Pearl’s love of observing animals was fostered by a childhood spent exploring the forests and beaches of Vashon Island, Washington, where her walk to school included passing a snag that housed a family of Northern Saw-whet Owls. Pearl began working as an avian field technician in 2021, surveying American Goshawks in the Sierra Nevada and later breeding songbirds across Olympic, Mount Rainier, and North Cascades National Parks. These years of fieldwork honed her ability to identify more than 150 Pacific Northwest bird species by sight and sound while navigating wetlands, salt marshes, coastal dunes, and snow-covered mountain slopes.
In 2022, Pearl moved to Aotearoa New Zealand to complete an M.Sci. in Ecology focused on endemic endangered reptiles. After two years working as an educator and nature guide at a New Zealand nature sanctuary dedicated to protecting some of the nation’s most endangered wildlife, including kiwi, takahē, and tīeke, she returned home to Washington to work as a shorebird field technician. Pearl enjoys observing how seasonal migration changes the abundance and behavior of different bird species, especially shorebirds in the tidal wetlands around Puget Sound and the cloud forests of the Olympic Peninsula.
Birds and other wildlife are often the subjects of Pearl’s artwork as an illustrator. As a guide, Pearl enjoys providing experiences tailored to her clients’ interests, weaving local natural history, mythology, and science into every outing. Whether you are looking for a relaxed interpretive nature walk or searching for a target species to photograph, Pearl’s enthusiasm for the natural world is sure to make your experience both memorable and rewarding.
