Heavy Metal Birds #313
April 17, 2015
Image from National Park Service
This week we're learning about the impact that the byproducts of our industrial societies have on avian populations. We'll speak to filmmaker Matthew Podolsky about his documentary "Scavenger Hunt," that looks at the effects of lead on the California Condor. And we'll talk to conservation scientist Alexander Bond about his research on mercury poisoning in the endangered Arctic Ivory Gull.
Guests:
- Matthew Podolsky
- Alex Bond
Guest Bios
Matthew Podolsky
Matthew helped found Wild Lens in 2011 with the goal of bringing biologists and filmmakers together to produce films that would have an impact on critically important wildlife conservation issues. Matthew's first feature length film was "Scavenger Hunt". He has served as producer and co-director of the award winning documentary "Bluebird Man", is a producer on the "Eyes on Conservation" documentary web series, and serves as the host of the "Eyes on Conservation" podcast. Prior to his work with Wild Lens, Matthew spent four years working as a biologist with the endangered California condor, spending time with the wild population of condors in Arizona and Utah, as well as with the captive breeding program for condors in Boise, ID.
Alex Bond
Alex Bond is a Senior Conservation Scientist at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Europe's largest environmental NGO. He works on conservation of species in the UK Overseas Territories, mainly birds of Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic. Previously he was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Saskatchewan, where he conducted a study on mercury in ivory gull populations in the Arctic.
