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NEWSLETTER OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN BIOLOGICAL SURVEY PROGRAM, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. WA SH I NGTON , D. C . 
SEPTEMBER 1965 NO 1 
SMITHSONIAN STUDIES PACIFIC BIRDS 
As part of its Pacific Project, 
a biological survey of the Pacific, 
the Smithsonian Institution has en- 
gaged in a large scale scientific 
study of bird migration in the Pa- 
cific Ocean area. Although its 
purpose is primarily scientific, 
end results of the study -will bene- 
fit many interests in the Pacific. 
Scientists have long been puz- 
zled by several questions regarding 
bird migration in the Pacific. 
What kinds or species of birds oc- 
cur in different islands and areas 
at various seasons? Where do the 
birds come from? Where do they go? 
Do individual nesting birds always 
return to the same island to breed? 
Or do they go to another? 
The scientific way to answer 
some of these questions is to cap- 
ture and mark some of the birds in 
a distinctive way so that they can 
be identified later. Thus far. over 
4-00,000 birds of many species have 
been banded on islands in the Cen- 
tral Pacific by Smithsonian scien- 
tists. It is necessary to band so 
many because the proportion of 
bands recovered is very small in 
relation to the number and kinds 
of birds banded. 
In banding, a serially numbered 
tag of aluminum or plastic is at- 
tached to the leg of each bird and 
records are kept so that the place 
of banding may be traced if the 
band is eventually found. Colored 
marks and plastic streamers are 
also used, each color represen- 
ting a different island of capture 
for a given species, so that the 
place of marking may be learned 
simply by noting the color rather 
than by the sometimes difficult 
process of recovering both bird 
and band. 
After being banded, the birds 
are released to continue their 
normal life. In just a few days 
they may be thousands of miles a- 
way. No one knows where all spe- 
cies and populations habitually go, 
but chances are that some of the 
400, 000 banded birds will turn up 
sooner or later in all parts of the 
Pacific, for many of the banded 
species are famous for their long 
over-water navigational abilities. 
Banding is not a short term af- 
fair. Since the bands are rust- 
proof and the numbers deeply im- 
pressed, the time and place of band- 
ing may be traced even though the 
band is old and worn. Living birds 
captured by Smithsonian scientists 
in the Pacific have been found 
still wearing bands which were at- 
tached over 20 years ago I After 
noting the band number, scientists 
released the birds so that their 
further travels could be traced. 
The entire program, which con- 
sists of the initial banding and 
later capture, recording of the 
number, and release of the bird, 
will enable scientists of the Pa- 
cific Project to move toward their 
goal of tracing the migrations of 
Pacific birds. 
