The History of Ornithology

This account comprises a set of mini-biographies of some of the more important ornithologists of the past. However it pays little or no attention to the development of work on ornithological topics or concepts. The account of the 20th century is especially disappointing, with no consideration given to speciation, population dynamics, behavioural ecology or macroecology – all fields where work on birds has had a major influence. The importance of "citizen ornithology" for such things as census work, survival studies and atlases is not mentioned – indeed, these topics themselves are absent. While bird protection is briefly covered, there is no account of ornithology’s contribution to conservation. The beliefs of mediaeval scholars are judged from the perspective of modern knowledge rather than by assessing their conclusions in the context of their times. There are some factual errors: Lord Rothschild was not the Administrator of the British Museum but a Trustee of the British Museum (Natural History); M M Nice was not the first to use ringing to estimate survival rates but was clearly pre-empted by J P Burkitt. It is unfortunate that the potential of this book is not realised and, in the context of the other more comprehensive and relevant texts available, it is difficult to recommend this title.

Book reviewed by Jeremy Greenwood