Skip to main content

Training Researchers, Land and Wildlife Managers, and Enthusiasts in Proper Raptor Handling Techniques

By IBO Research Biologist RaptorRob Miller

For those who have had the honor to witness any of our hands-on bird banding projects, you know first-hand that we prioritize bird safety very highly. Proper handling techniques help ensure that the bird is safe, but nearly as important is the fact that a properly held bird is more relaxed. A more relaxed bird is safer for the bird and safer for the handler. As part of our efforts to keep birds safe, we not only invest in training our crew, but offer bird handling workshops to the public. 

We are one of the only places to offer public raptor handling workshops.

We have offered at least one raptor handling workshop per year for almost a decade. Two years ago, we started offering two workshops a year: one public and one for a private partner from Kauai. As Jay alluded to in his article “Tumultuous 2025”, funding has been harder to come by this year, so we added a third workshop this season. Remarkably, we filled all three. Funds for these workshops went to support my (Rob’s) position, and can help us support Heather to return to hummingbird band-making and banding in 2026.

A person holds a large hawk inside a wooden raptor blind
Kupono from Kauai holding a dark-morph, adult Red-tailed Hawk Photo Credit: Aliana Ho

Our students this season came with a broad swath of experiences. We had participants from federal agencies (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, BLM), state wildlife agencies, a couple tribal biologists, three veterinarian technicians, three people who operate their own songbird banding stations, a college professor, and some volunteers just looking to expand their experiences. Some students were local, but some were from as far away as Texas and Hawaii. 

In total, we banded over 110 raptors, and even one Northern Flicker, during the workshops!

The students that run their own songbird stations were each looking for experience in case a raptor were to get caught in their songbird nets. In a remarkable coincidence, on one of our student’s first day back home they caught a Sharp-shinned Hawk in their nets and now knew how to safely extract and band the bird!

A young lady views the Red-tailed Hawk's tail feathers while someone holds the bird with onlookers in the background
Aliana from Kauai learns about aging adult Red-tailed Hawks as the rest of the Kauai team looks on. Photo credit: From Robert Miller’s phone, probably taken by Troy or Ku’ulea

We haven’t finalized plans yet for next year, but expect to at least offer one or two more raptor handling workshops for Fall 2026. You can register to be notified about upcoming opportunities by filling out our Workshop Interest Form here.

This article is part of our 2025 end of the year newsletter! View the full newsletter here, or click “older posts” below to read the next article. Make sure you don’t miss out on IBO news! Sign up to get our email updates.