Bird Banding Workshops - Powdermill Nature Reserve

GENERAL INFORMATION

Powdermill Avian Research Center offers banding workshops throughout the year for individuals wanting to be trained in bird banding or to brush up on skills they already possess. We generally offer at one in-person workshop in the spring (early May), one to two in-person workshops in the fall (September), and at least two virtual workshops during the winter months.

Extraction and Banding Workshop

The Extraction and Banding Workshop is designed for individuals with little or no banding experience. It focuses on banding ethics, banding methodology, safe handling of birds, and extraction of birds from mist nets.

Ageing and Sexing Workshop

The Ageing and Sexing Workshop focuses on molt terminology, learning to age passerines using molt limits and other criteria, interpreting the Pyle Guide, and using mot cycle terminology. This workshop is an excellent primer for the NABC Bander Certification.

Virtual Ageing and Molt Limits Workshop

The Virtual Ageing and Molt Limits Workshop is a live, online workshop that focuses on honing participants’ ageing and sexing skills and their ability to recognize and interpret molt limits.

Individualized Workshops

If you are interested in private instruction, want to focus on specific skills, or are restricted in workshop timing or dates, Powdermill bird banders may, schedule-permitting, be able to provide individualized workshops either in-person or virtually.

OUR NEXT BANDING WORKSHOPS

January 6-8, 2026: Virtual Ageing and Molt Limits workshop
January 17-19, 2026: Virtual Ageing and Molt Limits workshop
May 5-9, 2026: Ageing and Sexing workshop

We will likely hold one or two in-person workshops in September 2026. Please continue to check the website for updates and schedules.

Please use our google form to indicate your interest in attending a banding workshop at Powdermill. Please be aware that the google form is not a registration. A few months in advance of the workshop dates, our Banding Program Manager will contact eligible candidates with an invitation to register and send payment, along with additional instructions.

BANDING WORKSHOP LOGISTICS

We will send reading materials in advance of the workshop start date. Included are papers on ageing and sexing songbirds, molt terminology, North American Banding Council publications, and Powdermill banding procedures

Workshoppers should plan to arrive to Powdermill by Monday evening (the day before the workshop begins). Lodging is a furnished house or cabin near the banding lab with internet access. The first workshoppers to arrive can pick up the key from the facilities manager at Powdermill Nature Reserve’s nature center, approximately 0.25 mile from the banding lab (1795 Route 381, Rector, PA 15677).

Layers (warm or hot days can start with considerably cold mornings)
Sleeping bag or sheets, pillowcase, blankets, towels/washcloths (linens are not provided in the cabins)
Soap, shampoo, and personal items
Boots – come prepared for mud
Notebook and writing utensils, Pyle Guide, and field guides you use when you band
Books, reading material, binoculars, hiking boots, etc. Expect to have some free time in the afternoons and evenings.
Water bottle

Workshop activities and instruction will revolve around the normal daily banding operation at Powdermill. The workshop begins with the opening net round which is 30 minutes before sunrise. Coffee will be ready and we will have food available throughout the morning. If conditions are safe for banding, the nets will remain open for six hours and be checked every 40 minutes.

Workshoppers will begin by observing instructors during the banding process, rapidly progressing to hands-on practical experience. Workshoppers are encouraged to observe and participate, as time allows, in the parts of the banding operation that interest them.

*The safety and well being of every bird is our top priority, so every workshopper will not handle every bird. However, every effort will be made for workshoppers to see interesting molt limits/strategies or interesting species.

Much of the workshops will be spent in the field with live birds; these sessions will be complemented with afternoon or evening presentations and discussions. Workshoppers are encouraged to ask many questions and engage in discussions about the banding or ageing and sexing process. Similarly, the afternoon presentations are meant to be interactive – those who ask questions and make it into a discussion rather than a lecture often benefit more.

Workshoppers may find it useful to relax after each banding day and presentation. Many spend the afternoons birding or go into town for meals or drinks. Let your brain process the information passively. Many participants feel a little overwhelmed by the information on the first day, but find that the material becomes easier to understand each day and “clicks” relatively quickly.

Powdermill Nature Reserve is located in the beautiful Laurel Highlands region of southwest Pennsylvania. It is somewhat remote and sits in the valley between two ridges with a lot of surrounding state park and forest lands (i.e., lots of opportunities for hiking, exploring, etc.). Ligonier, about 8 miles away, is the closest town and has plenty of shopping, restaurants, and a grocery store where you can get supplies for lunch and dinners. A short drive farther west on Route 30 (~15 minutes) will take you to Latrobe, the nearest city with large shopping centers and medical facilities. Places worth visiting during your downtime include Linn Run State Park (4 mi), Forbes State Forest (5 mi), Laurel Summit State Park (10 mi), Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater (25mi), and Ohiopyle/Ohiopyle State Park (30 mi).

Ask Powdermill staff for their favorite spots! We will be happy to share our go-to birding and hiking locations, and give recommendations for restaurants.

Banding Workshop FAQs

Please read through the FAQs. If you can’t find your answer there, please fill out our contact form and we will be in touch soon: Contact Us

Fill out the workshop google form to express interest. A few months in advance of the workshop dates, our Banding Program Manager will contact eligible candidates with an invitation to register, along with additional instructions.

If you have already filled out a form and then decide to attend a different Powdermill workshop, you must submit a second google form. The form generates a master list with the participants’ most up-to-date information and workshop preferences.

The cost varies depending on which workshop you’d like to attend.

The cost for the in-person Extraction and Banding Workshop is $1000 per participant, or $650 for students who will be paying for workshop themselves.

The cost for the in-person Ageing and Sexing Workshop is $850 per participant, or $550 for students who will be paying for the workshop themselves.

The cost for our Virtual Ageing and Molt Limits Workshop is $250 per person, or $150 for students who are paying their own way and Latin Americans who are working in Latin America.

The cost of the in-person workshop includes:
Five days of instruction with live birds in the field with NABC certified trainers, afternoon discussions and presentations, on-site lodging (with kitchen), breakfast and snacks.

The cost of the virtual workshop includes:
Three days of online instruction with an NABC certified trainer including presentations, discussions, and opportunities to self-quiz.

Lodging is in a house or cabin close to the banding lab. Participants may be required to share bedrooms with one another, but there will be individual beds for everyone. Participants will need to bring linens. The cabin has a common living area and kitchen, and many participants choose to cook meals on site.

Space is limited, therefore priority will be given to those who signed up earliest (google form above) and have opportunities to continue to utilize the skills we teach through work or volunteering. A few months in advance of the workshop our Banding Program Manager will send an email invitation for you to participate in the workshop along with a link and password to the registration portal. All you have to do is email to confirm that you are still interested in attending and submit payment via the registration link.

Your invitation to register will include a “register by” date. We will hold your spot until then but if we do not receive payments by those dates we will invite people on our waiting list.

If you are not able to attend due to unforeseen circumstances we will refund your money in full if we are able to find another participant to take your place. In the event that we cannot find another we will refund half of your payment under reasonable extenuating circumstances. It may be possible to defer participation to a future workshop.

Yes. If there are openings, the Banding Program Manager will contact those on the waiting list until all spots are filled. This could range anywhere between a few months to a few weeks before the workshop date.

Once registration is confirmed, we will email each participant written directions to Powdermill and a map of the property. Participants are responsible for their own travel arrangements. Some participants choose to drive, others take a bus, and some arrive by plane. The nearest major airport is Pittsburgh International which is approximately a 1.5 hour drive to Powdermill. There is a smaller airport in Latrobe, PA (Arnold Palmer Regional Airport) that is about a 30 minute drive to Powdermill, however flights are limited and the only carrier that operates out of Latrobe is Spirit Airlines. There is another smaller airport is in Johnstown, PA with limited flights on United Airlines. Unfortunately, public transportation between these airports and Powdermill is non-existent, so some participants rent a car, some carpool, and occasionally someone may take a greyhound bus. The nearest bus station is in Latrobe, PA. Alternatively, a ridesharing company may be used.

Annie Lindsay, Bird Banding Program Manager and NABC-certified trainer, has been banding birds since 2000 and coordinating and teaching workshops at PARC since 2014. Luke DeGroote, Avian Research Coordinator and NABC-certified trainer, has been banding birds since 2001 and teaching workshops at PARC since 2012. Mallory Sarver, a PARC Banding Assistant and NABC-certified Bander, has been banding birds since 2018 and training volunteers and workshop participants since 2021.

There is WiFi in the bird banding lab, housing, and nature center.

Depending on your carrier, there may be limited cell phone reception at Powdermill, but you can connect to WiFi or drive a short distance (<1 mile) to be in reception range. The phones in the cabins make local calls only.

Yes, but they will not receive any training unless they are registered as an attendee. If your guest wishes to stay on site, housing will cost $200 (5 nights) for the duration and is contingent on availability.