Emmett was born and raised in the land of Yellow-billed Magpies and Nuttall’s Woodpeckers—the Central Valley of California. His introduction to birding began with a gifted Sibley guide and his grandmother’s feeder in Maine. After becoming captivated by a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, he returned to California and discovered its west coast counterpart, the Black-headed Grosbeak. That moment sparked an early interest in bird status and distribution, and he’s been hooked ever since.
Emmett has spent summers working as an avian field technician, including trapping and collaring Dusky Grouse in Nevada and conducting point count surveys throughout Northern California. He is an eBird regional reviewer for Yolo County and also serves as an eBird reviewer for Sacramento County. He regularly leads field trips for local Audubon societies and recently graduated from Cal Poly Humboldt with a degree in wildlife conservation biology.
In his free time, Emmett enjoys searching for vagrants along California’s coasts and deserts—and debating with friends about what the next first state record will be.
