This event was the third in our 2025 Winter series of talks on Supporting Birds in Our Community.

When it come to what birds need nutritionally, are all berries the same?  Dr. Susan Smith Pagano, presented her research, which indicates that, especially during fall migration, native fruiting shrubs provide more of what birds need, when they need it.  In her talk, Dr. Pagano explained ways in which non-native fruiting shrubs are likely to have negative nutritional consequences for birds, especially during migration.  Her conclusion:  If we want to support birds, we need to incorporate a variety of native plants that produce calorific, high-fat, and antioxidant-rich berries.  These high-quality foods aid in the rapid fat disposition necessary to allow birds to fill up their fuel tanks before continuing on their fall migrations.

Susan Smith Pagano, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Biology at Rochester Institute of Technology.  Her research focuses on avian ecophysiology and nutritional ecology, in particular the role of diet for migrating songbirds at stopover sites in the Northeast.  Since arriving at RIT in 2010, she has engaged in projects that investigate the nutritional quality of native fruits for birds and the potential implications of non-native plants for migratory success.  In addition to her work at RIT, she is a fellow of the American Ornithological Society and is affiliated with the Braddock Bay Bird Observatory.