About us

Fundación Científica ARA MACAO has created this website to share with others our bird banding research in Venezuela as well as to provide information on our study sites, publications, bird photos, etc. We hope this page stimulates interest for working on birds or other wildlife in Venezuela and the Neotropics. Our work is constantly evolving, so as new information becomes available and we embark on new avenues of research, we will keep you posted, so check back with us periodically. Also you will find more information (usually pictures and events) in our Facebook page: Fundación Científica ARA MACAO.

Our research focuses on the following areas:
    

• Understanding bird migration across the Caribbean and northern South America, focusing our work in the Venezuelan territories (islands and mainland).
• Contribute through scientific research to promote the study and monitoring of bird populations that breed, migrate or spend some time in Venezuela.
• To demonstrate the potential value of key stopover locations on the migratory routes of some species of American birds.
• Take courses to educate and train local ornithologists to carry out bird monitoring.
• Offer educational and environmental strategies in local communities, contributing to the conservation of birds in Venezuela.
• Identify and promote standardized protocols for monitoring migratory and resident birds, using scientific banding, for implementation in Venezuela.
• Develop an identification guide to contribute to knowledge of the morphology, plumage and the determination of the age and sex of the species monitored.
• Create a banding data archive for use in scientific studies from Venezuela.

Currently, thanks to the help of Fundación Científica Los Roques (Venezuela), Idea Wild (USA), Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds/SCSCB (Caribbean), Rock Point Bird Banding Station (Canada), the Institute for Bird Populations/IBP (USA) and some private donors, we are starting to work with Northern migratory birds passing through Venezuela during their migrations or wintering here.