The Institute for Bird Populations

What The Institute for Bird Populations does

The Institute for Bird Populations (IBP) is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit research organization founded in 1989 and headquartered in Point Reyes Station. It enables science-based conservation of species and habitats by studying the abundance, demography, and ecology of birds and other wildlife, and it collaborates with government agencies, universities, and NGOs locally, nationally, and globally to assess the effects of land management actions and ecological stressors on bird populations.

IBP's core scientific platform is the MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) program — the first continent-wide bird banding collaboration — and its sister program MoSI (Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal) covering Latin America and the Caribbean. These programs use standardized constant-effort mist-netting and capture-recapture statistical modeling to produce longitudinal demographic data on 158+ North American landbird species, housed in the Vital Rates of North American Landbirds resource. Supporting products include the standardized four- and six-letter bird species alpha codes (updated annually against AOS taxonomy), regional science and conservation programs across the Sierra Nevada, Pacific Northwest, Southwest, and Pacific Islands, and new research lines in acoustic ecology, pollinator ecology, and molt and plumage studies.

IBP is funded through grants, donations, and government contracts rather than commercial sales. Its primary customer segments are federal and state agencies (National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service), universities and research institutions, and conservation NGOs. The organization distributes its work through a publications database of 870+ peer-reviewed papers, the Bird Pop! blog, a Constant Contact newsletter, annual reports, and social media channels including Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok.

Name

The Institute for Bird Populations

Legal name

The Institute for Bird Populations

Website

https://birdpop.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Institute for Bird Populations is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1989, that operates continent-wide bird banding and demographic monitoring programs (MAPS, MoSI) for federal agencies, universities, and conservation NGOs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wildlife Conservation Research

akta.pro primary industry

Wildlife Surveys & Movement/Connectivity Studies (e.g., Avian/Bat, Telemetry) (EUAHAHAH)

Keywords

• Bird population monitoring
• Avian demographic research
• Wildlife conservation science
• Bird banding programs
• Ecological data services

Headquarters

HQ city

Petaluma

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Institute for Bird Populations is a nonprofit research organization that conducts standardized bird population monitoring and demographic research through programs such as MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) and MoSI (Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal). It produces demographic data, vital rates analysis, and standardized bird species alpha codes used by conservation agencies, universities, and NGOs to inform science-based conservation of bird species and habitats across the Americas.

Product overview

The Institute for Bird Populations operates as a science-based bird conservation organization offering a portfolio of monitoring programs, data resources, and publications. The core offerings include MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship), the first continent-wide bird banding program, and its sister program MoSI (Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal) operating in Latin America and the Caribbean. These programs are supported by data products including standardized Bird Species Alpha Codes and the Vital Rates of North American Landbirds resource. The organization also publishes the Bird Populations Journal, a peer-reviewed scientific publication dedicated to avian demography and biogeography. Regional Science and Conservation Programs address specific geographic areas including Sierra Nevada, Pacific Northwest, Southwest, and Pacific Islands.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MAPS - Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship: The first continent-wide bird banding collaboration monitoring avian productivity and survivorship across North America.
• MoSI - Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal
• TMAPS - Tropical Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship
• Vital Rates of North American Landbirds

Products and services

• MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) The first continent-wide bird banding collaboration program that monitors avian productivity and survivorship through standardized mist-netting at hundreds of stations across North America. It provides vital rate data including survival estimates and productivity indices for over 158 species of North American landbirds and is used by government agencies, universities, and conservation organizations for science-based conservation.
• MoSI (Monitoreo de Sobrevivencia Invernal) A sister bird banding program to MAPS that operates in Latin America and the Caribbean to assess habitat-specific overwintering survival of neotropical migratory landbirds. It is used by researchers and conservation organizations to understand migratory bird ecology across the full annual cycle.
• Bird Species Alpha Codes Standardized 4-letter (English) and 6-letter (scientific) bird species alpha codes based on AOS taxonomy for North American, Mexican, Central American, and Caribbean birds, updated annually following AOU/AOS supplements. These codes are used by researchers, bird banders, and conservation organizations across the Americas for consistent species identification in data records.
• Bird Populations Journal A peer-reviewed scientific journal dedicated to the study of dynamic avian demography and biogeography from a global perspective, first published in 1993. The journal served the avian conservation research community; publication is currently suspended (since 2016).
• Vital Rates of North American Landbirds A comprehensive online resource providing vital rate data (productivity, survival, and other demographic parameters) for North American landbird species derived from MAPS program data. It serves researchers, conservation professionals, and land managers needing demographic drivers of population trends.

Quantifiable outcome

• MAPS program provides vital rate estimates for 158+ species of North American landbirds
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• National Park ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing collaboration for bird monitoring in National Parks including Yosemite, Sierra Nevada Network parks, and North Coast and Cascades Network parks. IBP provides standardized bird monitoring protocols and data analysis for park management.
• U.S. Forest ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on bird monitoring and forest management research, including studies on fire effects, Black-backed Woodpecker habitat, and forest health across national forests.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on bird conservation initiatives, including the Bird Banding Laboratory data collaboration and migratory bird research programs.
• American Ornithological Society (AOS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIBP's alpha codes are aligned with AOS taxonomy and nomenclature. IBP updates species codes annually following AOS checklist supplements.
• Various UniversitiesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research with universities including Stanford, UC Davis, UCLA, and others on bird population studies, migration ecology, and conservation biology.
• Slate Creek PressminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPublisher and distributor of Peter Pyle's Identification Guide to North American Birds books developed in part through IBP research.
• International Bird Banding AssociationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the North American Bird Bander journal and other banding organizations for publishing standardized bird aging and banding methodology.
• Conservation OrganizationsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborations with organizations including Audubon Society, California Partners in Flight, Point Blue Conservation Science, and other NGOs on bird monitoring and conservation programs.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Birds Canada: Canada's leading bird conservation science organization, operating comparable long-term banding and demographic monitoring programs north of IBP's primary range. Strong methodological overlap with MAPS.

Direct peers

• Point Blue Conservation Science: Formerly PRBO, Point Blue operates long-running bird monitoring and ecological research programs across the Pacific Americas, directly comparable to IBP's MAPS and regional science programs. Both are nonprofit science shops working with federal land management agencies on standardized avian monitoring.
• Klamath Bird Observatory: Pacific Northwest-based nonprofit running long-term constant-effort mist-netting stations under the Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship framework. Closely aligned with IBP in scale, methodology, and funder base.
• Bird Conservancy of the Rockies: Operates the Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions program, a continent-scale bird banding effort directly comparable to MAPS. Same nonprofit-conservation model, federal-agency partnerships, and standardized mist-netting methodology.

Broad incumbents

• National Audubon Society: Large national bird conservation organization with parallel scientific, advocacy, and habitat programs. Overlaps with IBP in avian conservation research and citizen-science-based monitoring, though at a much larger scale.
• Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Larger, broader avian research and citizen-science powerhouse (eBird, Birds of the World). Cornell Lab overlaps with IBP in demographic monitoring and species data, but operates at vastly greater scale across all bird taxa and geographies.
• USGS Bird Banding Laboratory: Federal agency that maintains the master North American bird banding database and issues banding permits. IBP directly collaborates with the BBL, and the two are co-dependent infrastructure providers for avian research.
• Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center: Research arm of the Smithsonian focused on migratory bird demography and full-life-cycle conservation. Shares IBP's emphasis on demographic drivers and Neotropical migrant research, with much larger institutional backing.

Others

• American Ornithological Society: Scientific society that maintains the AOS Checklist and taxonomy on which IBP's standardized alpha codes are based. Not a direct competitor but a tightly coupled standards-setting partner.
• NatureServe: Nonprofit that aggregates species-level ecological and conservation status data across North America. Adjacent to IBP's vital rates dataset in function and customer base, serving overlapping government and conservation users.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/InstBirdPop
• Instagraminstagram.com/instbirdpop
• TikToktiktok.com/@instbirdpop
• Xx.com/instbirdpop

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Institute for Bird Populations