THE ORNITHOLOGICAL COUNCIL

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The founding premise of the Ornithological Council is that the ability to make sound policy and management decisions regarding birds and their habitat is dependent on the application of impartial scientific data and the continued collection of such data. The Council works to support this important mission. It serves as a conduit between ornithological science and legislators, land managers, conservation organizations and private industry. It provides scientific facts and expert analyses on birds to those in need of the information.

The Council was founded by seven ornithological societies in North America: American Ornithologists' Union (AOU), Association for Field Ornithology (AFO), Colonial Waterbird Society (CWS), Cooper Ornithological Society (COS), Pacific Seabird Group (PSG), Raptor Research Foundation (RRF) and Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS). In recent years, the Society of Canadian Scientists, the Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, the Neotropical Ornithological Society, and CIPAMEX have become members. Each society has two representatives on the Board of Directors.

BOARD OFFICERS

Executive Director: Ellen Paul, 8722 Preston Place, Chevy Chase, MD, 20815 (Tel: 301 986-8568; email: ellen.paul@verizon.net)

Chair of the Board: David E. Blockstein, National Council for Science and the Environment, 1707 H St., N.W., Suite 200, Washington, D.C. 20006 (Tel: 202 530-5810; email oc@ncseonline.org).
 

To Purchase Copies of This Publication Printed copies are no longer available. We recommend that those who would like a printed copy print the pdf version of the 2nd Edition.

TABLE I

Abbreviations Used in Text


AAALAC American Association for Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care
ABA American Birding Association
ABS Animal Behavior Society
ASAB  Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour
AOU  American Ornithologists' Union
APHIS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
AVMA  American Veterinary Medical Association
AWA  Animal Welfare Act
BBL  Bird-Banding Laboratory
BRD  Biological Resources Division (of USGS: was NBS)
CCAC  Canadian Council on Animal Care
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna
CWS  Canadian Wildlife Service
DVM  Doctor of Veterinary Medicine
ESA  Endangered Species Act
Guide Guidelines for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals
IACUC  Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
IATA  International Air Transport Association
MTAB  Memorandum to Banders
MTBA  Migratory Bird Treaty Act
NBS  National Biological Survey (now BRD)
NIH  National Institutes of Health
NSF  National Science Foundation
NWHC  National Wildlife Health Center
OMA  Office of Management Authority (of USFWS)
OSNA  Ornithological Societies of North America
USDA  United States Department of Agriculture
USFWS  United States Fish and Wildlife Service
USGS  United States Geological Survey

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PREFACE

In 1988, the American Ornithologists' Union, Cooper Ornithological Society, and Wilson Ornithological Society, with encouragement and financing from the National Science Foundation, published the first edition of Guidelines for the Use of Wild Birds in Research. That publication proved extremely useful to many ornithologists and to the regulatory community (e.g., American Association of Accreditation of Laboratory Animal care and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees). Advances in techniques over the past decade have made it appropriate upgrade this valuable reference. The current edition, published by the Ornithological Council (a consortium of the original publishers plus several other professional. ornithological societies), greatly expands the previous edition, updates references, and adds several new sections. Among the major additions are a discussion of the role of AAALAC and lACUCs, a description of the responsibilities of both regulators and scientists, information on research permits, and a section on the care and housing of aquatic species. Sections are written to be complete in themselves so that the entire document need not be read to understand any one section. We have also included many cross-references, [in italicized brackets]

Most of the authors of the first edition helped with the revision. In addition, each section has been reviewed by a wide range of colleagues in both the ornithological and veterinary communities. This information is intended to indicate to lACUCs or other regulating groups the general procedures that are appropriate for birds. These procedures may be quite different from those appropriate for mammals. It is not intended to be a complete reference on techniques and procedures, nor, except where specified, to set limits on which procedures are allowed: these are guidelines, not laws. The procedures discussed herein are by no means intended to be exhaustive. Variations from procedures described herein may well be acceptable, provided that the investigator presents an adequate justification of the scientific value of the requested variant. It is the professional responsibility of all researchers and regulators to stay informed of new developments in their field of research. The Ornithological Council solicits comments and recommendations on all aspects of this publication.

This publication has been reviewed and endorsed by the following ornithological societies:

American Ornithologists' Union
Association of Field Ornithologists
Colonial Waterbird Society
Cooper Ornithological Society
Pacific Seabird Group
Raptor Research Foundation
Wilson Ornithological Society

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