Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory
The Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory (KVBO) is a program of the Kalamazoo Nature Center that is over 50 years old! Collaborative research between KVBO and government agencies, universities, and non-governmental organizations allows individual birds to be tracked as they move throughout North America. Surveys, banding, and parasite sampling allows researchers at KVBO to examine how environmental changes, pests, and diseases impact the distribution and demography of bird species.
You can support the important work the KVBO is doing!
Rich Keith
he/him/his
KVBO Director
rkeith@naturecenter.org
KVBO Annual Reports
This report covers the various birding projects and research conducted over the last year. From spring surveys to fall banding, a highlight reel of the birding work KVBO staff have completed is now available.
Donors who contribute $100 or more will receive a paper copy of this beautiful 32-page report!
Motus Reports
The KVBO works with bird observatories around the globe to gather data on bird migration routes using the Motus Wildlife Tracking System, which networks 19 statewide radio receivers. This annual report provides a snapshot of the actual observations made by Michigan receivers over the last year and identifies the associated research projects that tagged each detected bird. Dive deeper into the Motus Wildlife Tracking System here >
Kleinstuck Spring Migration Bird Surveys
Started in 1973, this survey covers the entire spring migration period and, over the years, has documented 209 species. Check back for weekly updates from April – May each year!
See the 2025 Kleinstuck Report here>
2026 Kleinstuck Surveys
The 2025 Kleinstuck Report is coming soon!
April 9-15, 2026
The last week has been a little slow, adding only 6 new additions (highlighted red in the following list) putting us at 65 for the season. The Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and Hermit Thrush numbers have increased significantly in the last week, and the Ruby-crowned Kinglets are now outnumbering their close cousin Golden-crowned Kinglets. Purple Finches have increased in the last few days with birds that probably overwintered farther south and are now moving back north. Tree Swallows have been present for a couple weeks but finally showed up at Kleinstuck. The first Blue-headed Vireo was on Monday April 13th, and we can expect a bunch more in the coming weeks. Birds to be on the watch out for this coming week would be House Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and maybe a warbler species or two that are not Yellow-rumped, like a Black-and-white or Black-throated Green Warbler. Hoping to see a little less rain this coming week also.
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Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas
Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas I & II, published in 2022, is your source for information on breeding birds in the state of Michigan, including access to two important longitudinal studies conducted over nearly a 40 year period by the research program at the Kalamazoo Nature Center and its partner organizations.
Purchase a limited-edition hardcover, full-color copy of the Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas II in the Kalamazoo Nature Center’s Visitor Center!
Peer Reviewed Publications
VanTol, S.D., Koehn, C.R., Keith, R., Keith, B. and Proppe, D.S. (2021), Avian migrants encounter higher temperatures but continue to add mass at an inland stopover site in the Great Lakes region. J Avian Biol, 52:. https://doi.org/10.1111/jav.02626
Chartier, A.T., B.S. Keith, and R.S. Keith. 2021. Ruby-throated Hummingbird Movements in Southwestern Michigan. North American Bird Bander. 46(1&2): 3-8.
Keith, R. S., Keith, B.S., Scharf, W. C., & Hamer, S. A. (2015). Ixodes brunneus (Acari: Ixodidae) from Two Bird Hosts: A New Michigan Tick. The Great Lakes Entomologist, 48(3), 15.
Learn more about Ixoces brunneus here.
Van der Hoek, Y., Wilson, A. M., Renfrew, R., Walsh, J., Rodewald, P. G., Baldy, J., & Manne, L. L. (2015). Regional variability in extinction thresholds for forest birds in the north‐eastern United States: An examination of potential drivers using long‐term breeding bird atlas datasets. Diversity and Distributions, 21(6), 686-697.
Morris, S. R., Andrijević, A. S., Sullivan, R., Keith, R. S., Keith, B. S., & Sheets, H. D. (2013). An 18-year study of migration and stopover ecology of Tennessee warblers in Kalamazoo County, Michigan. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 125(1), 70-78.
Hamer, S. A., Hickling, G. J., Keith, R., Sidge, J. L., Walker, E. D., & Tsao, J. I. (2012). Associations of passerine birds, rabbits, and ticks with Borrelia miyamotoi and Borrelia andersonii in Michigan, USA. Parasites & vectors, 5(1), 1-11.
SELECTED OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Chartier, A. T., Baldy, J. J., & Brenneman J. (2013). Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas II. Kalamazoo Nature Center. Details here >
Brewer, R., McPeek, G. A., & Adams, R. (1991). The Atlas of Breeding Birds in Michigan. Michigan State University Press.
SELECTED ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS FOR DATA AND STAFF CONTRIBUTIONS
Zylstra, E. R., Ries, L., Neupane, N., Saunders, S. P., Ramírez, M. I., Rendón-Salinas, E., … & Zipkin, E. F. (2021). Changes in climate drive recent monarch butterfly dynamics. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 5(10), 1441-1452.
Covino, K. M., Horton, K. G., & Morris, S. R. (2020). Seasonally specific changes in migration phenology across 50 years in the Black-throated Blue Warbler. The Auk, 137(2), ukz080.
Ellis, V. A., Medeiros, M. C., Collins, M. D., Sari, E. H., Coffey, E. D., Dickerson, R. C., … & Matthews, A. E. (2017). Prevalence of avian haemosporidian parasites is positively related to the abundance of host species at multiple sites within a region. Parasitology research, 116(1), 73-80.
Corace, R. G., Korte, J. L., Shartell, L. M., & Kashian, D. M. (2016). Upland sandpiper: a flagship for jack pine barrens restoration in the Upper Midwest?. Ecological Restoration, 34(1), 49-60.
Ellis, V. A., Collins, M. D., Medeiros, M. C., Sari, E. H., Coffey, E. D., Dickerson, R. C., … & Matthews, A. E. (2015). Local host specialization, host-switching, and dispersal shape the regional distributions of avian haemosporidian parasites. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(36), 11294-11299.
Hamer, S. A., Hickling, G. J., Sidge, J. L., Rosen, M. E., Walker, E. D., & Tsao, J. I. (2011). Diverse Borrelia burgdorferi strains in a bird-tick cryptic cycle. Applied and environmental microbiology, 77(6), 1999-2007.
Please contact us for a complete publication list or if you are interested in viewing a historic publication.