Blake Hepner
Seasonal Wildlife Biologist
Education
B.A. Biology concentration in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Cornell University
Research/Career Interests
I am happy to return to IWS for my 10th season working as a seasonal technician for the San Clemente Island Bell’s Sparrow project. In addition to conducting breeding season surveys across the island to generate a population estimate of the recently delisted San Clemente Island Bell’s sparrow, we monitor nesting and reproductive success across the island and collect vegetation data to help map and document viable sparrow habitat.
I developed my passion for ecology and ornithology from spending my childhood summers exploring the coastal forests of Maine. Since graduating from college, I have traveled across the globe working as a field technician for a variety of ecological research projects. Highlights include: monitoring Louisiana waterthrush populations in the mountainous riparian habitat of West Virginia, fall raptor counting in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana, electrofishing in the inner canyon of Grand Canyon NP, and monitoring red-backed fairywrens in the dry eucalyptus forest of Queensland, Australia. In my free time, I enjoy exploring the natural areas around San Diego, camping, and running.