“Notes From the Field” news articles highlight the continued importance of bird banding. This article was contributed by Steven Cox of Rio Grande Bird Research, Inc. and Whitney Watson of New Mexico State University. Steven Cox has been working in biology for close to 45 years and has led a team of devoted volunteers with Rio Grande Bird Research, Inc. for over 40 years.  Today, banding allows scientists to track birds’ behavior, migration, lifespans, populations, diseases and levels of environmental contaminants. Information gathered through the North American Bird Banding Program helps inform management and conservation decisions of game and non-game species, such as protecting or restoring habitat, setting hunting regulations and determining plans for human development. The  North American Bird Banding Program depends on a network of over 10,000 permitted bird banders working in the United States, Canada and Trust Territories.…