Linda Long is retiring from an almost 30-year career as a wildlife biologist for the Pacific Southwest Research Station.

Her deep connection to nature and wildlife started as a child, and eventually led to her current career. Growing up in Seattle, Washington, Long has fond memories of visiting her grandparents at their vacation cabin on a lake just outside of the city.

That connection to the outdoors stayed with Long and inspired her academic career. She remembers learning about wildlife biology as a possible profession at a high school career fair. “It appealed to me because I wanted to be outdoors and work with animals.”

Attending Washington State University, Long majored in wildlife biology, which helped get her out in the field. The summer of her senior year she landed a position monitoring deer populations and habitat.

She enjoyed the work, which further fueled her resolve to pursue a wildlife-related career. But at the time, in the late 1970s, wildlife jobs were few and far between. Long was amenable to doing whatever work would give her a “foot in the door.”

Her openness to new experiences led to a position measuring radiation levels on an nuclear-powered aircraft carrier at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and another caring for laboratory animals at a Veteran’s Administration medical research facility.

Her plan paid off, as Long soon after started a wildlife job as a biological technician for the Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge in Illinois. Before working for the refuge, Long never considered ‘birds as her forte,’ but her experience in this job changed that perception.

Walking along the over 4,400-acre refuge, Long monitored and surveyed diverse bird species. She observed birds ranging from American widgeons to bald eagles that captivated her. It was also quite the education as Long watched bald eagles swoop down and sink their talons into injured ducks. “Many people don’t realize bald eagles are scavengers as well as fish predators.”

Refuge staff drained and flooded wetlands, seasonally, to provide food and habitat for waterfowl and migratory birds. What happens to birds that nest in tall grasses when staff flood wetlands, she wondered? Where do the shorebirds go that used the mudflats that are now flooded? Long further investigated this research question when pursuing a master’s degree in natural resources at California’s Humboldt State University.

CJ Ralph, an adjunct natural resources professor at Humboldt, was Long’s graduate advisor and her first introduction to the Pacific Southwest Research Station. Ralph was also a wildlife ecologist at the Redwood Sciences Laboratory in Arcata.  

Long worked closely with CJ Ralph on marbled murrelet studies that ranged from estimating their population sizes in California’s offshore waters to counting juveniles.

Along with ornithology, Long had a knack for creating and managing databases. She helped transfer data Ralph collected on endangered forest birds in Hawai'i from electronic tapes to an accessible database. These data were collected during the 1980s before floppy discs even existed and were in danger of being lost.

Long also worked with Ralph on preserving and standardizing bird banding data based on Ralph’s motto of ‘leave no data behind.’ Long explains that the USGS Bird Banding Laboratory   only keeps core bird banding data. Long and Ralph worked with cooperators at the Klamath Bird Observatory in Ashland, Oregon to find a way to preserve project-specific data that the USGS laboratory does not retain. “For example, the laboratory does not keep data from banders about the size of a bird’s bill, tarsus length, or similar and potentially key data.” She believes collecting very detailed data about different bird species can better inform long-term conservation efforts.  

Most recently, Long worked with partners as part of the Western Klamath Restoration Partnership to publish new findings on using life cycles of culturally significant birds to inform the timing of prescribed burns.  This was one of several publications on birds with which Long played an integral role.

Now as her distinguished career winds down, Long reflects on some of the memorable highlights of her work. “One of the things I will miss most is taking a 20-foot boat out in the open ocean doing bird surveys. That was always challenging and exciting.”

Even though she cares deeply about her work, Long is excited to begin her next chapter. “I’m really looking forward to pursuing my hobby of nature photography, particularly birds. That’s something I truly enjoy.”