Donald Mitchell obtained an M.S. degree in Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota and has conducted field studies of hummingbirds and the plants they pollinate in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Colorado and California. He is a federally-permitted hummingbird bander and serves as Vice President of the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union. He is a Goodhue County Master Gardener and attracts hundreds of hummingbirds annually to his garden near the Mississippi River in Red Wing.

WHY BAND HUMMINGBIRDS

Bird banding is a very important tool in ornithological research. When a bird is banded, important data about the bird such as age, sex, condition, and plumage and characteristics may be collected. The information may also included making any number of measurements, especially the wing chord (length of the flattened wing from wrist to tip of the longest primary feather), tail length, mass, and bill length. After the banding the bird is released, the data is filed the Bird Banding Laboratory, including precise information about date and location of capture. If someone encounters the bird at a later date, the band number can be reported toll-free at 1-800-327-BAND or through the BBL's Web site. Contact is then made with the bander and is informed as to where and when the banded bird was found and by whom. The finder receives a Certificate of Appreciation and is told where and when the bird was banded.

HOW HUMMINGBIRDS ARE BANDED

Once a hummingbird is captured, it must be temporarily immobilized so it can be banded and measured. Different hummingbird banders use different techniques for holding the birds; some place them in mesh lingerie bags and gently pull the birds leg through an opening for banding.
Others use the technique of placing hummingbirds carefully headfirst into a small paper tube slightly larger than the bird. While in the tube, the hummingbird can't struggle and hurt itself, and it can be banded and measured.

The bander places a partially opened hummingbird band (which had been formed previously) into special banding pliers and slides it over the leg of the bird. The band is then crimped shut and checked to assure that it is perfectly round and fits well. A common method used is to band all male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds on the LEFT leg, females on the RIGHT.

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