Overview
Project Name
Breeding Bird Survey
Access Level
Visualizations only
Year started
1966
Dataset
Breeding Bird Surveys (50 stops, Mexico)
About
Geographic area covered
Canada, United States (excluding Hawaii), Mexico (states bordering the U.S.), and Puerto Rico
Primary species covered
500+ bird species are surveyed by the BBS in the United States and Canada; trends calculated for 504 species, with varying levels of precision (99 with small sample size, 95 with low relative abundance and 84 with high variance in counts.
Goals
The BBS is a cooperative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey's Patuxent Wildlife Research Center and the Canadian Wildlife Service's National Wildlife Research Centre to monitor the status and trends of North American bird populations. Following a rigorous protocol, BBS data are collected by thousands of dedicated participants along thousands of randomly established roadside routes throughout the continent. Professional BBS coordinators and data managers work closely with researchers and statisticians to compile and deliver these population data and population trend analyses on more than 400 bird species, for use by conservation managers, scientists, and the general public.
Methods
Sampling Design
Start points and start direction of routes randomly located within degree block of latitude and longitude
Field methods
Counts are made along roadsides, mostly in May and June in the US and June and early July in Canada. All birds heard or seen by volunteers or professional biologists are recorded at 50, 3-minute stops (point counts) along the 39.4 km roadside route. Stops
Analysis methods
Latest analyses are available on Patuxent web site or NWRC web site. US: http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/bbs.html - Canada: http://www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/mbc-com/
Partners
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Citation
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Canadian Wildlife Service. 2025. "Breeding Bird Survey". Data accessed from NatureCounts, Birds Canada.