The World Conservation Union considers the species vulnerable to extinction and has added it to the Red List of Threatened Species. The breeding range of Bicknell's Thrush in the United States is limited to montane fir forests of New England and New York. In Canada it is found in highland spruce-fir forests in Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. As the only breeding songbird endemic to high altitude and maritime spruce-fir forests of the northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, Bicknell's Thrush qualifies as a potentially valuable indicator of the health of montane avian populations and their associated forest habitat. Research by VINS aimed at clarifying the distribution, ecology and conservation status of Bicknell's Thrush in the Northeast has been underway since 1992.
Similar studies are in progress in Canada.
Most of the wintering population of Bicknell's Thrush is found in wet, broadleaf forests of the Dominican Republic. VINS has conducted research and conservation in the Dominican Republic since 1994 to help address these problems. Despite drastic changes on the wintering grounds and possible problems on the breeding grounds, few data exist to elucidate population changes over a broad geographic area. Baseline and long-term monitoring data are needed to evaluate the conservation status of the species across its naturally fragmented, high elevation breeding range. Because of the unique natural history and remote habitat of this bird, traditional population monitoring schemes, such as the Breeding Bird Survey, are not appropriate.