Background information

Breeding Bird Survey in North America (BBS) - U.S. analysis

The North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) is an international avian survey conducted annually since 1966 in the United States and Canada. The BBS is designed to monitor trends in relative abundance of North American breeding birds at the continental, national and regional level. The survey focuses on landbirds and is the main source of information on long-term population change for these species in North America.

The BBS is jointly coordinated by Environment Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Both Canada and the U.S. publish results of their analyses. Results analysed for North America presented on this website are from the U.S. analysis. Results for Canada are from the Canadian analysis.

For the U.S. Geological Service (USGS) website on the BBS in North America see:
http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/

In the current iteration of the Status of Birds in Canada, results from Sauer et al. (2013) were used. To view the complete USGS BBS analysis (Version 07.03.2013) see:
http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/bbs/bbs2012.html

For more information on the BBS in Canada including the Canadian results see:
http://ec.gc.ca/reom-mbs/default.asp?lang=En&n=416B57CA-1

Reference

  • Sauer, J.R., J.E. Hines, J.E. Fallon, K.L. Pardieck, D.J. Ziolkowski, Jr., and W.A. Link. 2013. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2012. Version 07.03.2013 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD