Chris has been exploring the shores of Cobscook Bay since 1989 and is interested in all aspects of nature in the area. As field staff for the University of Maine Sea Grant Program, he has conducted numerous research and educational programs on marine ecology including seabird studies. Chris and his family live in Eastport, where he enjoys birding year round.
Captain Butch Harris
Born and raised in Eastport, Captain Harris has been a seafaring man all his life - as a fisherman, boat builder, and boat captain. Butch has fished for lobsters, scallops, and urchins, has worked in the farmed salmon business, and has been taking fishing parties out to sea for decades. During the summer, he captains the Sylvina Beal, a three-master schooner, for bird watching, whale watching, and dinner cruises in the bay. Butch also has built both wooden and fiberglass boats, and recently completed a large two-masted schooner, the Haley Matthew, which he captains for 2-3 day cruises.
Captain Andrew Patterson
Captain Patterson has operated Bold Coast Charter Company, a birdwatching and sightseeing boat tour operation out of Cutler Harbor, over the past 27 years. Andy has extensive knowledge of the coastal Maine and Bay of Fundy marine environment, and of its seabirds and marine mammal inhabitants. Captain Patterson also volunteers time and resources each season to assist with area seabird restoration and research.
Bob Duchesne
Bob Duchesne became interested in birds in the first grade. Interest grew to passion and today Bob is currently President of the Penobscot Valley Chapter of Maine Audubon, and serves as a State Trustee. Bob is a frequent field trip leader for Audubon, and now operates his own guiding service with his wife, Sandi. Together, they have led trips from Atlantic Canada to the Florida Everglades. He spearheaded creation of the Maine Birding Trail, which launched in 2009, and is the author of Maine Birding Trail: The Official Guide to More than 260 Accessible Sites.
Bill Kolodnicki
Bill Kolodnicki, a retired Refuge Manager with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was stationed at Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge from 2004 - 2016. Previously he was at the Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge, Long Island NWR Complex, and with the National Audubon Society. He has been a bird watcher all his life and his graduate work dealt with colonial nesting water birds.
Amy Zipperer
Amy is an aspiring amateur botanist who is especially partial to herbs edible, medicinal, or otherwise closely intertwined with our human existence. She works as an emergency room nurse and parents two feisty children. Spending time with plants and with those who are similarly smitten is one of her favorite activities.