Curious about banding now.
Have been involved in couple of banding projects over last couple of years but am second guessing now.
The peregrine project I can understand as our birds return to same nest site yearly. Also our offspring has been located and reported on. Nice as we know where some of them are nesting.
But the other projects (Red-tail and Rough-legged Hawks) -- have returned little data. And shows nothing of migration habits.
Recently I located a wing-tagged SnowyOwl. I am pretty sure of the bander thru help from this site. He has not contacted me to find out where the bird was located or any other status.
Why band the bird?
Also the wing-tag was very large and I am doubting the necessity for something so obtrusive.
Just curious / interested in opinions I guess.
Thanks.

I don't know a lot about banding, but some things bands are used for is to determine migratory routes used and if birds return to same place every year. Also longevity of birds. Even Hummingbirds get banded and butterflies get tagged! I agree that many bands, both wing and leg, are oversize. That is true about neckbands also. I guess this is so that numbers can be read with a scope or binoculars from a distance. Imagine carrying around a satellite transmitter, like some geese I've photographed!

SFJ

Hi,

I can't comment on the owl you observed, but wing tags are a common tool to individually mark birds so that they can be re-identified without the stress of recapture. The researchers might not be interested in locations, there are many questions tags like this can be used to ask, and it's possible the bird was carrying other instruments too! Individual markers are very often used to ask behavioral questions so birds can be watched at a distance and individual identity is known.

The issue of tags being oversized is important in the age of new sensors that we can attach to birds (GPS, heart rate, etc, etc). Generally the ornithology community sets some good guidelines, and there are shades of grey given the nature of the research, implications and effects on the bird.

Here's a few pieces from the growing body of literature on tag effects. My biggest worry is that if conclusions are being driven by tag effects, than the research itself is suspect. I can rationalize even generally "large" tags for short intervals if the information is critical for conservation research, but I cannot accept biased results. Now most tagging studies do a control study to account for tag biases and it's getting harder to publish without these controls to be clear your not just observing tag effects.

Effects of Radio Tags on Spotted Owls
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/3809508

Tags on Eiders, affect lay date but not clutch size....
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/3809032

LASTING EFFECTS OF WING TAGS ON RING-BILLED GULLS
LINDA K. KINKEL •
Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois 60115 USA
AI•STRACT.--Wing tags influenced Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) unfavorably for up
to four years after they were marked. Fewer tagged birds returned to the colony site, and
birds that returned arrived approximately one week later, on average, than leg-banded birds.
Although arrival dates and hatching dates were unrelated, the eggs of tagged birds hatched
2-5 days later than those of banded birds. Pair bonds of tagged birds were broken more often
than those of banded birds. This may have contributed to delayed hatching. Most wing-
tagged females (54-60%) that returned to the colony were unable to acquire mates. Birds
whose tags were replaced with color bands resumed normal reproductive performance. Wing
tags presumably interfered with Ring-billed Gull migration and had pronounced, long-term
effects on behavior and reproduction. The potential impact of marking techniques must be
evaluated carefully before or during any study of avian behavior. Received 5 December 1988,
accepted 4 May 1989.
http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Auk/v106n04/p0619-p0624.pdf

P.S. We've tackled this before,

viewtopic.php?f=37&t=190744&hilit=penguin+flipper

Thanks.
Yes I knew of the other discussion but I had a different outlook at that time

That bander likely already received the data from another bander (the one I contacted). So, he now has no need to respond. So, next time...get the banding info first BEFORE providing any details about where the bird was found. It's a two way street. Who knows, some of these guys are quirky...maybe it goes with the job

I really appreciated your help -- wish I could have found out more about the bird.

I was curious too but at least we know where the bander was from so that is likely where he banded it.

With so many snowy owls coming down last winter, a few have lingered into June. One here east of Ottawa was reported in early June. I have been told that this snowy owl was one of the first to arrive in early November 2011...infact, I have a photo of it from last November. According to a birder I spoke with, this is the same snowy owl that has lingered into June. Another was reported in Ontario last week. One in Quebec http://lanatureasonmeilleur.blogspot.ca/2012/06/harfang-des-neiges.html