Rachel Buchanan was born in the Midwestern United States. Her passion for aquatic life began with the freshwater systems she was exposed to growing up in a landlocked area. She later interned at the Hardy Lake Raptor Center, where she cared for injured birds, snakes, and turtles and educated the public about their ecology.

Rachel earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Indiana University. Her undergraduate experience included fieldwork-based data collection, data analysis, literature review, scientific writing, and conference presentations. Her undergraduate research project investigated the relationship between vessel strike rates in sea turtles and potential predictors such as coastal human population size and airport operations. Preliminary findings from this work were presented at the 44^th International Sea Turtle Society Symposium.

Rachel is most passionate about seabirds and shorebirds and how they adapt to living on the hyper-arid islands of the Red Sea. Her research interests include the role of seabirds in nutrient contributions to coral reef ecosystems, the island biogeography of nesting birds, and the ecological adaptations that allow birds to live in island environments.