On behalf of Manomet, which administers the WHSRN Executive Office, we are pleased to announce that the winner of the 2019 Pablo Canevari Award is Ben Haase!
Ben is a naturalist-guide who specializes in marine birds and mammals. He is a pioneer in researching the Humpback Whale population in Ecuador and has been monitoring shorebirds and seabirds in the Province of Santa Elena for more than 30 years.
Since he moved from Holland to Ecuador in 1986, he has carried out long-term studies on the presence, migration, and behavior of marine species on the Ecuadorian coast. The birds counted in these 500 censuses (from 1986 to 2019) exceed two and a half million individuals. When these surveys first began, Ben worked with Hans Gómez, and later, when he became the main observer, he received the first financial support from the then-Manomet Bird Observatory to buy a bicycle to conduct surveys in the salt ponds at Ecuasal.
The bicycle Ben purchased with a grant from the then-Manomet Bird Observatory, to help him conduct comprehensive shorebird surveys at the Ecuasal salt ponds. Photo Courtesy of Ben Haase.
These surveys supported the successful nomination of the Piscinas Artificiales de Ecuasal as a WHSRN Site of Regional Importance in 2007, designated in part for hosting more than 5% of the biogeographic population of Wilson’s Phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor).
Ben’s systematic counts of Ecuasal’s migratory and resident waterbirds contributed to making this site the first migratory bird refuge in Ecuador. Ben has brought thousands of people to get to know the great variety of waterbirds at this site, and thanks to Ecuasal’s motivation to help conserve these ponds, the site has become one of the most important wetlands in the region.
Left: Ben celebrates Ecuasal becoming the first migratory shorebird refuge in Ecuador with Nicolas Febres Cordero (far left), General Manager of Ecuasal, and Marcela Aguinaga, Ecuador’s former Minister of the Environment. Right: Ben surveying for shorebirds in Ecuador. Photos courtesy of Ben Haase.
Ben has also conducted the longest systematic monitoring in Ecuador’s history on the presence, migration, and behavior of seabirds and coastal birds from El Faro, the outermost tip of the Ecuadorian coast at La Chocolatera, part of the REMACOPSE reserve, over the course of 2,800 hours.
Ben has organized dozens of training courses in the country, and the 2011 publication of his book Marine Birds of Continental Ecuador (Aves marinas de Ecuador continental) has also contributed to the training of hundreds of people. Ben is the author or co-author of more than 40 scientific publications about marine birds and mammals. Currently, he is the director of the Whale Museum in Salinas (in the Province of Santa Elena), where he resides. Ben manages the museum, takes care of the collection, and since 2003 has welcomed more than 12,000 visitors.
Ben and his wife Brenda at the Whale Museum in Salinas, Ecuador. Photo Courtesy of Ben Haase.
“I was fortunate to have met Pablo personally when he attended a bird conference in Quito,” Ben said, after learning that he had received this year’s Pablo Canevari award. “Along with many other people, we have been able to experience the effect of Pablo’s optimistic spirit.
“Receiving the Award in Panama in October 2019 [at the 8th meeting of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group] makes me feel like I have been awarded a ‘professional badge,’ something that – without having an official biology degree – decorates the career of a well-known self-taught amateur. I always think how much this education went hand in hand with the mental and physical support of dozens of professionals, both nationally and internationally.
Rob Clay, Director of the WHSRN Executive Office, presents Ben with the 2019 Pablo Canevari Award, during the closing ceremony of the 8th Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group Meeting in Panama City. Photo: Patricia Falk.
My participation in the meetings of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Group in Vancouver, Paracas, and Panama, and my ability to present and share my work has been possible because of support from my friends across the Americas. I am grateful for their recognition of my efforts and the work I have done over the past 30 years. This recognition strengthens my motivation to continue working actively for global shorebird conservation, for at least 30 more years!”
To read more about Pablo Canevari and previous winners of the award, click here.
Congratulations, Ben!
