[1] In 1978 the group was joined by Dr Clive Minton, who had been a pioneer in the development of cannon-netting in Britain as a means of catching large numbers of waders and waterfowl for banding and demographic studies.
At first operating under the aegis of the Victorian Ornithological Research Group, the VWSG was formally established as an independent body in 1979, with David Robertson and Clive Minton elected as co-convenors.
The group's mission is to " …gather, through extensive planned fieldwork programs, comprehensive data on waders and terns throughout Victoria on a long-term basis.
This scientifically collected information is intended to form a factual base for conservation considerations, to be a source of information for education of a wider audience, to be a means of generating interest of the general community in environmental and conservation issues, and so be a major contribution to Australian, Flyway and Worldwide knowledge of waders and terns.
Most migratory waders caught by the VWSG are fitted with colour-coded plastic leg-flags in a flyway-based program to determine the exact routes and staging areas used by the birds on migration.