habitat use," Chu said. It has all been possible because people who are watching birds are willing and able now to share their data instantaneously online."
In celebration of its centennial anniversary, the lab will open up its behind the scenes areas at the annual migration celebration Saturday.
"People will be able to come back and look at the areas where scientists, educators and engineers are working on these innovative solutions for research and conservation," Chu said.
Additionally, visitors will be able to examine research from diverse sources, including specimens from the Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates, the DNA laboratory and the Macaulay Library, which houses the archives of bird sounds.
--Cornell Daily Sun
