Together with their collaborators Felicia Sanders (South Carolina Department of Natural Resources) and Andy Johnson (Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Multimedia Department), Master's student Maina Handmaker and her mentor Dr. Nathan Senner are investigating how human disturbances can reduce the quantity and quality of habitats available for long-distance migratory birds. Their new study titled "Nocturnal roost on South Carolina coast supports nearly half of Atlantic coast population of Hudsonian Whimbrel Numenius hudsonicus during northward migration" describes the discovery of the largest known Whimbrel nocturnal roost in the Western Hemisphere at Deveaux Bank, South Carolina. Since Hudsonian Whimbrel Numenius hudsonicus are rapidly declining, this discovery has conservation implications throughout the flyway and presents a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of the role nocturnal roost sites play in the staging ecology of Whimbrel. This important work has been featured in the AAAS News release EurekAlert! and also in a short film made by the Conservation Media Center at the Cornell Lab. Congrats!