Research & Monitoring

The BANS-TAC coordinates annual breeding colony surveys along the Feather and Sacramento Rivers. An effective research and monitoring program is an essential component of the recovery plan to conserve the Bank Swallows and their habitat. Insight gained from research and monitoring efforts will inform management and conservation actions.

Statewide Colony Inventory 2021

The upcoming statewide inventory will allow CDFW to estimate California’s bank swallow population size and develop a robust long-term monitoring plan. Surveys in 2021 will provide a new baseline for tracking bank swallow population trends. More information is available on this page.

Selected Publications

• Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia) Conservation Strategy for the Sacramento River Watershed, California (BANS-TAC 2013) (pdf)
• Population Trends and Management of the Bank Swallow on the Sacramento River (Garrison et al. 1989) (pdf)
• Monitoring Bank Swallow Populations on the Sacramento River: A Decade of Decline (Schlorff 1997) (pdf)
• Bank Swallows on the Sacramento River, a 10-year Update on Populations and Conservation Status - Dawn Garcia, Ronald Schlorff, and Joe Silveira (2008) (pdf)
• Report a Bank Swallow Colony-Altacal Audubon Society (2008) (pdf)
• Evaluation of Experimental Nesting Habitat and Selected Aspects of Bank Swallow Biology on the Sacramento River 1988 to 1990(Garrison 1991) (pdf)

Population Status Reports

• Status of Bank Swallow Populations on the Sacramento River - (Humphrey and Garrison 1986)
• Population Trends and Management of the Bank Swallow on the Sacramento River (Garrison et al. 1989)
• Preliminary Population Viability Analysis for Bank Swallows on the Sacramento River - (Buechner 1992)
• Five-year Status Review - Bank Swallow (DFG 1995)
• Monitoring Bank Swallow Populations on the Sacramento River: A Decade of Decline (Schlorff 1997)
• Bank Swallows on the Sacramento River, a 10-year Update on Populations and Conservation Status - (Garcia, Schlorff, Silveira 2008)
• 2010 - 2011 Bank Swallow Status Report, Sacramento and Feather Rivers (Wright et al. 2011)

Annual Population Survey Reports

• 2010-2011 Bank Swallow Status Report, Sacramento and Feather Rivers
• 2009 Survey Report
• 2009 Upland Survey Report
• 2008 Survey Report
• 2007 Survey Report
• 2006 Survey Report
• 2005 Survey Report
• 2004 Survey Report
• 2003 Survey Report
• 2003 Survey Report
• 2001 Survey Report
• 2001 Survey Report
• 2000 Survey Report
• 1999 Survey Report
• 1998 Survey Report
• 1993 Survey Report

Survey Protocols

• Bank Swallow Survey Methods for the Sacramento and Feather Rivers, California (version 1.0) (2017)
• Bank Swallow Survey Methods for Upland Sites, Version 1.0 (2009)