100 years of ringing in britain and Ireland

Abstract

Three ringing schemes started in Britain in 1909. The Witherby scheme persisted, becoming the BTO scheme. At first, the focus was on migration and eventually The Migration Atlas set new standards in ring-recovery analysis, developed even further in the Migration Mapping Tool which was stimulated by interest in the spread of avian influenza. Demography was the main focus in the last quarter of the 20th century, with ringing data being combined with those from censuses and nest records. Analyses of great significance for conservation science have been greatly facilitated by the enthusiastic support of ringers for computerisation, and their participation in special projects designed to improve demographic information. © 2009 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.