Bird monitoring has played an important role in conservation planning in the northeastern United States for over 50 years, providing essential information on avian distribution, abundance, and population trends. Some monitoring initiatives also have quantified species-habitat relationships and population responses to environmental change.  Integration of monitoring into management and conservation has helped stabilize or restore several high-profile species that once were imperiled or extirpated in the region, including the Common Loon, Atlantic Puffin, American Black Duck, Bald Eagle, and Peregrine Falcon. 

However, many monitoring programs have operated separately from the decision-making process, exerting little influence on management and conservation actions.  At the same time, widely varying survey methods have prevented the pooling of data from multiple projects for regional or even statewide analyses. As threats to birds multiply and funds to confront them fail to keep pace, the limits of monitoring in isolation have become increasingly evident.

This handbook presents ten steps that optimize the value of bird monitoring when designing new programs, modifying existing ones, or applying results to the practice of bird conservation. These steps echo themes contained in an extensive bird monitoring literature and summarized in Opportunities for Improving Avian Monitoring (US NABCI 2007) and A Framework for Coordinated Bird Monitoring in the Northeast (NECBM Partnership 2007). The themes include: coordination and collaboration, peer-reviewed and standardized protocols, statistical rigor in survey design and data analysis, and use of modern data management tools. Following the steps outlined in this handbook will make it possible for biologists and decision makers to implement State Wildlife Action Plans, Endangered Species Recovery Plans, Strategic Habitat Conservation Initiatives (National Ecological Assessment Team 2006), and other programs to conserve northeastern birds and their habitats.

This handbook is not an exhaustive treatment of all aspects of bird monitoring, but is rather a quick-reference guide that can be applied to birds of any habitat. Each step is illustrated with an example from coordinated efforts to monitor Peregrine Falcon populations in the Northeast. We chose this well-known monitoring program to facilitate the clear presentation of basic concepts. However, the same ten steps also would apply to multi-species monitoring initiatives, which can be more cost-effective than single-species programs. Monitoring multiple species should be considered when goals are broad, involve measuring the effectiveness of conservation practices, or attempt to identify relationships among species.

A half-century ago, biologists who had been monitoring Peregrine Falcons raised concern for their status in the Northeast. As the region’s population dwindled, knowledge gained from monitoring helped test hypotheses about the causes of this decline. Following the peregrine’s extirpation, monitoring data were used to identify promising reintroduction sites, evaluate hacking efforts, and formulate management guidelines for nesting areas. As the reintroduced population gained ground across its former range, coordinated monitoring validated management decisions and increased popular support for conservation programs. Ultimately, monitoring provided a vehicle for educating the public about the hazards of pesticides and the value of science-based stewardship.

Despite numerous conservation success stories, northeastern birds still face threats of increasing magnitude and complexity. Rapid development, invasive species, climate change, and a host of other issues have placed many of the Northeast’s varied habitats and associated birds at risk.

 

However, the collective capacity to monitor and react to threats also has grown. Today, the region is home to more conservation organizations, more bird monitoring programs, and more skilled observers than ever before. In recent years, they have accumulated vast stores of data that can help establish population targets and strengthen survey designs. Similarly, methods to collect, analyze, and exchange monitoring information have advanced considerably.

 

However, if these improved monitoring resources are not used in the most efficient way, the opportunities they represent will have been squandered. Recognizing these assets and aligning them behind clear and unified goals will be critical to successful bird conservation in the Northeast. Success also depends on garnering the support of agency administrators and other decision makers. A carefully planned, cooperative approach worked for Peregrine Falcons and can work for other species at risk today.  Attention to the details summarized in this handbook should help improve the effectiveness of bird monitoring programs in the region. Maintaining the Northeast’s rich natural heritage depends, in part, on building a legacy of coordinated bird monitoring that provides crucial information to conservation planning, implementation, and decision making processes.