Point Reyes Bird Observatory

Tax-deductible

Petaluma, CA501(c)(3)Since 1965AnimalsEIN 94-1594250

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The organization's mission is to conserve birds, other wildlife and ecosystems through scientific research, restoration, outreach and partnership.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
81¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 444 volunteers and 143 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

Before you give

FY2025 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2025
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2025, 1 tax year back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $423K a year · 2% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
81%
of spending
Looks good: 81% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$1.6M
to officers and key staff · 5% of spending
Top officer’s pay lower than 62% of similar orgs
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 5% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
2 mo
of spending, in cash
Fine: 2.4 months of spending in cash; 1 to 3.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
23
named funders · $3.0M
Looks good: 23 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$10.0M
38% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 38% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
21
of 21 voting members
Looks good: 21 of 21 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$31.7M
+53% vs prior year
Spent
$28.6M
To programs
81%
Net assets
$16.4M
By yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$31.7M
FY2025▲ +53%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$13.3M
FY2021$14.9M
FY2023$17.3M
FY2024$20.7M
FY2025$31.7M
Expenses
$28.6M
FY2025▲ +29%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$13.9M
FY2021$14.0M
FY2023$17.1M
FY2024$22.2M
FY2025$28.6M
Net assets
$16.4M
FY2025▲ +24%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$13.4M
FY2021$14.5M
FY2023$14.6M
FY2024$13.3M
FY2025$16.4M

From the FY2025 Form 990 (year ending March 2025) · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in May 1965.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

81 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 81% · $23.3M Management & general 13% · $3.8M Fundraising 5% · $1.5M

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

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Who runs it and what they're paid

31 people listed on the 990; $1.6M paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2024); the FY2025 filing did not itemize Part VII
President and CEO (thru 11/24)
$227,130Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Science Officer
$192,175Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Financial Officer
$187,311Pt VII · Sec A
Interim CEO
$172,414Pt VII · Sec A
Dir. of Innovation
$161,254Pt VII · Sec A
Dir. of Individual Philant
$158,554Pt VII · Sec A
Dir. of Individual Philant
$156,976Pt VII · Sec A
Group Dir Ecoinformatics
$155,308Pt VII · Sec A

Manuel Oliva’s $227K as President and CEO (thru 11/24) is at the 38th percentile of top reported officer pay among 225 $10–100M animals nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2021FY2020
Manuel Oliva$227,130$210,376$201,241$186,805$182,100
Grant Ballard$192,175$185,106$175,709$159,654$155,030
Padmini Srinivasan$187,311$179,013$170,191$156,204$153,097
Melissa Pitkin$172,414$144,071———
Joshua Dieterich——$148,109$161,819—
Elizabeth Chamberlin$161,254$150,148$127,682——
Michael Fitzgibbon———$160,462$153,990
Anne Smith$158,554$145,108$137,695$133,806$132,648

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Conserves birds, wildlife, and ecosystems through research, restoration, outreach, and partnerships.

Provided by the organization

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3 program services account for $14.4M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Sierra Nevada Group

Through the design and implementation of innovative avian monitoring and research, this group helps guide forest ecology and land management decisions to improve conservation outcomes across the vast sierra nevada ecosystem.

$5.0Mprogram expense
02

Working Lands

This group works with farmers, ranchers, land stewards, and other partners to ensure that agricultural landscapes provide ecosystem services that support the needs of people and wildlife. It achieves this by conducting science that informs metrics, practices, and strategies for thriving agricultural landscapes; evaluating and guiding…

$5.0Mprogram expense
03

Education and Outreach Group

This group is responsible for scientific and conservation outreach, public education programs, and school-based education programs including the straw (students and teachers restoring a watershed) restoration program.

$4.3Mprogram expense

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Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2024
See all 23 funders →
Grants paid · 17 grants · $1.1M · 2019–2024
Sierra Foothill Conservancy TrCA · FY2024$196,149
Yurok TribeFY2024$125,000
Sacramento Valley ConservancyCA · FY2024$123,042
Chico State EnterprisesCA · FY2024$118,876
Unitemized GrantFY2024$41,746
City of San Luis ObispoFY2024$33,470
White Buffalo Land TrustCA · FY2024$29,733
The Siskiyou Land TrustCA · FY2024$17,718
Uc MercedFY2024$12,546
Prescott College INCAZ · FY2024$10,000
The New VillageCA · FY2024$7,528
Zero FoodprintCA · FY2022$34,590
Ducks UnlimitedTN · FY2022$20,000
Morro Coast Audubon SocietyCA · FY2020$63,374
Morro Coast Audubon SocietyCA · FY2019$146,713
A&s EnterprisesFY2019$89,064
The Nature ConservancyFY2019$19,897

By the numbers

The FY2025 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$31.7M
Ln 12
Fees for servicesLn 2g$22.0M
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$9.4M
Investment incomeLn 3$295K
Money outPt IX
$28.6M
Ln 25
Programscol B$23.3M
Managementcol C$3.8M
Fundraisingcol D$1.5M
Owns and owesPt X
$16.4M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$5.8M
Total assetsLn 16$26.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10.0M
PeoplePt VI, VII
31
listed · VII A
PaidVII A9
Voting boardVI 1a21
IndependentVI 1b21
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$9.4M
Noncash giftsLn 1g$995K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$22.0M
Investment incomeLn 3$295K
Other incomeLn 4–11$11K
Gains on assetsLn 7$7K
Total revenueLn 12$31.7M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$718K
SavingsLn 2$5.1M
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$5.8M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$810K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$5.7M
Other assetsLn 15$7.7M
Total assetsLn 16$26.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$10.0M
Net assetsLn 32$16.4M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 5143
VolunteersI 6444
Fiscal year endsHeaderMarch
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY25End FY25
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$5.4M$5.8M
InvestmentsLn 11–13$813K$810K
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$5.8M$5.7M
Total assetsLn 16$20.2M$26.4M
LiabilitiesLn 26$7.0M$10.0M
Net assetsLn 32$13.3M$16.4M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$678K$678K
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$42K$42K
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$212K$212K
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$891K$264K$594K$32K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$10.4M$8.3M$1.4M$698K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$442K$358K$52K$32K
Other employee benefitsLn 9$3.6M$2.8M$528K$258K
Payroll taxesLn 10$1.0M$799K$165K$74K
Legal feesLn 11b$57K$57K
Accounting feesLn 11c$169K$169K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$7.8M$7.3M$465K$88K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$18K$9K$2K$7K
Office expensesLn 13$269K$209K$33K$27K
Information technologyLn 14$663K$489K$93K$81K
OccupancyLn 16$143K$113K$21K$8K
TravelLn 17$591K$460K$18K$113K
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$153K$153K
InterestLn 20$138K$138K
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$282K$255K$21K$6K
InsuranceLn 23$174K$133K$29K$12K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$846K$794K$6K$46K
All other expensesLn 24e$22K$22K
Total functional expensesLn 25$28.6M$23.3M$3.8M$1.5M

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2025 Latest Viewing $31.7M$28.6M$3.1M$16.4M 990 PDF
FY2024 $20.7M$22.2M−$1.4M$13.3M 990 PDF
FY2023 $17.3M$17.1M$228K$14.6M 990 PDF
FY2022 Not on file
FY2021 $14.9M$14.0M$840K$14.5M 990 PDF
FY2020 $13.3M$13.9M−$621K$13.4M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2025 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $31,721,037 across 8 lines filed
Lines not itemized here account for $1,753 of total revenue; see the IRS return.
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$9,396,899
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$995,291
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$9,396,899
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $22,018,573$22,018,573
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $288,239$288,239
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assetsExcluded from tax $6,762$6,762
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Excluded from tax $8,811$8,811
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $22,018,573 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax $305,565$31,721,037
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $28,629,916 across 22 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizationsPrograms $678,245$678,245
IX-2 Grants to domestic individualsPrograms $41,746$41,746
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsPrograms $212,500$212,500
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $264,249 · Management $594,328 · Fundraising $32,080$890,657
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $8,259,301 · Management $1,415,310 · Fundraising $697,532$10,372,143
IX-8 Pension plan contributionsPrograms $358,156 · Management $51,858 · Fundraising $32,334$442,348
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $2,799,139 · Management $528,476 · Fundraising $257,691$3,585,306
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $799,069 · Management $164,691 · Fundraising $73,615$1,037,375
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $56,776$56,776
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $169,030$169,030
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $7,291,291 · Management $465,056 · Fundraising $87,802$7,844,149
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $8,608 · Management $2,411 · Fundraising $6,551$17,570
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $209,026 · Management $33,315 · Fundraising $27,081$269,422
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $488,858 · Management $93,204 · Fundraising $80,957$663,019
IX-16 OccupancyPrograms $113,284 · Management $21,202 · Fundraising $8,412$142,898
IX-17 TravelPrograms $459,976 · Management $17,997 · Fundraising $113,032$591,005
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $153,179$153,179
IX-20 InterestManagement $138,287$138,287
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationPrograms $254,797 · Management $20,953 · Fundraising $6,146$281,896
IX-23 InsurancePrograms $132,723 · Management $29,344 · Fundraising $11,641$173,708
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $794,495 · Management $6,264 · Fundraising $45,504$846,263
IX-24e All other expensesManagement $22,394$22,394
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $23,318,642 · Management $3,830,896 · Fundraising $1,480,378$28,629,916
Part X · Balance sheet $26,418,840 assets, 18 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $1,239,968$718,224
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $4,166,348$5,110,832
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $1,055,895$2,493,473
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $4,458,937$3,747,361
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $197,954$163,270
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $5,843,940$5,690,677
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $813,359$809,523
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $2,444,133$7,685,480
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $20,220,534$26,418,840
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $2,639,532$3,037,340
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $208,056$3,382,049
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payableStart of year $1,000,000$500,000
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $116,051$122,767
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $6,963,639$10,042,156
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $9,349,857$10,341,938
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $3,907,038$6,034,746
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $13,256,895$16,376,684
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $20,220,534$26,418,840
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $16,376,684 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$31,721,037
XI-2 Total expenses$28,629,916
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$3,091,121
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$13,256,895
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments$28,668
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$16,376,684

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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