#69: Behind the Scenes of Bird Banding with Dr. Katie LaBarbera of the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory

Have you ever wondered how bird banding works? How the birds are captured, safely handled, and released? And why is it done at all?

Thanks to Dr. Katie LaBarbera, Science Director for the Land Bird Program at the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO), we have you covered.

Banding is specifically the scientific technique used to study bird behavior, migration, and populations. By safely capturing and placing bands on birds' legs, researchers can track their movements and gain valuable insights for conservation efforts.

Today’s episode is a unique one - it’s part field recordings and part traditional Nature’s Archive interview. We’ll jump into the entire banding process, from capture and extraction to the measurements taken and placing the band on it.

We’ll then discuss the outcomes and observations from this long term monitoring effort, along with some fascinating observations about birds ranging from American Goldfinch to Bewicks Wrens.

Katie also tells us about MOTUS, an exciting telemetry technology that will help create a network of automated observation stations to further advance bird migration monitoring. This technology promises to augment and amplify the work performed by banding stations.

And just one more thing. This was a really fun episode to produce, though challenging at times. A big thanks to Katie for allowing these visits despite a challenging season of weather disruptions, and having to re-record parts of it. Thank you to Wendy Gibbons, who walked us through the netting and extraction processes, as well as several other SFBBO volunteers who provided insights and information on my first visit in February.

See the FULL Show Notes for some amazing photos from the banding station!

Also find SFBBO on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Thanks to Emily Smith for production assistance in this episode.

Links To Topics Discussed
Wendy Gibbons - an SFBBO volunteer who walked me through the capture and extraction process in today's episode.
The Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner
MOTUS Wildlife Tracking System

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Music: Spellbound by Brian Holtz Music
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist site: https://brianholtzmusic.com

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Check past Nature's Archive episodes for amazing guests like Doug Tallamy, Elaine Ingham, and Rae Wynn-Grant, covering topics from bird migration to fungi to frogs and bats!