Members of the Ting Lab defended their proposals on a beautiful day at the UIS Lake Springfield Field Station. Congratulations to master’s students Natalie Barber, Nikki Zuber, and Karina Davis for passing the defense! We look forward to hearing about the exciting findings of each of your respective research projects in the months to come.

Dr. Tih-Fen Ting along with master’s student Natalie Barber volunteered at the Career Sparks STEAM Expo. Career Sparks is a hands-on experience to spark 8th grade students’ interest in careers related to Science, Engineering, Technology, Arts, and Mathematics. Our table introduced students to education opportunities and careers in the natural sciences by displaying photos taken on trail cameras, information on the use of drones in research, and prehistoric and modern-day skulls for students to interact with. 

Dr. Tih-Fen Ting along with master's students Nikki Zuber, Natalie Barber, and Karina Davis attended the 61st annual meeting of the Illinois Chapter of the Wildlife Society (ILTWS). All three students received the ILTWS travel grant, in addition to support from Dr. Ting, to attend the meeting. The lab participated in two hands-on workshops: Rocket Netting and Duck Wing Identification, broadening their research skillset related to waterfowl.

Each student presented posters on their respective thesis work. Karina presented on wetland classification using GeoAI, Natalie presented on how climate change and prey abundance impact osprey reproductive success, and Nikki presented on a productivity assessment and population viability analysis for osprey in Illinois, for which she received the first prize for student poster presentations. Congratulations to Nikki, Natalie, and Karina on a successful 2025 conference!!!

Ting lab members visited the Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference in St. Louis, MO this January. Nikki Zuber, Natalie Barber, and Karina Davis participated in the Structured Decision Making workshop and the Public Land and Natural Resource Policy in North America workshop in addition to attending networking events. All around a great professional development experience for our lab members!

Karina Davis, Nikki Zuber, and Natalie Barber joined the lab during the fall 2024 semester as master's students. Check out the TEAM section to learn more about our new lab members and the research they will be conducting.

The Ting lab has moved to a new on-campus location! The new lab space includes a brand new GRA office and a new organizational system for all of our gear in HSB. We are excited to get everything moved over in the next month just in time for the summer field season. 

the Annual Meeting of the Inland Bird Banding Association (IBBA) just
finished (11/10-11/12). Master's student Lewis Hakam presented a poster on his thesis work  at the meeting. This was made possible by grants he received from the Lincoln Land Association of Bird Banders (LLABB) and the UIS Graduate Student Research Fund. 

Many researchers from across the Midwest attended the meeting, providing valuable networking opportunities for Lewis. The theme of this year's meeting was using autonomous radio telemetry network, called Motus (Latin word for movement), in conjunction with banding to provide insight into the behaviors and movements of birds across the Americas. A Motus workshop on Sunday gave attendees the chance to learn more about current projects, obtaining and setting up a Motus tower, and attaching trackers to birds. Following Motus presentations and an expert panel, Lewis was able to practice using radio telemetry equipment provided by Cellular Tracking Technologies Incorporated (CTT) to located trackers hidden around the Warner Park Nature Center, TN where the conference took place. Congratulations to Lewis on a successful Conference! 

The Annual Meeting of the Illinois Chapter of The Wildlife Society (ICTWS) just finished (04/16-04/18). Dr. Tih-Fen Ting was accompanied by first-year M. S. candidate Lewis Hakam and two senior undergraduates Emily Jones and Sarahi Porcayo who all received the ICTWS travel grant in order to attend the meeting. They also presented posters of their work with osprey and kestrels respectively during the poster presentation session. 

The meeting provided Ting lab students with networking opportunities and exposure to a variety of different wildlife management issues within the state of Illinois. The conference ended with a presentation on drones and their applications for wildlife research and management. Students even flew drones during a live demonstration. Congratulations to the students on a successful 2023 conference! ​

Dr. Tih-Fen Ting and Dr. Robert J. Reber from UIUC recently published observations of Short-eared Owls in the state of Illinois in the Outdoor Illinois Journal. Click the link below to read their article!

UIS undergrads Emily Jones (left) and Sarah Porcayo (Right) are studying the winter survival and habitat use of American Kestrels under the direction of Dr. Tih-Fen Ting. Learn more about their exciting projects by clicking the link below!