Mia Ferrero-Lampron, ’27; Jacqueline Wu, ’26
Ferrero-Lampron Major: Environmental science and resource management and data science minor
Jacqueline Wu Major: Environmental science and resource management, geography and informatics
Project title: “Inventorying Mammal and Bird Diversity in Washington’s Coastal Rainforest Using Camera and Acoustic Monitoring”
After years of timber harvesting, the ecosystems in Washington’s coastal forests are forever changed.
The biodiversity of this land has yet to be studied, and how exactly active restoration work affects biodiversity isn’t known.
Mia Ferrero-Lampron, Jacqueline Wu and their mentors at the University of Washington and the Nature Conservancy wanted to create baseline biodiversity data for these lands. They also wanted to see how restoration efforts affect the diversity in these ecosystems.
To do this, they set up motion-activated cameras and audio recorders in the Hoh, Ellsworth and Clearwater preserves located on the Olympic Peninsula. From May to June 2025, researchers tracked how many times the devices detected a mammal or a bird. Their cameras caught cougars, bobcats, black bears, elks and more.
What they found was that the Ellsworth Creek Preserve, which had the longest restoration history, had the most species diversity.
Along with learning the importance of restoration, this study collected biodiversity data that can be used to guide future restoration and monitoring efforts, Ferrero-Lampron said.
“We’ve been able to build up this data to support future research,” Ferrero-Lampron said. “It’s really important.”
Ferrero-Lampron said research has been really useful for her to learn how to set up an experiment and how to use data. They’re skills that she will use in her future research work.
“This has definitely been so helpful,” she said. “I’m really grateful for my mentors here and at the Nature Conservancy.”
Wu said she has learned a lot about decision-making in research and data collection. The work also helped affirm her decision to pursue a Ph.D.
Most importantly, she learned the importance of making the research sustainable for years to come. “We want this to be passed down to others, so they can continue this work,” she said.
About the Symposium
This undergraduate research project was presented in the 29th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium on May 15, 2026. The Symposium is one of several opportunities UW undergraduates have to engage in the transformative experiences research provides. It’s produced by the Office of Undergraduate Research and is one of the many ways the Office connects undergraduates to the UW’s research ecosystem.
Read the overview of the 2026 Symposium here.