What we do:

The Toucan Ridge Bird Observatory (TRBO) has been monitoring resident and neotropical migrant birds since 2012 and was officially initiated in 2017. We focus on gaining basic vital data on Belizean resident birds and monitoring neotropical migrants off their breeding grounds. Our data is collected by a combination of point-count surveys, weekly transects, and bird banding.

We have been running a White Collared Manakin (Manacus candei) lek use project since 2016, a barn owl (Tyto alba) nesting project since 2017 and will begin a Grooved-Bill Ani (Crotophaga sulcirostris) monitoring project shortly. We collect field camera data on the presence of the great curassow (Crax rubra), which is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN. We also run a series of small experiments on habitat use and food preferences in birds.

T.R.B.O. has multiple years of data collected on residents and neotropical migrants. We are always looking to collaborate with other researchers and organizations interested in avian research and conservation in the tropics. We are also looking for M.Sc. and Ph.D. candidates to conduct their research at the observatory and to use the data available at hand. For more information and research inquiries please contact Mathieu Charette.

We collaborate with citizen programs such as Ebird, follow the MoSI protocol by the Institute for Bird Populations (IPB), and have MOTUS antennae on site. We collaborate with local and international organizations such as Belize Audubon Society, Environmental Research Institute (ERI) and the Calgary Bird Banding Society (CBBS) and we regularly host North American Banding Council workshops and certification sessions. We also run targeted projects and are always looking for projects to develop with interns and students from Belize and international secondary and post-secondary institutions.

TRBO functions almost entirely on donations and your help and contributions help us continue our mission of bird conservation and education in the tropics: