The Waterbird Society, formerly known as the Colonial Waterbirds Society, is a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 based ornithological

Ornithology

Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...

 society, focusing on the behavior, ecology, and conservation of waterbirds. It was founded in 1976 as the Colonial Waterbird Group, becoming the Colonial Waterbird Society in 1986 and acquiring its current name in 1999 to reflect an expanding interest in all waterbirds. It publishes the journal

Scientific journal

In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. There are thousands of scientific journals in publication, and many more have been published at various points in the past...

 Waterbirds, with the subtitle The International Journal of Waterbird Biology. It makes two international award

Award

An award is something given to a person or a group of people to recognize excellence in a certain field; a certificate of excellence. Awards are often signifiedby trophies, titles, certificates, commemorative plaques, medals, badges, pins, or ribbons...

s, the Robert Cushman Murphy Prize for excellence in avian sciences, and the Kai Curry-Lindahl Prize for excellence in conservation biology. The Waterbird Society is a member of the Ornithological Council

Ornithological Council

The Ornithological Council is an association of ornithological organisations based in the Americas involved in bird study and conservation. It was incorporated in Washington, D.C. in 1992 as a not-for-profit organization...

.