What is the North American Breeding Bird Survey?
The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is a cooperative effort between the USGS and the Canadian Wildlife Service to monitor the status and trends of North American bird populations.
Following a rigorous protocol, BBS data are collected by thousands of dedicated participants along thousands of randomly established roadside routes throughout the continent. Professional BBS coordinators and data managers work closely with researchers and statisticians to compile and deliver these population data and population trend analyses on more than 400 bird species, for use by conservation managers, scientists, and the general public.
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Strategic Plan for the North American Breeding Bird Survey, 2020–30
The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) has been the cornerstone of continental bird conservation and management for hundreds of North American bird species in the United States and Canada for more than 50 years. This strategic plan was developed in collaboration with key partners and stakeholders and charts the ambitious course for the BBS...
Strategic Plan for the North American Breeding Bird Survey: 2006-2010
Executive SummaryThe mission of the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is to provide scientifically credible measures of the status and trends of North American bird populations at continental and regional scales to inform biologically sound conservation and management actions. Determining population trends, relative abundance, and...
Bird Banding Laboratory in the Media: The Wildlife Society
The Bird Banding Lab’s biologists and songbird banding station were featured in a multimedia online article by The Wildlife Society.
Associations of Breeding-Bird Abundance with Climate Vary Among Species and Trait-Based Groups in Southern California
A new study funded by the Southwest CASC draws on a multi-decadal bird survey dataset to examine the relationship between the abundance of breeding-birds and variations in temperature and precipitation in southern California.
Millions of landbirds migrate through the Gulf of Mexico
Millions of landbirds migrate through the Gulf of Mexico
PubTalk 11/2015 — Waterbirds in a Changing Landscape
Evaluating Avian Response to the West Coast's Largest Tidal Marsh Restoration Project
by Susan De La Cruz, USGS Research Wildlife Biologist
- The urbanized San Francisco Bay is a critical wintering and stop-over area for more than a million migratory annually that rely on a mosaic of Bay habitats, including former salt ponds.
Songbird surveys in McDonald Dunn forest
Joan Hagar and Amy Comstock assess the long-term ecological value and characteristics of snags created for wildlife
Skyler Vold conducts a bird survey on the Seward Peninsula
USGS biologist Skyler Vold conducts a bird survey on Alaska’s Seward Peninsula
PubTalk 10/2011 — Migratory Connectivity in a Changing Climate
by Susan Haig, Wildlife Ecologist
- Scientists are studying global migratory animal movements throughout their annual cycles to improve conservation efforts
- Changing climate conditions have accentuated this need, as species movements and their ranges are fluctuating every year
- Technology being used to study the
PubTalk 3/2011 — Unraveling the Mystery of Avian Navigation
New research indicates that birds are listening to the landscape to find their way
By Jon Hagstrum, Research Geophysicist
- For nearly 40 years, biologists have been unable to agree on how birds find their way over great distances during homing or migrational flights
- Do birds use their olfactory senses, the Earth's
Radar is for the Birds
Doppler radar can be used for more than predicting the weather—it can be used to record migrating birds!
Conducting a Breeding Bird Survey
Wildlife Biologist Bruce Hanson conducting a breeding bird survey.
On the Road Again for a Bird Survey that Counts
Ziolkowski, D. J., Jr., K. L. Pardieck, and J. R. Sauer. 2010. On the road again for a bird survey that counts. Birding 42(4):32-40.