About
Photo: Graham Montgomery
Joanna (she/her) is an ornithologist and ecologist at the University of California, Los Angeles. Joanna is studying survival and habitat use differences between female and male birds. Her research also identifies biases in scientific studies and exploring how anthropogenic changes differently impact the sexes of birds. Joanna is committed to amplifying underrepresented voices in science and is a member of the Galbatross Project—a collective of scientists, birders, writers, and conservationists dedicated to raising awareness about often-overlooked female birds.
From 2016 to 2021, Joanna served as an Avian Ecologist & Project Manager at the National Audubon Society, where she contributed to climate change analysis, authored reports and publications, and engaged in conservation efforts and public outreach. Prior to this, from 2013 to 2016, she worked at the Institute for Bird Populations in the San Francisco Bay Area as a biologist, focusing on the study of songbirds, bumblebees, and owls in the Sierra Nevada in post-fire habitats. Joanna completed her master's degree at the University of Hawai‘i, Hilo, where she conducted research on movements and seed dispersal services of the endemic thrush, the ‘Ōma‘o.
When she is not working in R, Joanna enjoys running, camping, birding, and birding while running.
Find Joanna:
Contact: joannaxwu [at] ucla [dot] edu
Press
UH Hilo alumna Joanna Wu studies female birds and their importance to conservation work. UH Hilo Stories, October 2024.
The Forgotten Flock: Female Birds. BirdNote Bring Birds Back, August 2024.
Female Birds Finally Get Their Due. National Wildlife Magazine, April 2024.
Why 'the most misunderstood birds in North America' are female. New York Times, September 2023.
See Stunning Images of Female Birds, Often Overlooked by Wildlife Photographers. Smithsonian Magazine, July 2023.
Slowing Down and Observing Female Birds. BirdNote Daily Podcast, July 2022.
This Month in Birding. American Birding Association Podcast, January 2022.
This Month in Birding. American Birding Association Podcast, June 2021.
A Bird’s Eye View of Audubon’s Annual Christmas Bird Count. Science Friday, January 2021.
Celebrating Fall Migration as Birding Enjoys a Moment in 2020 (Profiled as a Galbatross, group aimed to raise awareness about female birds). Bay Nature, Fall 2020.
54% of Washington birds threatened by warming climate. KUOW Public Radio, October 2019.
U.S. parks may become more vital to birds as climate changes. The Wildlife Society, April 2018.
More Birds Expected for Majority of National Parks—Here's Why. National Geographic, March 2018.
Being a Bird Was Once a Simple Affair. Flying. Eating. Mating. But Now Their Habitats Are Under Siege. Mother Jones, March 2018.
National Parks Are About to Get a Bunch of Birds They Didn't Ask For. Earther, March 2018.
Birds And Climate Change: Study Predicts Upheaval In National Park Bird Species. National Parks Traveler, March 2018.
Climate change could drive bald eagles to extinction in Grand Canyon, study says. AZCentral, March 2018.
Media
How Wildfires Boosted by Climate Change Threaten Birds. National Audubon Society, September 2020.
Protecting the Birds of Hawaiʻi Amid Environmental Carelessness. National Audubon Society, May 2020.