The VIU Bird Banding Project is a contributor to the Bird Genoscape project led by the Center for Tropical Research at University of California in Log Angeles.
Each year, we collect tail feathers from select species of netropical migrants which we capture at the Buttertubs Marsh banding station. The feathers become part of a large collection of feathers and their DNA collected throughout North and Latin America.
Researchers with the Bird Genoscape project use molecular genetic markers to characterize the migratory patterns of birds. These genetic markers can be used to build a map of genetic variation across the geographic range of each species (a genoscape), which can be used to trace the breeding origin and wintering ground of birds captured anywhere along their migratory pathway using DNA contained within a single feather. The findings of the project serve as an essential first step towards building effective conservation and management strategies.
