Handbook of Field Methods for Monitoring Landbirds

Handbook of Field Methods for Monitoring Landbirds

Author: C. John Ralph

Publisher: DIANE Publishing

Published: 1999-03

Total Pages: 46

ISBN-13: 0788172344

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Presents a compilation of methods that can be used to assay population size, demographics, & status of virtually all species of landbirds in a wide variety of habitats. Suggests priorities for selecting a monitoring method & determining station location. Presents general tasks that determine which species can be monitored, & methods of establishing & maintaining a study plot, journal keeping, & training of personnel. Describes two demographic methods & four types of censuses for determining population size & trends. Methods are suggested for measuring habitat, recording weather, & color banding. Illustrated.


Handbook of Field Methods for Monitoring Landbirds

Handbook of Field Methods for Monitoring Landbirds

Author: C. Ralph

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2012-04-29

Total Pages: 46

ISBN-13: 9781475278507

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The increased attention devoted to the status and possible declines of populations of smaller species of terrestrial birds, known collectively as "landbirds," has resulted in an immediate need for specific methodology for monitoring their populations. This handbook is derived from several sources and is based on the authors' collective experiences in operating monitoring stations. Presented here are a compilation of methods that can be used to assay population size, demographics, and status of virtually all species of landbirds in a wide variety of habitats, from grassland and tundra to temperate and tropical rain forests. Rare species, or those with unusual habits, will require some modifications. The handbook will prove useful to field biologists, managers, and scientists anywhere in the New World. The handbook first suggests priorities for selecting a monitoring method and determining station locations. Then, general tasks that determine which species can be monitored, and methods of establishing and maintaining a study plot, journal keeping, and training of personnel are presented. Two demographic methods are described, one involving mist nets, and the other finding nests during the breeding season. Detailed suggestions are given for both methods which should allow a trained person to successfully operate a station. Both methods involve monitoring at a station at regular intervals during the breeding season. The handbook also includes descriptions of four types of censuses for determining population size and trends: spot mapping of territories, area searches of specific sites, strip transects along predetermined routes, and point counts. The latter method has been accepted as the standard method, is treated in most detail, and involves a person standing in one spot for 3 to 10 minutes and recording all birds seen or heard. In addition, methods are suggested for measuring habitat, recording weather, and color-banding individuals to determine specific demographic parameters. Throughout the handbook, sources of materials are given that are needed for each method, as well as specific references to published works.


Saving Migrant Birds

Saving Migrant Birds

Author: John Faaborg

Publisher: University of Texas Press

Published: 2014-02-19

Total Pages: 354

ISBN-13: 0292749511

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“Rigorous and well defended . . . Faaborg makes many fresh and, in some cases, provocative points regarding management guidelines for migrant birds.” —Kenneth Able, Great Plains Research In the 1980s, numerous scientific surveys documented both declining bird populations, especially among Neotropical songbirds that winter in the tropics, and the loss of tropical rain forest habitat. Drawing the seemingly obvious conclusion, scientists and environmental activists linked songbird declines to loss of tropical habitats and alerted the world to an impending ecological catastrophe. Their warnings led to the establishment of the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Program, also known as Partners in Flight, the self-proclaimed largest conservation effort in history. Looking back over more than a decade of efforts to save migrant birds, John Faaborg offers the first serious evaluation of the state of songbird populations today, the effectiveness of conservation programs such as Partners in Flight, and the reliability and completeness of scientific research on migrant birds. Taking neither an alarmist nor a complacent approach, he shows that many factors besides habitat loss affect bird populations and that Neotropical migrants as a group are not declining dramatically, though some species adapt to habitat alteration more successfully than others. Faaborg’s state-of-the-art survey thus clarifies the kinds of information we will need and the conservation efforts we should undertake to ensure the long-term survival of Neotropical migrant birds. “Presents a carefully and closely reasoned argument about the magnitude of the conservation problems facing migrant birds, how we can reduce these problems, and how current conservation efforts have enormous value even if there is no immediate crisis.” —Scott K. Robinson, Professor and Head, Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois