David C. Evers, PhD

From the moment he captured his first loon on Michigan’s Seney National Wildlife Refuge, David Evers has been a champion of wildlife, incorporating innovative approaches to traditional research methods. As the founder, executive director, and chief scientist of BRI, Dr. Evers has made great strides in bringing critical ecological issues to the forefront of our nation’s and the world’s consciousness. He regularly develops collaborations and working groups, often working at regional and international scales with scientists, federal and state governmental agencies, universities and research institutes, as well as other nonprofit organizations.

Dr. Evers specializes in research on ecotoxicology with an emphasis on the patterns of methylmercury and oil exposure and effects in wildlife, especially birds such as the Common Loon. Current projects include research and conservation efforts with various loon species across North America as well as assessments of mercury in fish and wildlife across Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America. Through BRI’s Center for Waterbird Studies, Dr. Evers oversees the largest conservation project on the Common Loon in partnership with the Ricketts Conservation Foundation. Through BRI’s Center for Mercury Studies, he oversees several ongoing national and international mercury monitoring networks and database summary efforts, including new projects and partnerships with the Fate and Transport Partnership Group of the United Nations Environment Programme, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the International Council on Mercury as a Global Pollutant, and the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

During his graduate studies, Dr. Evers worked as a field ornithologist for the Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas and as a wildlife ecologist for the Kalamazoo Nature Center. In 1991, he became executive director of the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory. In 1998, he founded BRI to further progressive wildlife research and conservation. He also holds positions as adjunct professor at both the University of Southern Maine, where he teaches ornithology, and the University of Maine at Orono. He is also the adjunct senior scientist at the University of Southern Maine's Center for Integrated and Applied Environmental technology. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and presented his research in more than 200 professional venues.

Education:
Ph.D., Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota, 2001
M.S., Ecology, Western Michigan University, 1992
B.S., Wildlife Management, Michigan State University, 1984