We operate five bird banding stations during the spring and summer, following MAPS protocols (Measuring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) and joining a network of banding stations coordinated by the Institute for Bird Populations. This protocol ensures that safe and ethical practices will be followed to minimize stress to the birds. USGS Bird Banding Laboratory permit #24298.
In 2026, we completed our sixth MAPS bird banding season, and submitted several hundred bird records to the Institute for Bird Populations. While it’s important to contribute to continent-wide monitoring efforts, we were also encouraged to see detailed information about the bird communities at each of our banding sites begin to take shape.
Collecting demographic information on bird species gives us a window into population changes over time. We can also use MAPS banding data to study individual bird health, and to identify which part of the annual cycle might be driving species declines. For example, finding that only a few individuals return from migration each spring points to threats on the wintering grounds or migration routes, while encountering low numbers of fledging birds in late summer indicates poor nesting success. For rare species, it will take years to compile enough data to estimate population vital rates, but for the more common bird species, we expect to reach this point soon.
To see how we are using bird banding data so far, check out our study examining the response of the avian insectivore community to woodland management.
In 2026 we banded 344 birds of 37 species and recaptured 119 previously banded birds. This is similar to the number of birds banded in 2025, 47% more than in 2023 (during a severe drought) and 21% less than in 2022. Scroll to the bottom of this page to find a list of the birds banded in each sites this year.
Hemlock Draw Uplands
This site was established in 2021 within one of The Nature Conservancy’s woodland restoration sites. Characterized by a steep south-facing sandstone bluff, mature white and red oak trees, and a recovering herbaceous ground layer, this site is approaching open woodland conditions after decades of fire suppression. The most abundant bird species encountered during MAPS operations are Indigo Bunting, Eastern Wood-Pewee, and American Redstart, and a total of 27 bird species have been banded, indicating that bird diversity is higher here than any of our other sites.
This site also has the record for the oldest individual bird in our study area – a Red-headed Woodpecker, banded in the site as an adult (at least three years old) in 2021 and recaptured in 2026. In 2025, we recaptured a Mourning Warbler that we originally banded in 2021. For a 13 gram bird which migrates to Central or South America each year, surviving for six years is impressive! The oldest Mourning Warbler ever recorded was seven years old.
In 2026, we banded 137 birds of 24 species, and recaptured 59 birds of which we had previously banded. The most abundant birds this year were Gray Catbirds, American Redstarts, Baltimore Orioles and Yellow Warblers.
As a managed woodland, this site changes dramatically between years, and shrub layers regrow following fires and within treefall gaps. Thus, the bird community in Hemlock Draw is dynamic. Previously, the most abundant birds we banded here were: Indigo Buntings, House Wrens, and Eastern Wood-Pewees.
Because of the dense shrub layer this year, Hemlock Draw attracted many fledgling birds during the second half of the MAPS season. In particular, Gray Catbird and Baltimore Oriole fledglings were very common, as well as several warbler species. Along with the shelter provided by dense and tangled understory vegetation, high amounts of insects and berries provided ample food resources for young birds to molt and prepare for migrations.
Happy Hill Woodland
Another site located within a large oak woodland managed by The Nature Conservancy, the Happy Hill Woodland banding site was established in 2021. Located within Baxter’s Hollow Preserve, one of the most extensive forests in southern Wisconsin, this site is at the top of a flat quartzite blufftop in an oak-hickory woodland. The most abundant birds banded here across the last six year are American Redstart, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Eastern Wood-Pewee, and 26 species have been banded to date. As this site is also managed, the bird community is dynamic and tends to change between years. Additionally, this site has the widest range of caterpillar abundance between years of any of our sites. Because the majority of the birds we band are insectivorous and depend on caterpillars during the nesting season, this shifting resources availability has been reflected in bird abundance as well.
In 2026, we banded 79 birds of 21 species, and recaptured 21 birds of which we had previously banded. The most abundant birds this year were American Redstarts, Blue-winged Warblers and Indigo Buntings.
Natural Bridge Uplands
This site was operated in 2022, 2023, and 2026. Located at the top of a steep sandstone bluff within Natural Bridge State Park, owned and managed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Mature oak trees are dominant in the canopy, however years of fire suppression have resulted in dense midstory and shrub-layer conditions. Oak woodland management began on the eastern side of the site in 2025.
This site has the highest diversity of woodpeckers – which are good indicators of forest ecosystem health. We have caught all of southern Wisconsin’s 7 species of woodpecker here – including Pileated Woodpeckers, three times!
One of the most exciting birds we encountered this year was a recaptured male Scarlet Tanager who we originally banded in 2022 – before the woodland management activity began on this site. He had returned to the same White Oak ridgetop to nest, indicating that the prescribed fire conducted in 2025 did not cause him to relocate.
In 2026, we banded 63 birds of 19 species, and recaptured 8 birds of which we had previously banded. The most abundant birds this year were Wood Thrush, American Robin, Ovenbird and Indigo Bunting.
Pan Hollow Uplands
This site, owned and managed by The Nature Conservancy, is part of an extensive forest preserve extending across a wide stream valley to uplands on either side. The current Pan Hollow Uplands banding site was established in 2022, and is on the top and south slope of a quartzite bluff above a quartzite outcropping. Oaks, hickories, and maples are common in the overstory, and the midstory has become dense due to regeneration of maples and other shade-intolerant species. The ground layer is predominantly leaf-litter and maple seedlings with some shrub growth near tree-fall gaps and one remnant oak opening. The most abundant birds encountered are Wood Thrush, Ovenbird, and Veery, and 21 bird species have been banded to date.
As an interior woodland site, Pan Hollow has a lower abundance and diversity of bird species, however the species that we do encounter here typically have high conservation value and depend on large tracts of undisturbed forest habitat – species like Wood Thrush, Hooded Warbler, and Ovenbird. Later in the season, adult birds and fledglings tend to move away from this site towards areas with dense shrub layers, leaving this forest quiet and empty as early as mid-July. However, the soundscape at this site in late-May is one of the most beautiful in our study area.
In 2026, we banded 26 birds of 15 species, and recaptured 9 birds of which we had previously banded. The most abundant birds this year were American Robin, Veery, and Eastern Wood-Pewee.
Pine Hollow
This site was established in 2021 within a stream gorge forest characterized by hemlock, sugar maple, white pine, and basswood. This is a unique site in that our nets are located along a stream and so are ideal for studying Louisiana Waterthrush populations. This has been consistently the most abundant species at this site, followed by Acadian Flycatcher. Only 13 species have been banded at this more specialized site, but several are species of high conservation concern in this landscape.
This site also has the highest proportion of recaptured birds to newly encountered birds – meaning that most birds survive for a long time, and have high site fidelity, or a strong instinct to return to the same patch of forest year after year.
In 2026, we banded 30 birds of 13 species, and recaptured 21 birds of which we had previously banded. The most abundant birds this year were American Robin, Veery, and Eastern Wood-Pewee.
Our 2026 bird banding record summary is available here, and more details are available upon request.
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