British Trust for Ornithology
Encyclopedia
The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is an organisation founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles
.
, largely carried out by a large number of volunteers. Its Garden Birdwatch survey, for example, allows large numbers of non-expert birdwatchers to participate, by making a weekly count of the birds they see in their gardens.
), work began on the first Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland. 3,862 10 km squares were surveyed and the atlas was published in 1976.
The New Atlas (1993) updated and refined this huge survey, again with the help of IWC and the Scottish Ornithologists Club. A Winter Atlas and a Historical Atlas have also been published. The groundbreaking Migration Atlas presents the results of almost 100 years of bird ringing
. As with all BTO studies, the vast majority of the fieldwork was undertaken by volunteers. The Bird Atlas 2007-2011 will combine breeding and winter surveys across the entire UK and Ireland, involving the BTO, Birdwatch Ireland, and the Scottish Ornithologist's Club, in order to produce a new atlas. Fieldwork began in Winter 2007 and will continue until the end of 2011.
for services to ornithology, named in memory of Bernard Tucker
, their first Secretary, and the Dilys Breese Medal
in honour of Dilys Breese
.
This led to a meeting at the British Museum (Natural History)
in February 1932, which in turn led to the foundation of an organisation to develop the Oxford scheme. The name British Trust for Ornithology was used from May 1933 and an appeal for funds was published in The Times
on 1 July.
Max Nicholson was the first treasurer, Bernard Tucker
the secretary. Harry Witherby
was an early benefactor and vice-chairman.
Much has been discovered about birds by watching and counting them, but such methods rarely allow birds to be identified as individuals. This is essential if we are to learn about how long they live and when and where they move, questions that are vital for bird conservation. Placing a lightweight, uniquely numbered, metal ring around a bird’s leg provides a reliable and harmless method of identifying birds as individuals. Each ring also has an address so that anyone finding a ringed bird can help by reporting where and when it was found and what happened to it. Some ringing projects also use colour rings to allow individual birds to be identified without being caught.
Birds have been ringed in Britain and Ireland for nearly 100 years, and ringing still reveals new facts about migration routes and wintering areas. However, the primary focus of the BTO's Ringing Schemes is now the monitoring of bird populations, to provide information on how many young birds leave the nest and survive to become adults, as well as how many adults survive the stresses of breeding, migration and severe weather. Changes in survival rates and other aspects of birds' biology can indicate the causes of population changes. This information is so important that the BTO runs two special projects to collect it. The Constant Effort Sites (CES) scheme provides information on population size, breeding success and survival of bird species living in scrub and wetland habitats. Ringers work at over 130 CES scheme sites each year. The Retrapping Adults for Survival (RAS) project gathers survival data for a wide range of species, particularly those of current conservation concern. Ringing revealed that declines in the number of Sedge Warblers breeding in Britain and Ireland was linked to lower levels of rainfall in their African wintering quarters; whilst the recent dramatic decline in the numbers of Song Thrushes was found to relate to a reduction in the survival rate of young birds. This information should aid identification of the environmental factors responsible for the decline.
.
In 1947, the institute became part of a new department of Zoological Field Studies at Oxford University, and the BTO again concentrated on a programme of volunteer-based surveys.
, the BTO purchased Beech Grove, a large Victorian
house in Tring
, Hertfordshire
, relocating there from Oxford, along with their Ringing Office, which had been at the British Museum.
, Norfolk
, a large property lying between the A134 and the River Little Ouse
, which had been donated to them. Parts of the medieval Benedictine Nunnery of St George can still be seen on this site.
The BTO also runs its only bird reserve, Nunnery Lakes Reserve, on this site. The reserve lies between the River Thet
and the River Little Ouse
, extending upstream from The Nunnery, along the banks of the Little Ouse, and incorporates several flooded gravel pits.
In the early 2000s, a new library was created there, dedicated to the memory of Chris Mead
. Professor Jeremy Greenwood
PhD, who had been Director since 1988, retired in September 2007, and the current Director is Dr Andy Clements.
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
.
Activities
The BTO carries out research into the lives of birds, chiefly by conducting population and breeding surveys and by bird ringingBird ringing
Bird ringing or bird banding is a technique used in the study of wild birds, by attaching a small, individually numbered, metal or plastic tag to their legs or wings, so that various aspects of the bird's life can be studied by the ability to re-find the same individual later...
, largely carried out by a large number of volunteers. Its Garden Birdwatch survey, for example, allows large numbers of non-expert birdwatchers to participate, by making a weekly count of the birds they see in their gardens.
Journals
The BTO publishes a number of journals:- Bird Study http://www.bto.org/membership/birdstudy.htm - a scientific journal, published since 1953.
- BTO News http://www.bto.org/membership/btonews.htm - the newsletter for all members.
- Bird Table http://www.bto.org/gbw/ - for participants in the Garden BirdWatch Project.
- Ringing & Migration http://www.bto.org/ringing/rmj/ - Journal of the BTO Ringing Scheme.
- WeBS News http://www.bto.org/webs/ - newsletter for participants in the Wetland Bird Survey.
Atlases
In September 1967, inspired by on-going work on the innovative Atlas of Breeding Birds of the West Midlands, produced by the West Midland Bird Club, and in partnership with the Irish Wildbird Conservancy (now BirdWatch IrelandBirdWatch Ireland
BirdWatch Ireland is the current name of the organisation that used to be known as the Irish Wildbird Conservancy.BirdWatch Ireland is the leading voluntary conservation organisation in the Republic of Ireland, devoted to the conservation and protection of the Republic of Ireland's wild birds and...
), work began on the first Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland. 3,862 10 km squares were surveyed and the atlas was published in 1976.
The New Atlas (1993) updated and refined this huge survey, again with the help of IWC and the Scottish Ornithologists Club. A Winter Atlas and a Historical Atlas have also been published. The groundbreaking Migration Atlas presents the results of almost 100 years of bird ringing
Bird ringing
Bird ringing or bird banding is a technique used in the study of wild birds, by attaching a small, individually numbered, metal or plastic tag to their legs or wings, so that various aspects of the bird's life can be studied by the ability to re-find the same individual later...
. As with all BTO studies, the vast majority of the fieldwork was undertaken by volunteers. The Bird Atlas 2007-2011 will combine breeding and winter surveys across the entire UK and Ireland, involving the BTO, Birdwatch Ireland, and the Scottish Ornithologist's Club, in order to produce a new atlas. Fieldwork began in Winter 2007 and will continue until the end of 2011.
Awards
The Trust awards the Bernard Tucker MedalBernard Tucker Medal
The Bernard Tucker Medal is awarded by the British Trust for Ornithology for services to ornithology. It is named in memory of Bernard Tucker, their first Secretary. It has been awarded since 1954, usually annually although there are some years when no medals were awarded.- 20th Century :*1954...
for services to ornithology, named in memory of Bernard Tucker
Bernard Tucker
Bernard William Tucker was an English ornithologist. He was lecturer in zoology at Oxford University, a long-time editor of British Birds and one of the authors of The Handbook of British Birds...
, their first Secretary, and the Dilys Breese Medal
Dilys Breese Medal
The Dilys Breese Medal is a medal awarded by the British Trust for Ornithology to recognise communicators who help to deliver ornithological science to new audiences. It is named in memory of film maker Dilys Breese, who died in 2007, and was inaugurated in 2009, funded by a bequest from Breese...
in honour of Dilys Breese
Dilys Breese
Dilys Breese was a natural history television producer for the BBC and an ornithologist with the British Trust for Ornithology, who commemorate her contribution by awarding the Dilys Breese Medal, funded by her bequest to them.Breese was brought up in Wales, she was educated at Oswestry Girls'...
.
Beginnings
In 1931 Max Nicholson wrote:In the United States, Hungary, Holland and elsewhere a clearing-house for research is provided by the state: in this country such a solution would be uncongenial, and we must look for some alternative centre of national scope not imposed from above but built up from below. An experiment on these lines has been undertaken at Oxford since the founding of the Oxford Bird Census in 1927 [...]. The scheme now has a full-time director, Mr W.B.AlexanderWilfred Backhouse AlexanderWilfred Backhouse Alexander was an English ornithologist and entomologist. He was the brother of Horace Alexander....
. [...] It is intended to put this undertaking on a permanent footing and to build it up as a clearing-house for bird-watching results in this country.
This led to a meeting at the British Museum (Natural History)
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
in February 1932, which in turn led to the foundation of an organisation to develop the Oxford scheme. The name British Trust for Ornithology was used from May 1933 and an appeal for funds was published in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
on 1 July.
Max Nicholson was the first treasurer, Bernard Tucker
Bernard Tucker
Bernard William Tucker was an English ornithologist. He was lecturer in zoology at Oxford University, a long-time editor of British Birds and one of the authors of The Handbook of British Birds...
the secretary. Harry Witherby
Henry Witherby
Henry Forbes Witherby, M.B.E., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. was a noted British ornithologist, author, publisher and founding editor of British Birds magazine....
was an early benefactor and vice-chairman.
Much has been discovered about birds by watching and counting them, but such methods rarely allow birds to be identified as individuals. This is essential if we are to learn about how long they live and when and where they move, questions that are vital for bird conservation. Placing a lightweight, uniquely numbered, metal ring around a bird’s leg provides a reliable and harmless method of identifying birds as individuals. Each ring also has an address so that anyone finding a ringed bird can help by reporting where and when it was found and what happened to it. Some ringing projects also use colour rings to allow individual birds to be identified without being caught.
Birds have been ringed in Britain and Ireland for nearly 100 years, and ringing still reveals new facts about migration routes and wintering areas. However, the primary focus of the BTO's Ringing Schemes is now the monitoring of bird populations, to provide information on how many young birds leave the nest and survive to become adults, as well as how many adults survive the stresses of breeding, migration and severe weather. Changes in survival rates and other aspects of birds' biology can indicate the causes of population changes. This information is so important that the BTO runs two special projects to collect it. The Constant Effort Sites (CES) scheme provides information on population size, breeding success and survival of bird species living in scrub and wetland habitats. Ringers work at over 130 CES scheme sites each year. The Retrapping Adults for Survival (RAS) project gathers survival data for a wide range of species, particularly those of current conservation concern. Ringing revealed that declines in the number of Sedge Warblers breeding in Britain and Ireland was linked to lower levels of rainfall in their African wintering quarters; whilst the recent dramatic decline in the numbers of Song Thrushes was found to relate to a reduction in the survival rate of young birds. This information should aid identification of the environmental factors responsible for the decline.
Edward Grey Institute
In 1938 the BTO contributed funds to the new Edward Grey Institute of Field OrnithologyEdward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology
The Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology , at Oxford University, England is an academic body which conducts research in ornithology and the general field of evolutionary ecology and conservation biology, with an emphasis on understanding organisms in natural environments...
.
In 1947, the institute became part of a new department of Zoological Field Studies at Oxford University, and the BTO again concentrated on a programme of volunteer-based surveys.
Beech Grove
In December 1962, at the behest of Tony NorrisTony Norris
Cuthbert Antony Norris was a notable British ornithologist.-Ornithology:He was BTO President from 1961-64 and was awarded their Bernard Tucker Medal in 1959....
, the BTO purchased Beech Grove, a large Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
house in Tring
Tring
Tring is a small market town and also a civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in Hertfordshire, England. Situated north-west of London and linked to London by the old Roman road of Akeman Street, by the modern A41, by the Grand Union Canal and by rail lines to Euston Station, Tring is now largely a...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, relocating there from Oxford, along with their Ringing Office, which had been at the British Museum.
The Nunnery
In April 1991, the BTO moved to The Nunnery, ThetfordThetford
Thetford is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland district of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road between Norwich and London, just south of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, covering an area of , has a population of 21,588.-History:...
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, a large property lying between the A134 and the River Little Ouse
River Little Ouse
The Little Ouse is a river in the east of England, a tributary of the River Great Ouse. For much of its length it defines the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk....
, which had been donated to them. Parts of the medieval Benedictine Nunnery of St George can still be seen on this site.
The BTO also runs its only bird reserve, Nunnery Lakes Reserve, on this site. The reserve lies between the River Thet
River Thet
The River Thet is a river in Norfolk, England and is a tributary of the River Little Ouse.It rises in The Fens around Rockland All Saints and joins the Little Ouse in Thetford....
and the River Little Ouse
River Little Ouse
The Little Ouse is a river in the east of England, a tributary of the River Great Ouse. For much of its length it defines the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk....
, extending upstream from The Nunnery, along the banks of the Little Ouse, and incorporates several flooded gravel pits.
In the early 2000s, a new library was created there, dedicated to the memory of Chris Mead
Chris Mead
Christopher John Mead was a popular British ornithologist, author and broadcaster, and an influential member of the British Trust for Ornithology ....
. Professor Jeremy Greenwood
Jeremy Greenwood
Jeremy John Denis Greenwood CBE is a British ornithologist and was Director of the British Trust for Ornithology from 1988 until he retired in September 2007....
PhD, who had been Director since 1988, retired in September 2007, and the current Director is Dr Andy Clements.