I am a PhD student in Computer Science at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington , focusing on bioacoustics and avian species. I live in Ōwhiro Bay, Pōneke (Wellington). I contribute regularly to iNaturalist, Wikipedia, and to eBird, where I am also an eBird reviewer for Addison Co., Vermont and the islands of St. Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha.

On iNaturalist, I have more experience with birds and some terrestrial species. I am particularly interested in studying subspecies identification, nocturnal flight calls for migrating birds, and identifying a range of species when I travel. I am eager to learn more about most life in Aotearoa, and would be more than happy to go out on a bioblitz, answer any questions, or generally share knowledge.

Professional work

My professional focus is on open source communities, the digital commons, and best practices for open source and open science in universities. I have one ornithological poster I presented at the Association of Field Ornithologists in 2022, on renaming types of Bewick Swans.

You can find some of my projects at https://burntfen.com. My published academic research can be found here.

I used to be on the board for the North Branch Nature Center. If you're in Montpelier, VT, check it out.

Languages and regions

I have lived in Aotearoa New Zealand; Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut; Montréal; Malta; Saarbrücken, Germany; and Edinburgh, Scotland; among other places.

I natively speak English (US), have tutored in Latin, and I speak a few other languages conversationally.

Goals

A subset of goals that I am (or was) working towards.

• [ ] To get to 1000 research grade species in New Zealand.
• [ ] To find Yellow Rail breeding in New England.
• [ ] To find Boreal Owl in Vermont (on hold).
• [ ] To find Eastern Screech-Owl in Washington County, Vermont (on hold).
• [ ] To document Phytomyza petoei in the US. See https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/180005720.
• [X] 2023: To reach 1000 life species of birds.
• [ ] To see a Gyrfalcon in the wild.
• [ ] To document and name a species

Fun observations

Some observations I have particularly enjoyed are:

• Phytomyza petoei in Vermont, potentially first in the US
• Oligotrophus oleariae in Wellington, NZ
• Unnamed genus of moth in NZ southern alps
• Nondescript Joeropsis Stubwitcher in Wellington, NZ
• The first Upland Sandpiper in Montpelier in close to two decades, recorded on an NFC mic
• The first Long-billed Dowitcher in Washington County, Vermont
• The first Red-crowned × Yellow-crowned Parakeet Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae × auriceps on iNat and eBird

Other Notes.

It is my intention that all my observations on iNaturalist remain there in perpetuity (i.e. after my death).

Favorite Taxa

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