The Peregrine Fund's International Women in Science Week Celebration is in partnership with the Idaho Environmental Education Association (IdEEA).
Hi! My name is Hana Weaver and I'm a Project Manager and Propagation Specialist at The Peregrine Fund.
I manage a small crew of biologists in Puerto Rico where we are working to save the Puerto Rican sharp-shinned Hawk. I'm lucky to experience everything from exhilarating days in the field, to the delicate tasks of hatching eggs and raising raptors by hand.
My favorite part of the job is when I get to see the young hawks I've hatched and raised in the lab, thriving in the wild on their own.
My work matters to me because it's helping to save a species from extinction. If we can save our worlds raptors, then the future for other species is also much brighter.
For me, there was never a single moment when I decided to become a biologist because, even as a child I felt I already was. Whether or not I was qualified to be a biologist at age 5 is certainly debatable!
If you'd like to become a biologist, my advice is to spend time with the creatures you love, whether it's chickens in your backyard or frogs in a pond. You can learn so much, simply by being still and letting life live around you, nature can teach you amazing things if you just learn to listen.
If I had to choose a favorite raptor, I should probably say the Puerto Rican Sharp-shinned Hawk because that's the one I'm trying to save, but I have to say the Taita Falcon is my favorite raptor, they will always have my heart!
Thank you to our Women in Science Celebration collaborators at the Idaho Environmental Education Association! Learn more about how they're inspiring the next generation of conservationists.
Support Hana's project by purchasing a Puerto Rican Sharp-shinned Hawk t-shirt!
