The History of British Birds

Derek Yalden and Umberto Albarella

Co-authored by an ornithologist and an archeologist, providing a balance of expertise
Indicates the extent to which climatic, agricultural, and social changes have affected the British avifauna over 10,000 years
Integrates a wealth of archeological data

The History of British Birds

Derek Yalden and Umberto Albarella

Description

The History of British Birds reviews our knowledge of avifaunal history over the last 15,000 years, setting it in its wider historical and European context. The authors, one an ornithologist, the other an archaeologist, integrate a wealth of archaeological data to illuminate and enliven the story, indicating the extent to which climatic, agricultural, and social changes have affected the avifauna. They discuss its present balance, as well as predicting possible future changes.

It is a popular misconception that bird bones are rarely preserved (compared with mammals), and cannot be reliably identified when they are found. The book explores both these contentions, armed with a database of 9,000 records of birds that have been identified on archaeolgical sites. Most are in England, but sites elsewhere in Great Britian, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Isles are included.

Britain's most numerous bird is also the most widespread in the archaeological record, but some of the more charismatic species also have a rich historical pedigree. For example, we can say quite a lot about the history of the Crane, Red Kite, White-tailed Eagle and great Auk. The history of many introduced domestic species can also be illuminated. Even so, there remain uncertainties, posed by difficulties of dating or identification, the vagaries of the archaeological record or the ecological specialities of the birds themselves. These issues are highlighted, thus posing research questions for others to answer.

And the commonest British bird, then and now? Buy the book and read on...

The History of British Birds

Derek Yalden and Umberto Albarella

Introduction
1. The Bird in the Hand....
2. The Early History of Birds in Britain and Europe
3. Coming in from the Cold
4. Farmland and Fenland
5. Veni, Vidi, Vici
6. Monks, Monarchs and Mysteries
7. From Elizabeth to Victoria
8. Now and Hereafter
Appendix - An annotated historical list of British birds
References

The History of British Birds

Derek Yalden and Umberto Albarella

Author Information

Derek Yalden retired from Manchester University after 40 years of teaching vertebrate zoology in September 2005. His is the author/co-author of over 200 scientific publications. He has worked on birds and mammals in the Peak District, including long-term population studies of Common Sandpipers and Golden Plovers, and on the mammals of Ethiopia, with two species - Leptopelis yaldeni (tree-frog) and Desmomys yaldeni (rat) - named in his honour. His interest in history of the British fauna dates back to undergraduate lectures on Pleistocene mammals, summarized in reviews, papers and The History of British Mammals (1999). Derek is currently the President of the Mammal Society, and was Editor of their publication Mammal Review for 22 years.

The History of British Birds

Derek Yalden and Umberto Albarella

Reviews and Awards

"Alden and Albarella undertook a very ambitious project in writing this book, which is nothing less than a comprehensive history of the avifauna of the British Isles from the Mesozoic to the present. This volume is a remarkable effort and can be strongly recommended to anyone interested in the faunal history of the British Isles or the Western Palearctic in general."--Auk

"Highly recommended. This specialized work will be a valuable resource for advanced students interested in avian population biology, ornithology, anthropology, paleontology, and especially avian zooarchaeology."--Choice

"The History of British Birds is a fine piece of scholarship by leading experts on the prehistory and preliterate past of Britain's avifauna. A rare insight into how bird populations might have stood before the pervasive influence of humankind."--Birding

"Far and away the most comprehensive set of records to date. A fascinating book."--British Trust for Orinthology News

"The volume scores highly for both the depth and breadth of the information included: the often 'obscure and scattered' (p. 1) authors' words, but from personal experience I would strongly concur documentation available from archeological investigations has been seemingly exhaustively assembled, and an array of ancillary information from sources such as place names carefully integrated with it." -- Quarterly Review of Biology