National banding scheme of Brazil: linking banders and bird conservation across the country

Brazil holds several bird migration routes, latitudinal and longitudinal migrations, local or regional movements, in addition to intratropical and altitudinal migratory patterns. Bird migration studies in Brazil have substantially benefited from new technologies in the last decade, but traditional ringing is still also on focus of our National Banding Scheme (SNA). The first band recovered in Brazil was from a Sterna hirundo with a US band, in 1928. Although the primary focus of bird ringing in Brazil was the study of bird movements and migration since CEMAVE establishment in 1977, today the focus is also on understanding health, behavior and population dynamics issues, such as dispersion after fledging, survival rates and longevity. Nevertheless, successful banding programs depend on the effort to recapture marked birds, which can be carried out by specialists aiming to understand population dynamics but also by citizen-scientists, when looking for dispersal and seasonal movements. Although a relatively high effort is required to mark and recapture birds, banding is still a useful tool for understanding bird movement strategies. In addition, cost is not a limiting factor since CEMAVE provides metal rings for projects registered in the SNA. Therefore, SNA is still engaged in a continuous effort of training, communicating and organizing ringing in Brazil. Currently, more than a thousand scientists are ringing birds in Brazil, studying several topics. Here, we present the history of our banding scheme as well as innovations, online services (SNA.net), results and challenges throughout the years.