The North American Bird Banding Program: Into the 21st Century

The panel examined the legal, scientific, and philosophical underpinnings of the Bird Banding Program [BBP], with
emphasis on the U.S. Bird Banding Laboratory [BBL], but also considering the Canadian Bird Banding Office [BBO]. In
this report, we review the value of banding data, enumerate and expand on the principles under which any modern BBP
should operate, and from them derive our recommendations. These are cast into a Mission Statement, a Role & Function
Statement, and a series of specific recommendations addressing five areas: (1) permitting procedures and practices; (2)
operational issues; (3) data management; (4) BBL organization and staffing; and (5) implementation.