Bird Banding in the Americas

1. Bird Banding in the Americas Lesley HowesCanadian Bird Banding Office Canadian Wildlife Service

2. Benefits of Banding • Specialized, cost effective, scientific tool • Data vital for research, monitoring and conservation • Contributes to basic scientific knowledge • Added value for secondary research • Educational value

3. Banding Projects In the past • Mostly game birds • Management objectives • Small local projects More recently • Seabirds, shorebirds, landbirds • Conservation objectives • Large-scale • Cooperative projects

4. What does bird banding entail? • Planned study • Bird capture • Bird handling • Identification • Bands and markers • Measurements • Release • Data reporting • Analysis • Publication

5. How is banding information used? • Individual research: behavioural, parasites, energetics, toxicology, genetic, etc. • Game bird monitoring • Migration monitoring • Population Monitoring • Monitoring individuals (endangered species) • Public education

6. Bird Banding Laboratory United States Geological Service Laurel, Maryland, USA Bird Banding Office Canadian Wildlife Service Environment Canada Ottawa, Ontario, Canada The North American Bird Banding Program

7. Joint program since 1923 Since 1923 • Over 60,000,000 birds banded • Over 3.7 million encounters • Over 900 species and subspecies • Over 15.2% of waterfowl encountered • Over 2.2% of non-game birds encountered In 2003 • 1,121,358 birds banded • 87,395 birds encountered

8. Program Objectives • Support ornithological and conservation research • Provide service to banders • Increase bander standards • Facilitate communication among banders • Improve data quality and management • Promote international cooperation and partnerships

9. Roles Partners • Coordinate projects such as MAPS, CMMN, • Advocate for banders • Increase standards of data collection and banding qualification • Develop conservation plans • Publish scientific and technical papers • Bird Studies Canada • North American Banding Council • Cornell University • Provincial, territorial and state governments • Banding Associations • Bird Observatories • Banders

10. Universities Avocational NGOs Business Government North American Banders

11. Role of Banders • Conduct ornithological studies • Monitor populations • Keep current on new techniques • Submit data to the banding office • Report band sightings and recoveries • Train other banders in ethical capture, banding and handling skills • Educate people about birds and the environment • Practice ethical banding • Ensure necessary permits

12. Ethics of banding • Banders’ Code of Ethics • Bird welfare • Trained in capture, handling and banding • Publish innovations in banding, capture and handling techniques • Integrity of data and research

13. Role of the Banding Office • Administer the program • Provide permits and bands • Coordinate auxiliary markers • Provide a central repository for data • Develop policy • Provide technical advice • Coordinate special projects • Promote ethical banding

14. Scientific permit to capture and band migratory birds • Permits • Master • Station • Subpermit • Issuance • Application form • Prove of qualification and competence • Two testimonials • Project description • Authorizations • Species groups • Mist net • Species at risk • Cannon or rocket nets • Capture using drugs • Colour marking • Auxiliary markers • Radio or satellite transmitters • Location

15. Canadian Banding Permit Alberta, Manitoba, Nunavut, Saskatchewan10588 DIDIUK ANDREW G PRAIRIE & NORTHERN REGION4 and 19 CANADIAN WILDLIFE SERVICE 115 PERIMETER ROAD SASKATOON, SK S7N 0X42003/05/21 2004/12/31 L. LAURIN Authorized to: - Band passerines - Band raptors (IF IN POSSESSION OF A CURRENT & VALID PROVINCIAL/TERRITORIAL PERMIT). - Band Sara listed species Loggerhead Shrike (LOSH) (6220) - Band waterfowl - Use mistnets - Mark Loggerhead Shrike (LOSH) (6220) with Colored Leg Bands DK BLU WHI DK BLU/ORN in Manitoba, Saskatchewan

16. Permitted banders

17. Bands • Federal bands for use on North American migrants • 26 band sizes • Butt ends 0-9C • Lock on bands sizes 4-9 (raptors) • Size 9 rivet bands (eagles) • Specialty bands

19. Auxiliary Markers

20. Data Collection • Loc • Banding date • Remarks • Permit number • Band number • Banding location • Alpha code • Species number • Status • Age-sex • Region • Lat-Long

21. Data Archiving • Accurate and complete banding records • Prompt submission of Banding Schedule • Band Manager • Game bird data must be submitted before the hunting season. • Data editing

22. Reporting Encounters • Privately banded birds (falconry, pigeons) • Foreign encounter • Moved outside the 10-min block • Dead banded bird • Colour or auxiliary marked birds • 1-800-327-BAND (2263) • Write Bird Band Laurel MD 20708 USA • Certificate of Appreciation to finder • Report to bander Foreign birds

23. Data Requests • Free for public use • Facilitating Migratory bird research • Two files • Banding Retrieval File • Encounter Retrieval File • Data use policy • Data verification

24. Role of the Banding Office • Develop policy • Banding species at risk • Feather collection policy • Provide technical advice • Coordinate special projects • Ready network of trained field workers • Large-scale or various locations • Genetic, parasitological, morphometric, Isotope, • systematics etc.

25. Increasing Banders Standards • Endorsing Ornithological Council’s Guidelines to the use of Wild Birds in Research. • Endorsing the Peter Pyle Identification Guide to North American Birds. • NABC training manuals • Promoting NABC standardized bander training • Encouraging banders to participate in large scale, long-term monitoring studies • Bander development

26. Bander Development • Banders’ Code of Ethics • Bander training workshops • Memo to Banders • Website • Encouraging banders to join banding associations • Encourage participation in well designed projects

27. The North American Banding Council A non-profit organization with representatives from professional ornithological societies The purpose of NABC is to promote sound and ethical banding principles and techniques by: • Developing a bander training and certification program • Set standards of knowledge, experience and skills. • Three levels of certification assistant, bander and trainer • Five banding guides in three languages

28. Long Term Cooperative Initiatives • Canadian Migration Monitoring Network • Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) program • North American Waterfowl Management Plan • Wetlands for the Americas Program

29. Canadian Migration Monitoring Network • Species, band number, age-sex, condition, effort expended (e.g. net hours) • Monitor population trends of migrants • Standardized effort

30. MAPS • Constant effort mist netting and banding • Continent wide network • Identify the causes of population declines • Formulate management actions and conservation strategies to reverse • declines, and maintain healthy populations • Evaluate the effectiveness of management actions and conservation strategies.

31. Promoting international cooperation and partnership • Coordinate all colour marking schemes • Increase recoveries on wintering grounds • To better understand migration routes of many N.A. migrant • Encourage the development of banding schemes with other Western Hemisphere countries • Liaison with other countries though out the world on band encounters and recoveries • Participate in global projects, e.g. Barn Swallow

32. Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal (MoSI) • Cooperative international effort • Evaluate the quality of winter habitats for migratory landbirds • Currently in Mexico and Belize

33. Pan American Shorebird Program • Standardized banding system • Coordinated within country and internationally • Marked with colour bands and/or colour 'flags‘ • Connects banders with sightings

35. How to read banded shorebirds • Describe each band • Note location of each band • Note species, location of sighting, date and any other information. • Piping Plover seen in Texas, banded SK. • Nothing upper left, grey over light green band lower left, white flag upper right, light green over metal lower right.

36. If you colour band shorebirds • Let PASP know about your project and how to contact you • Use your country flag colours • Use UV-stable colour bands and flags and preferably monel or stainless-steel metal bands • If you are using aluminum bands, place them on the bird's • upper leg.

37. Reporting colour banded Shorebirds • E-mail cheri.gratto-trevor@ec.gc.ca • Or mail to: Dr. C.L. Gratto-Trevor PASP, Canadian Wildlife Service, 115 Perimeter Road, Saskatoon, SK S7N 0X4 Canada

38. Costs • Biological Costs • Research Costs • Program costs

39. Current Challenges • Improve bander skills and data quality • Improve research quality i.e. study design, data analysis • Improve data accessibility i.e. world wide web • Develop a data management system that includes recapture and resighting data • Develop auxiliary marker coordination guidelines • Extend existing programs such as MAPS, CMMN • Develop banding protocols for species at risk • Develop species level monitoring, e.g. Purple Martins, Barn Swallows, • Develop group level monitoring, e.g. hummingbirds, colonial waterbirds • Develop broad scale monitoring, e.g. winterbirds • Expand international partnerships

40. Bird Banding in the Americas • Independent • South American system • Fully integrated Western Hemisphere

41. Necessary elements • Simplified reporting system • Coordinated auxiliary marker use • Open communication • Levels of participation • Reduce duplication • Cost effective • Data sharing • In country reporting • Definition of needs • Stable, secure central repository for data • Permits • Well trained banders • Bands • Migrants • Non-migrants • Science based • Data integrity and accessibility • Standard coding system

42. Bird Banding in the Americas We have a collective opportunity and responsibility to increase the effectiveness of banding in bird conservation.