Synopsis
This landmark volume presents, for the very first time, an integrated picture of the distribution and abundance of the breeding birds of Europe. It is a truly monumental work, the initiative for which dates back to as long ago as 1971. The national bird surveys initiated by the European Ornithological Atlas Committee (latterly working through the European Bird Census Council) were, in many cases, the first of their kind in the countries involved. Over 100 regional and national atlases have been produced as the census work progressed and several countries have gone so far as to carry out follow-up surveys subsequently.
Now the bigger picture can be assembled. The survey data from the projects, gathered by over 10,000 field ornithologists from every European country, have been combined and mapped to show the presence or absence of 495 species in over 4400 50 x 50 km squares. In many squares, data are also presented showing the size of the species' population present. The accompanying text, written by a team of 450 authors from 38 countries, elaborates on the mapped information and presents data on a further 62 species too localized to map effectively. An international team of artists has provided lively illustrations of the mapped species.
This book will prove to be an essential tool for managers and conservationists, as well as a source of endless interest for all interested in the bird life of Europe.
From the Back Cover
This landmark volume presents, for the very first time, an integrated picture of the distribution and abundance of the breeding birds of Europe. It is a truly monumental work, the initiative for which dates back to as long ago as 1971. The national bird surveys initiated by the European Ornithological Atlas Committee (latterly working through the European Bird Census Council) were, in many cases, the first of their kind in the countries involved. Over 100 regional and national atlases have been produced as the census work progressed and several countries have gone so far as to carry out follow-up surveys subsequently.
Now the bigger picture can be assembled. The survey data from the projects, gathered by over 10,000 field ornithologists from every European country, have been combined and mapped to show the presence or absence of 495 species in over 4400 50 x 50 km squares. In many squares, data are also presented showing the size of the species' population present. The accompanying text, written by a team of 450 authors from 38 countries, elaborates on the mapped information and presents data on a further 62 species too localized to map effectively. An international team of artists has provided lively illustrations of the mapped species.
The survey area includes far flung but important regions such as Madeira, the Azores, Iceland, Svalbard, Novaya Zemlya, Franz Josef Land and Transcaucasia (but not Turkey and Cyprus). The editors were able to include new and unique information from significant parts of Russia and the Ukraine. Collaboration between the EBCC and BirdLife International has enabled much of the data from Birds in Europe - their conservation status to be incorporated in bar chart form to further enhance the species text.
The importance of birds, both in their own right and as indicators of environmental change, is as well known as many of the spectacular reductions in bird numbers during recent years. Now it is possible to have a picture of bird distribution on a scale never before realized in Europe, a scale that both describes the present and allows us to measure the success of future nature conservation initiatives and the failures of further habitat loss and degradation. This book will prove to be an essential tool for managers and conservationists, as well as a source of endless interest for all interested in the bird life of Europe.
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