Project staff

The Québec Breeding Bird Atlas has two full-time staff: Michel Robert, the Atlas Coordinator, and Marie-Hélène Hachey, the Assistant Atlas Coordinator. You can find out more about them below.

The Coordinator and the Assistant Coordinator are supported by a number of people working behind the scenes who help ensure that the project runs smoothly. These include Denis Lepage, Andrew Couturier and Andrew Coughlan from Bird Studies Canada, and Jean-Sébastien Guénette from the Regroupement QuébecOiseaux. Denis Lepage is in charge of data management and the website, and Andrew Couturier is responsible for spatial analysis, cartography, and geomatics. Andrew Coughlan, the Québec Program Manager for Bird Studies Canada, is responsible for the English translation of material for the atlas and the website. As Director General of Regroupement QuébecOiseaux, Jean-Sébastien Guénette participates in all discussions concerning the project, and also undertakes several administrative tasks.

Michel Robert works for the Canadian Wildlife Service of Environment Canada and is Coordinator of the Québec Breeding Bird Atlas. Michel is a biologist and obtained his master's degree (M.Sc.) from the Université de Montréal in 1987, which investigated night feeding by shorebirds wintering in Venezuela. Initially, he worked as a consultant in matters relating to ornithology. In 1995, he took up a position as a biologist with the Canadian Wildlife Service, where he has worked mainly on species at risk, notably the Wild Turkey, the Loggerhead Shrike, the Yellow Rail, the Harlequin Duck, the Barrow's Goldeneye, and the Sedge Wren. As a volunteer, Michel was a member of the editorial board of the magazine QuébecOiseaux from 1996 to 2004. He has authored approximately 100 publications, ranging from scientific papers and technical reports to popular science articles. Michel participated in the first Québec Breeding Bird Atlas (1984-1989), both in the field and as author of 24 accounts. In addition to a passion for birds, Michel is also a keen mountain biker.

 Marie-Hélène Hachey works for the Regroupement QuébecOiseaux and is Assistant Coordinator of the Québec Breeding Bird Atlas. She is a biologist with a master’s degree (M.Sc.) in forest science, which she obtained from Laval University in 2011, for a project that investigated the factors affecting the feeding of chicks and the transport of food by boreal nesting birds. Marie-Hélène is a keen ornithologist and has several years of experience as a field assistant. Before returning to university, she worked for eight years as a park warden and interpreter in different national parks across Québec, including the Parc national des Monts-Valin, where she completed a full bird survey. As park warden and interpreter, she planned and developed numerous interpretation activities, and wrote a number of popular science articles. Marie-Hélène also has an undergraduate degree in media communications (1996), and was a journalist for the magazine Espace and also worked for Radio-Canada. During her free time, she can be found birdwatching, or in a river canoe.