DoD Coordinated Bird Monitoring
The US Geological Survey (USGS) and the DoD PIF Monitoring Working Group developed a comprehensive approach to bird monitoring for DoD. The Coordinated Bird Monitoring (CBM) approach is intended to insure that DoD meets its legal requirements for monitoring birds in the most efficient manner possible. The final report of that project is here: Coordinated Bird Monitoring: Technical Recommendations for Military Lands. “Monitoring” is used in a broad sense to include short-term assessments and effectiveness monitoring as well as long-term “status monitoring” programs. The DoD CBM Plan is consistent with recommendations in the NABCI monitoring report and the Northeast Coordinated Bird Monitoring Partnership’s Northeast Bird Monitoring Handbook. Four deliverables are identified in the DoD CBM Plan:
- A review of existing bird monitoring programs on DoD lands.
- Guidelines for the design of bird monitoring surveys on DoD lands.
- A plan for monitoring bird species of concern on DoD lands.
- Recommendations for DoD’s role in continental bird monitoring programs.
A CBM database was created to allow the entry of habitat variables into a standardized database. The new “Coordinated Bird Monitoring Database” is maintained by the USGS. It is meant to be used in combination with the eBird program (for entering fairly simple observations) and the Avian Knowledge Network (for storing a reduced set of variables). These databases will insure that inventory and monitoring data sets are collected and permanently preserved in long-term repositories so that they are not lost. Associated tools will also ensure that our data are available for various analyses (e.g., trends, assessment of relative importance of installation lands for a species). Information on implementing the Plan’s guidelines will become available as the Plan is finalized.