384 – 322 BC

Aristotle Greek philosopher and one of the earliest scholars to write about birds and whose influence is still felt in the modern age due to many of the bird names he used entering popular use and many being incorporated into bird species’ scientific names.

1660

The Royal Society The origins of the Royal Society lie in a group of natural philosophers who began meeting in the mid-1640s to discuss the ideas of Francis Bacon.

1681

Extinction of the Dodo The last confirmed sighting of the Dodo was on Mauritius in 1662. By then the species had long been in decline, driven to extinction by humans and the predators they took to the Indian Ocean island.

1707 – 1778

Carl Linnaeus – Swedish naturalist who established the conventions for naming organisms which formed the basis of binomial nomenclature and later developed the system of scientific classification widely used in biology, and after whom the Linnean Society was named.

1720 – 1793

Gilbert White – Naturalist and ornithologist and author of The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne

1788

The Linnean Society of London The Linnean Society of London is the world’s oldest active biological society. Founded in 1788, the Society takes its name from the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus whose botanical, zoological and library collections have been in its keeping since 1829.

1826

The Zoological Society The Zoological Society was founded by Stamford Raffles. It was originally the Zoological Section of the Linnean Society.)

1844

Extinction of the Great AukLarge breeding colonies of the flightless Great Auk once occurred on rocky islands and coasts of the North Atlantic in Canada, Greenland, Iceland, the British Isles and Scandinavia. Its extermination began with a slaughter for food and eggs by local inhabitants, but its fate was sealed when bird feathers became fashion items.

1850

Deutsche Ornithologen-Gesellschaft  (German Ornithologists’ Society ) DO-G is the oldest national ornithological society in the world and has published Journal of Ornithology since 1853.

1858

British Ornithologists' Union (BOU) The British Ornithologists' Union was founded by scientists of the day including Prof Alfred Newton FRS. The BOU is the world’s second oldest national ornithological society with an international membership stretching across all continents.

1859

Ibis –The face of the British Ornithologists' Union Ibis, the quarterly international journal of avian science, is first published. Ibis has been published continuously since 1859, and as such is one the longest, continuously published ornithological journals in the world.

1859

On the origin of species by means of natural selection by Charles Darwin first published.The ‘theory of evolution’. “Big enough to undermine creation but simple enough to be stated in a sentence, the theory of natural selection is a masterpiece” (Richard Dawkins).

1870

Contributions to the theory of natural selection by Alfred Russell Wallace (1823 – 1913) Alfred Russell Wallace (elected Extra-Ordinary Member of the BOU in 1862) came up with the theory of evolution by natural selection at the same time as his more famous contemporary, Charles Darwin.

1873

Nuttall Ornithological Club (USA) The oldest known bird club in the world. Founded in 1873, the Nuttall Ornithological Club was the first organisation in North America devoted to ornithology. Its Bulletin was the first North American ornithological journal to be published. It ‘donated’ it to the AOU on its foundation in 1883.

1883

American Ornithologists' Union Founded in 1883, the American Ornithologists' Union is the oldest and largest organisation in the New World devoted to the scientific study of birds.

1883

BOU publishes its first List of British Birds The BOU published the first British List of Birds. Further editions were published in 1915, 1923, 1952, 1971, 1992 and 2007 (the latter in Ibis as The British List).

1888

Wilson Ornithological Society (USA) Named in honour of Alexander Wilson, the Father of American Ornithology, the Society publishes a quarterly, The Wilson Journal of Ornithology.

1889

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (UK) The RSPB was formed in response to a real conservation problem - the threatened extinction of the Great Crested Grebe, caused by the trade in ‘grebe fur’. The RSPB has over 1 million members making it the largest bird conservation organisation in the world.

1892

British Ornithologists' Club (BOC) founded by members of the BOU including one of the BOU founding members, Philip Sclater. Founded to promote discussion between ornithologists and to publish scientific information connected with ornithology through the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club, which it has published continuously since 1892.

1899

BOU founder Alfred Newton awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Society – the first ornithologist to receive the honour

1901

Birds Australia Birds Australia is the oldest conservation organisation in Australasia. It began life in 1901 as the Australasian Ornithologists Union but has since simplified its’ name to Birds Australia (BA).

1905

National Audubon Society (USA)The mission of the National Audubon Society is to conserve and restore natural ecosystems. Formerly called the National Association of Audubon Societies.

1907

British Birds First publication of British Birds, a monthly journal for all keen birdwatchers. It publishes articles on a wide variety of topics, including behaviour, conservation, distribution, identification, status and taxonomy.

1914

Extinction of the Passenger Pigeon One of the most abundant bird species on the planet hunted to extinction. Shot, trapped and clubbed for market, hog food, and sport, it could not survive. The world’s last Passenger Pigeon, Martha, died in Cincinnati Zoo in 1914. 

1921

Oxford Ornithological Society The oldest British bird club (formerly part of the Ashmolean Natural History Society founded 1828)

1933

British Trust for Ornithology An independent, scientific research trust which promotes bird conservation through volunteer-based surveys.The BTO celebrates their 75th anniversary this year.

2002

Ibis goes digital With the move to Blackwell Publishing, Ibis joins the digital age with the launch of the online version of the BOU’s journal.