The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding Birds
Encyclopedia
The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding Birds - their distribution and abundance (ISBN 0-85661-091-7) is an ornithological atlas published for the European Bird Census Council by T & A D Poyser in 1997. Its editors were Ward J. M. Hagemeijer and Michael J. Blair. The atlas was the first to present grid-square distribution maps for all breeding birds at a Europe
-wide level. The bulk of the book is in English
, although it also contains introductions in thirteen other European languages. The atlas presents the results of the European Bird Census Council's European Ornithological Atlas project, the fieldwork for which was carried out between 1985 and 1988.
) are followed by an English introduction and shorter introductions in Czech
, German
, Spanish
, French
, Finnish
, Greek
, Hungarian
, Italian
, Dutch
, Portuguese
, Polish
, Russian
and Swedish
; indexes of bird names, in the same languages, are also included, at the end of the book. The introductions are followed by sections detailing the history of the European Ornithological Atlas project and the Evolution and History of the European Bird Fauna, and a section listing national and major regional published bird atlases.
The bulk of the book (772 pages) consists of species accounts. All birds with established breeding populations within Europe are covered in a single-page or two-page account which includes a map of breeding distribution, histograms showing those countries with the largest breeding populations, and a species text. Seventeen further species for which some breeding behaviour has been observed within the region are covered more briefly. Some species distributions are shown on maps of the whole survey area, but for those with more restricted distributions, base maps showing only a relevant subdivision are shown.
The book concludes with sections on the Conservation Status of Europe's Birds, a list of species with threat statuses, a set of derived maps depicting overall species richness and richness of threatened species, and a 65-page references section.
The book's dustjacket is illustrated by bird artist David Nurney - the front cover shows a Common Kingfisher (with a map of its distribution), while a European Bee-eater
is depicted on the spine.
The survey area covered by the project extends to include Madeira
, The Azores, Iceland
, Svalbard
, Novaya Zemlya
, Franz Josef Land
and Transcaucasia, as well as European Russia
east to the Urals. However, Turkey
, Cyprus
, Greenland
and the Canary Islands
are excluded.
. This consisted of maps of projected species distributions based on the predictions of the Hadley centre HadCM3 climate change model.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
-wide level. The bulk of the book is in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, although it also contains introductions in thirteen other European languages. The atlas presents the results of the European Bird Census Council's European Ornithological Atlas project, the fieldwork for which was carried out between 1985 and 1988.
The book
The book has cxli + 903 pages. Its Foreword (by Karel H Voous) and Preface (by Goetz Rheinwald and Jeremy GreenwoodJeremy 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....
) are followed by an English introduction and shorter introductions in Czech
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
, Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
, Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
and Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
; indexes of bird names, in the same languages, are also included, at the end of the book. The introductions are followed by sections detailing the history of the European Ornithological Atlas project and the Evolution and History of the European Bird Fauna, and a section listing national and major regional published bird atlases.
The bulk of the book (772 pages) consists of species accounts. All birds with established breeding populations within Europe are covered in a single-page or two-page account which includes a map of breeding distribution, histograms showing those countries with the largest breeding populations, and a species text. Seventeen further species for which some breeding behaviour has been observed within the region are covered more briefly. Some species distributions are shown on maps of the whole survey area, but for those with more restricted distributions, base maps showing only a relevant subdivision are shown.
The book concludes with sections on the Conservation Status of Europe's Birds, a list of species with threat statuses, a set of derived maps depicting overall species richness and richness of threatened species, and a 65-page references section.
The book's dustjacket is illustrated by bird artist David Nurney - the front cover shows a Common Kingfisher (with a map of its distribution), while a European Bee-eater
European Bee-eater
The European Bee-eater, Merops apiaster, is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It breeds in southern Europe and in parts of north Africa and western Asia. It is strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, India and Sri Lanka...
is depicted on the spine.
The European Ornithological Atlas project
The European Ornithological Atlas project was initiated in 1971. Its fieldwork took the form of surveys during the breeding season, in each of the countries within the region, between 1985 and 1988.The survey area covered by the project extends to include Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
, The Azores, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Svalbard
Svalbard
Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...
, Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya , also known in Dutch as Nova Zembla and in Norwegian as , is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the northern island...
, Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...
and Transcaucasia, as well as European Russia
European Russia
European Russia refers to the western areas of Russia that lie within Europe, comprising roughly 3,960,000 square kilometres , larger in area than India, and spanning across 40% of Europe. Its eastern border is defined by the Ural Mountains and in the south it is defined by the border with...
east to the Urals. However, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
and the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
are excluded.
The EOA maps online
The maps from the atlas are available online at the SOVON website here: The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding BirdsA climatic atlas of European breeding birds
In 2007, a follow-up publication, "A climatic atlas of European breeding birds" was published by Lynx EdicionsLynx Edicions
Lynx Edicions is a Spanish ornithological publishing company.It became internationally known when it started publishing the Handbook of the Birds of the World, a 16 volume series which, when it is completed in 2011, will document for the first time in a single work an entire animal class,...
. This consisted of maps of projected species distributions based on the predictions of the Hadley centre HadCM3 climate change model.
See also
- Australian Bird CountAustralian Bird CountThe Australian Bird Count was a project of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union . Following the first and successful Atlas of Australian Birds project, which led to the publication of a book on the distribution of Australian birds in 1984, it was suggested by Ken Rogers that the RAOU...
(ABC) - BioBlitzBioBlitzA BioBlitz, also written without capitals bioblitz, is an intense period of biological surveying in an attempt to record all the living species within a designated area. Groups of scientists, naturalists and volunteers conduct an intensive field study over a short, usually 24 hour, time...
("24-hour inventory") - Christmas Bird CountChristmas Bird CountThe Christmas Bird Count is a census of birds in the Western Hemisphere, performed annually in the early Northern-hemisphere winter by volunteer birders...
(CBC) (in the Western Hemisphere) - Seabird Colony RegisterSeabird Colony RegisterThe Seabird Colony Register is a database, managed by the British Joint Nature Conservation Committee, which contains counts of breeding seabirds at British seabird colonies made between 1969 and 1998, which is used for analysing past changes in breeding seabird numbers and changes in their colony...
(SCR) - Tucson Bird CountTucson Bird CountThe Tucson Bird Count is a community-based program that monitors bird populations in and around the Tucson, Arizona, USA metropolitan area...
(TBC) (in Arizona in the US)