Ph.D. Candidate in Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology at North Carolina State University.
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher at White Pines Nature Preserve, NC
Ruby-crowned Kinglet at William B. Umstead State Park, NC
Blackpoll Warbler at Maple View Farm, NC
Indigo Bunting at Brumley North, NC
Sanderling at Huntington Beach State Park, SC
Burrowing Owl at Deicke Park, FL
Ruddy Turnstone at Huntington Beach State Park, SC
Lesser Scaup at Brier Creek Reservoir, NC
Little Blue Heron at Green Cay Wetlands & Nature Center, FL
Mottled Duck at Green Cay Wetlands & Nature Center, FL
Killdeer at Jordan Lake, NC
Roseate Spoonbill at Lake Lynn, NC
Northern Rough-winged Swallow at Rainbow Soccer Complex, NC
Red-shouldered Hawk at Orchard Park, Durham, NC
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Everglades National Park, FL
About Me
My name is Jin Bai. I am originally from Northeast China and grew up in a small city called Tieling. My journey to becoming an urban ornithologist started with my first bird count near Zhalong Nature Preserve during my freshmen year at Northeast Forestry University. I was helping an ornithologist with his annual count of wetland birds, and I was lucky to see Oriental Stork (Ciconia boyciana) and Red-crowned Crane (Grus japonensis) on my first birding trip. This bird count made me more curious and passionate about birds and nature conservation. After graduating from Northeast Forestry University, I studied Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida, where I researched avian territorial aggression and homing behavior of Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) and Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor).
As of now, I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology program at NCSU where I study how anthropause affects bird communities in North Carolina, how avian species richness is associated with neighborhood wealth, and how historical residential segregation in the city of Durham affects urban bird communities. I have extensive experience designing, coordinating, and assisting citizen science projects in the Triangle area, including organizing the Triangle Bird Count and Bird-window Collision Monitoring projects via City Bird. I am the project coordinator of City Bird with the mission of documenting bird-window collisions and advocating for window treatments to prevent collisions on college campuses in the Triangle. I am also a board member of New Hope Audubon, a local non-profit chapter of the National Audubon Society covering Orange, Durham, and Chatham counties.