History and Activities

Since 2011, SHWO President Mark Osokow, a federally permitted Master Bird Bander, has operated a bird banding and monitoring station at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The program includes rigorous procedures for capturing, handling, and processing birds to identify their species, age, and sex, and to evaluate their condition before releasing them unharmed. The program is governed by rules set by the U.S. Geological Survey Bird Banding Laboratory, and all data relevant to the program is contributed to the lab's international database. 

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In addition, systematic censuses of birds are undertaken throughout SSFL and other areas to provide substantial additional information on bird populations.

Numerous volunteers have participated in the bird banding and monitoring program, and many have gone on to positions related to ornithology and other natural sciences; such as monitoring Snowy Plovers along the central California coast, bird banding in Central America, working with the California Condor recovery program, and conserving fish populations in various places. Some have leveraged their experience to gain admission to graduate school programs, while others have simply enjoyed the experience or have used the knowledge acquired to promote the conservation of wildlife.

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The Observatory has also engaged in studies to evaluate the impacts of the 2018 Woolsey Fire on bird populations at SSFL and three additional locations in the Simi Hills and Santa Monica Mountains. A backyard bird banding program has been initiated to gather data on the birds of the San Fernando Valley that goes beyond what birders can provide through observation alone. Our volunteers also participate in other programs of wildlife science such as the recently established bird migration monitoring program in San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and a long-term Western Bluebird nest-box program.

Activities also include collecting information about non-avian species — snakes, lizards, amphibians, squirrels, rabbits, deer, bobcats, mountain lions, and others. Plant blooming phenology is tracked, and the presence of invertebrates, such as butterflies and bees, is also recorded. Finally, the Observatory has contributed, and will continue to contribute, detailed comments and analyses on conservation issues throughout the region, with particular attention to SSFL and regional development projects.