Permit Requirements

 Mist Nets

Avinet policy is that we only sell mist nets for the purpose of research, and only to customers who provide us with a copy of their federal or state-issued permit specifically authorizing use of mist nets to capture birds and bats. If you are purchasing on behalf of someone else, please make a note in the order comments (this in available in the shopping cart area, before the checkout area) stating who the nets are being purchased for and make sure they're aware you are purchasing mist nets for them. We reserve the right to contact the permit holder to ensure that you are authorized to be purchasing equipment under their permit.

Please send us copies of permits as attachments to orders@avinet.com or upload to our website via the mist net product pages. PDF or image files are preferable. We keep copies of permits on file; if you've ordered from us before, please reference your permit number in the order comments (again, in the shopping cart section before checkout). We'll generally ask for the most recent copy of your permit if we have a copy on file that is more than 5 years old (or at our discretion). 

 We accept the following documentation:

USA:

•  USGS Federal Bird Banding permits. Please specify if you are a subpermittee or the master permittee.
•  US Fish & Wildlife Service federal permits for scientific collection. 
•  State issued collection permits

Canada: 

• Environment Canada permits
• Provincial permits (not applicable to migratory birds)

Australia: 

• ABBBS Permits (Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme)

Mexico:

• SEMARNAT permits

All other countries:

• Research permits issued by the overseeing environmental agency or ministry in your country are all acceptable forms of permit documents.

If you are not able to produce any of the permits above, we will accept (on a case-by-case basis) a formal letterhead issued by an official of the Ministry of Environment (or equivalent in your country) authorizing you to conduct research using mist nets in a given region. We will also accept (on a case-by-case basis) a formal letterhead issued by your supervisor, mentor, or head of office who will attest to your experience using mist nets and take responsibility for any reports of misuse. If you are currently waiting to receive a permit that has been applied for, such as your Bird Banding Lab subpermittee application, you may place an order for permitted equipment. However, we must have the permit before we ship the order to you.

We do not under any circumstances sell mist nets to those engaged in pest control or bird mitigation services of any kind. Exceptions are available for permitted individuals from USDA APHIS.

We do not accept IACUC authorizations as permit documentation, except in situations where customers are working with wildlife species that are not under protection (House sparrows, European starlings, etc.). You should have state or federal documentation to accompany IACUC paperwork when working with protected species.

Please consult us via email (orders@avinet.com) or give us a call at 1(888) 284-6387 if you have any questions regarding our permit requirements. We are knowledgeable on the permitting process and can help you locate appropriate documentation.

Sampling Supplies 

Please note that hypodermic needles are only available for shipment within the US. Because of import laws, we cannot ship them internationally.

For blood-sampling supplies, we require your permit to specifically provide authorization to take, possess, and transport blood samples, and we cannot make exceptions. This usually appears as:

Please contact us if you have any questions about appropriate blood sampling permit documentation.

Auxiliary Markers

We do not currently require permits on auxiliary markers. Use of color bands is not regulated in all countries, and many researchers use them for captive studies. We trust that all customers purchasing color bands are using them in an ethical, safe manner on wild and captive birds alike.