Susan Haig

Courtesy Appointment
susan_haig [at] usgs.gov

Office: 541-750-7482

Processes affecting persistence/extinction of small populations, conservation genetics, behavioral ecology of shorebirds, wetland ecology, mating systems.

Avian Population Genetics

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At OSU

Affiliated with:

Fisheries and Wildlife

Courses Taught:

FW 599 Special topics on birds and populations

Beyond OSU

Personal Links:

Migratory Connectivity Project

Biography

Beyond OSU

Susan Haig spent 30 years as a federal scientist, mostly working at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center on the OSU Campus. She concurrently held a courtesy faculty appointment in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at OSU where she attained the rank of Full Professor. At the USGS, she attained the rank of Senior Scientist (ST), and was only the third woman in the history of USGS to attain this rank. She retired from USGS in 2019 but remains a courtesy faculty member at OSU working on various research projects dealing with population genetics and recovery of small populations.

During her career, Dr. Haig maintained a Research Associate appointment with the Smithsonian Institution beginning with her postdoctoral fellowship at the National Zoo in 1987.

In 2008, she co-founded the Migratory Connectivity Project with Peter Marra from the Smithsonian Institution. Among MCPs many activities, she sponsored courses on movement ecology for graduate students in Latin America with in-person courses offered at OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center (Newport, OR), Mazatlan Mexico and Rio De Janiero, Brazil.

With funding as a Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Haig taught courses at the National Museum of Kenya (2011) and the University of Namibia (2015).

From 2012-2014, she served as President of the American Ornithologists’ Union, the largest professional ornithological society in the world.

Throughout her career, Dr. Haig has served on many endangered species recovery teams (e.g., Piping Plover, Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Puerto Rican Parrot, Red Wolf, California Condor, Guam Rail, Micronesian Kingfisher, Mariana Crow, Northern Spotted Owl-Canada, Prairie Chicken) and lead the Great Lakes/Northern Great Plains Piping Plover Recovery Team for 12 years.

Professional Accomplishments

Education:

Ph.D. - 1987 - Biology, Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND
B.S. - 1979 - Biology, Northland College, Ashland, WI

My Awards

Honors and Awards:

Peter Stettenheim Service Award, American Ornithological Society 2020

Distinguished Service Award, U.S. Department of the Interior 2019

Blue Pencil Award for Excellence, National Association of Government Communicators 2019

Keynote Address, Willamette Valley Bird Symposium (Corvallis, OR) 2017

Inagural Lecture, Brazilian Ornithological Congress (Pirenopolis, Brazil) 2016

Promoted to Senior Scientist (ST), U.S. Geological Survey 2014

Plenary Speaker, Annual meeting of the American Ornithologists’ Union and Cooper Ornithological Society (Estes Park, CO) 2014

Harry R. Painton Award, Cooper Ornithological Society, for best paper published in The Condor over the past 4 years (w/H. Draheim, P. Baird). 2013

President, American Ornithologists’ Union 2012-2014

Paper on Guam Rail genetics chosen as one of 16 most influential conservation genetics papers published in Conservation Biology over the past 25 years. 2012

Loye and Alden Miller Award for lifetime achievement in ornithological research. Cooper Ornithological Society 2011

J. William Fulbright Specialist Award for teaching in Kenya and Namibia 2011-15

USGS Star Award for development of IUCN Migratory Connectivity Task Force 2011

USGS Star Award for coordination of annual meetings of the American Ornithologists Union, Cooper Ornithological Society, and Society of Canadian Ornithologists 2008

Superior Service Award, U.S. Department of the Interior 2007

Trends in Ecology and Evolution paper identified as on a “Fast Moving Front” by Essential Science Indicators 2007

USGS Star award for cooperation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Snowy Plover listing and recovery issues. 2006

Recognition, Conservation Genetics Symposium, The Wildlife Society. 2006

USGS Star award for cooperation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Spotted Owl recovery issues. 2004

Environmental Achievement Award, Northland College 2002

Outstanding Scientist Award, USGS-FRESC 2001

Certificate of Appreciation for Piping Plover Recovery Efforts, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 2001

Fellow, American Ornithologists Union 2000

Performance Award, National Biological Service 1996

Elective Member, American Ornithologists Union 1993

Honorary Lifetime Member, Wisconsin Society for Ornithology 1992

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Activity Service Award 1991

Friends of the National Zoo Postdoctoral Fellowship 1989

Best Paper, Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference 1989

Smithsonian Institution Molecular Genetics Fellowship 1988

Smithsonian Institution Postdoctoral Fellowship 1987

University of North Dakota Biology Faculty Outstanding Graduate Research Award 1987

University of North Dakota Doctoral Fellowship 1986

Marcia B. Tucker Travel Award, American Ornithologists Union 1986

Bell Memorial Scholarship, Delta Waterfowl Research Station 1985

Delta Former Student Award, Delta Waterfowl Research Station 1985

My Media

My News Articles:

On the Wing: The East End's Most Controversial Bird

Susan Haig, a professor of wildlife ecology at Oregon State University, has been studying the plover for decades. She says the presence of plovers indicate the quality of a beach. If they're present, that's a good sign.

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Susan Haig

On the Wing: The East End's Most Controversial Bird

On the Wing: The East End's Most Controversial Bird

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