Collecting Birds in the Field

Methods

The ornithology field team uses mist nets to collect birds throughout the Gaoligong Shan (GLGS). Mist nets are made of a fine mesh material that make it difficult for birds to detect as they fly through an area foraging for food and shelter.

Mist nets enable researchers to easily detect and identify birds in a given region with a high level of accuracy. Because mist nets only capture birds of a certain size that are foraging low to the ground, the field team carried out multiple "observation surveys" in each area to account for rare, endangered and larger bird occurences.

What is Collected?

A wealth of information about the individual, species, and ecology of a bird can be gathered from one specimen alone! But it takes skill, patience, and a lot of time. Below is a list of the components carefully collected from each specimen:

• Museum skins (1 sample)
• Photos (multiple)
• Tissues (4 samples)
• Post-cranial skeleton (when possible)
• Anatomical spirit collections (when necessary)

Applications

Ornithological skins are kept at the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ) and at the California Academy of Sciences (CAS) and are used by scientists from around the world for taxonomic, biogeographic, and conservation based research.

Liver and muscle tissue samples are used for molecular studies that provide information on the phylogenetic relationships between species and can be used to understand spatial patterns of biodiversity. To read the latest publications from the GLGS field teams, please see our Bibliography of Papers Published.

Photo: Jack Dumbacher
Yang Xiaojun from the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ) and student Yang Rong are setting up mist nets to collect birds in the Pianma area in Lusui County.

Documentation

Photo: Diann Prosser

Jack Dumbacher records important data about where collections are made in the field with a GPS device.

Photo: Jack Dumbacher

Every specimen is given a field number that connects it to biological and geographic data.

Photo: Jack Dumbacher

Yang Rong, a student at KIZ collects liver and muscle tissue from a specimen.

Photo: Dian Prosser

Ornithological museum skins are collected from each specimen.