MAPS is an acronym form Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship.  The MAPS bird banding program was established in 1989 by the Institute of Bird Populations.  You can get the most correct and up to date information about this program from their website (above), but I will summarize the program.  The goal was to provide conservation and management information on land birds through the monitoring of bird populations.  There are now over 500 MAPS stations across the United States.  The idea is to maintain long term, constant effort mist netting and banding of birds.  This nationwide effort will aid in conserving avian diversity in North America, as long term data on productivity, survivorship, and population size of these land birds are generated.  Comparisons between stations as well as long term trends at single stations can be assessed by those managing our land resources to identify declining bird populations, to begin implementing mechanisms to reverse these trends, and to assess the effectiveness of the management actions.

Each banding effort or cycle is held constant.  Banding is conducted from sunrise for six hours, once every 10 days beginning May 1 until August 8 (with some variation for higher latitudes and latitudes).  The reason for the particular starting and ending dates is generally to avoid the spring and fall migrants and wait until breeding has occurred and the chicks have fledged (productivity).  Thus, the effort is to capture resident breeding birds and their young.

In succeeding years, if these same banded birds are recaptured, we will have a measure of survivorship.  IBP states that stations should be operated for a minimum of five years to get good data, and 10 or 20 years would be better.