Point Blue Conservation Science, founded as and formerly named the Point Reyes Bird Observatory (PRBO), is a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

-based wildlife conservation and research

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

organization.

Overview

Point Blue was founded in 1965 to study bird migration along the

Pacific Flyway The Pacific Flyway is a major north-south flyway for migratory birds in the Americas, extending from Alaska to Patagonia. Every year, migratory birds travel some or all of this distance both in spring and in fall, following food sources, heading ...

. Point Blue has conducted the longest running population study of land birds in North America west of the Mississippi river (continuous since 1966) and has maintained a year-round research presence on the

Farallon Islands The Farallon Islands ( ), or Farallones (), are a group of islands and sea stacks in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States. The islands are also sometimes referred to by mariners as the Devil's ...

since 1969. Point Blue is headquartered in

Petaluma, California Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, with several active field research stations and sites throughout California. Their field station in Bolinas offers environmental education and guided tours of the mist-netting process used to study birds, and seasonal interns are there all year learning about banding/studying birds. In June 2013, the organization changed its name to Point Blue Conservation Science.

Initiatives

The organization's top priorities are to understand and project the effects of climate change and other environmental stressors on nature and wildlife in order to benefit birds, other wildlife and people. In collaboration with Conserve.IO (EarthNC),

Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary is a marine sanctuary located off the coast of California. It protects an area of of marine wildlife. The administrative center of the sanctuary is on an offshore granite outcrop by , located on the conti ...

Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary A gulf is a large inlet from an ocean or their seas into a landmass, larger and typically (though not always) with a narrower opening than a bay. The term was used traditionally for large, highly indented navigable bodies of salt water that ...

and

Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary The Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary is a sanctuary off the coast of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties in Southern California south of San Francisco and north of Los Angeles. It was designated on October 2, 1980, by the Nati ...

, Point Blue has developed the “Whale Aware” program, a new system for gathering near-real-time data on where whales are congregating so marine management agencies can alert ship operators and help prevent collisions with endangered whales in the San Francisco and Channel Islands regions.

Personnel

Point Blue employs around 140 staff and seasonal biologists and around 14 education and outreach staff, who focus on scientific research, conservation biology, and outreach.

Overview

Initiatives

Personnel

References

Further reading