David Ziolkowski Jr.
Biography
Dave is a Wildlife Biologist at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center where he serves as the program ornithologist for the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). He has been actively involved in wildlife research for over 20 years, both in the states and abroad, and worked on topics spanning the fields of ecology, evolutionary biology, biogeography, toxicology, and population monitoring. In his current position, Dave works to strengthen the coordination and management of the scientifically rigorous, citizen-science based BBS program including: building research and multi-level inter-agency partnerships, strategic planning to ensure the survey’s continued relevance for informing bird conservation, connecting with thousands of highly-skilled volunteer observers, designing and managing web-enabled database applications, assuring a high data quality in the ever-growing 80-million record database, and publication of results written for both scientists and the general public. Although the majority of Dave’s day to day work is focused on birds, his broad expertise in natural history finds him frequently engaged in other field research projects oriented at measuring and better understanding our diverse plant and animal assemblages. (Updated Nov, 2015)
Education
- M.S. Biology, University of Missouri St. Louis, Missouri, Advisor: Robert Ricklefs, Thesis area: Evolutionary ecology of the Lesser Antillean avifauna.
- B.S. Biology, Towson University, Maryland, Advisor: L. Scott Johnson, Thesis area: Passerine behavioral ecology.
- A.A. Economics, Harford Community College, Maryland.
Recent Data Releases
- Pardieck, K. L., D. J. Ziolkowski Jr., M.-A. R. Hudson. 2015. North American Breeding Bird Survey Dataset 1966-2014, version 2014.0. U.S. Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. (available here)
- Pardieck, K. L., D. J. Ziolkowski Jr., M.-A. R. Hudson. 2014. North American Breeding Bird Survey Dataset 1966-2013, version 2013.0. U.S. Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. (available here)
Results and Analysis Reports
- Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, D. J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W. A. Link. 2014. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2013. Version 01.30.2015 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. (available here)
- Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, D. J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W. A. Link. 2014. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2012. Version 02.19.2014 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. (available here)
- Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, D. J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W. A. Link. 2012. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2011. Version 12.13.2012 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. (available here)
- Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, D. J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W. A. Link. 2011. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2010. Version 12.07.2011 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. (available here)
- Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, J. E. Fallon, K. L. Pardieck, D. J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W. A. Link. 2011. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2009. Version 3.23.2011 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. (available here)
Selected Public Speaking Highlights:
- Keynote Address, Maryland Ornithological Society Annual Meeting, May 25, 2013: "Counting those who count on us…but are you sure your numbers really talk sense?".
- National Public Radio's Kojo Nnamdi Show, Sep 16, 2009. (listen here)
- National Public Radio's Kojo Nnamdi Show, April, 2, 2009. (listen here)
- National Public Radio's "All Things Considered", March 19, 2009. (listen here)
- 6-day Training Course, Ecole National de Aux de Foret, Gabon (West Africa), "Establishing a National Avian Monitoring and Specimen Collection Infrastructure", October 2009
- Keynote Address, Tennessee Ornithological Society Annual Meeting, April 26, 2008: "The numbers, they are a changing -- 40 years of counting in the volunteer state".
Fact Sheets:
- Announcing the 1966-2013 BBS Trend Results - Jan. 2015 (available here)
- The BBS, Refining Scale to Provide New Insights - Jan. 2015 (available here)
- Announcing the 1966-2012 BBS Trend Results - Mar. 2014 (available here)
- Progression of the BBS and Future Directions - Mar. 2011 (available here)
- Expanding the BBS into Mexico - Feb, 2008 (available here)
Memoranda to Cooperators/Annual Summaries:
- Summer 2015 (available here)
- Summer 2014 (available here)
- Summer 2013 (available here)
- Summer 2012 (available here)
- Summer 2011 (available here)
- Summer 2010 (available here)
- Summer 2009 (available here)
- Summer 2008 (available here)
- Summer 2007 (available here)
- Summer 2006 (available here)
- Winter 2005-2006 (available here)
Science and Products
The North American Breeding Bird Survey: Refining Scale to Provide New Insights
The Challenge: Since 1966, the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) has filled a vital role in identifying at-risk bird species for Federal, State, and private entities. The BBS is a scientifically rigorous population count performed by a highly skilled, largely volunteer work force of nearly 2,500 observers. Every year these observers visit most of the survey’s 4,500 routes, which...
Comprehensive 1966 - 2015 Results! North American Breeding Bird Survey
The Challenge: Like the canary in the coal mine, wild birds have long been recognized as bellwethers for environmental health. By monitoring populations of wild birds we gain an understanding of the state of the natural world and this, in turn, allows us to identify pressing environmental challenges, to set conservation priorities, and to measure the success of conservation action. But the...
North American Breeding Bird Survey Dataset 1966 - 2016, version 2016.0
The 1966-2016 North American Breeding Bird Survey dataset contains avian point count data for more than 700 North American bird taxa (species, races, and unidentified species groupings). These data are collected annually during the breeding season, primarily June, along thousands of randomly established roadside survey routes in the United States and Canada.
How well do route survey areas represent landscapes at larger spatial extents? An analysis of land cover composition along Breeding Bird Survey routes
The occurrence of birds in a survey unit is partly determined by the habitat present. Moreover, some bird species preferentially avoid some land cover types and are attracted to others. As such, land cover composition within the 400 m survey areas along a Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) route clearly influences the species available to be detected....
Veech, Joseph A.; Pardieck, Keith L.; Ziolkowski, David The first 50 years of the North American Breeding Bird Survey
The vision of Chandler (Chan) S. Robbins for a continental-scale omnibus survey of breeding birds led to the development of the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). Chan was uniquely suited to develop the BBS. His position as a government scientist had given him experience with designing and implementing continental-scale surveys, his...
Sauer, John; Ziolkowski, David; Pardieck, Keith L.; Smith, Adam C.; Hudson, Marie-Anne R.; Rodriguez, Vicente; Berlanga, Humberto; Niven, Daniel; Link, William Expanding the North American Breeding Bird Survey analysis to include additional species and regions
The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) contains data for >700 bird species, but analyses often focus on a core group of ∼420 species. We analyzed data for 122 species of North American birds for which data exist in the North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) database but are not routinely analyzed on the BBS Summary and Analysis...
Sauer, John; Niven, Daniel; Pardieck, Keith L.; Ziolkowski, David; Link, William The North American Breeding Bird Survey, results and analysis 1966 - 2015
This website presents population change information for more than 400 species of North American birds, as estimated from the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Estimates of trend (interval-specific estimates of population change), annual indices of abundance, and maps of abundance and population change for these species are presented for a...
Sauer, John; Niven, Daniel; Hines, James; Ziolkowski, David; Pardieck, Keith L.; Fallon, J.E.; Link, William The North American Breeding Bird Survey 1966–2011: Summary analysis and species accounts
The North American Breeding Bird Survey is a roadside, count-based survey conducted by volunteer observers. Begun in 1966, it now is a primary source of information on spatial and temporal patterns of population change for North American birds. We analyze population change for states, provinces, Bird Conservation Regions, and the entire survey...
Sauer, John R.; Link, William A.; Fallon, Jane E.; Pardieck, Keith L.; Ziolkowski, David J. On the road again for a bird survey that counts
Ziolkowski, Dave; Pardieck, Keith; Sauer, John R. The 2003-2008 summary of the North American Breeding Bird Survey
Data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey were used to estimate continental and regional changes in bird populations for the 6-yr period 2003-2008 and the 2-yr period 2007-2008. These short-term changes were placed in the context of population trends estimated over the 1966-2008 interval. Across the entire survey area, a higher proportion...
Ziolkowski, David J.; Pardieck, Keith L.; Sauer, John R.