Jeremy John Denis Greenwood

University of St Andrews · Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling

Background We assess the analysis of the data resulting from a field experiment conducted by Pilling et al. (PLoS ONE. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0077193, 5) on the potential effects of thiamethoxam on honeybees. The experiment had low levels of replication, so Pilling et al. concluded that formal statistical analysis would be misleading. This would...

Populations of the polymorphic land snail Cepaea nemoralis (L.) from Deepdale, Derbyshire, UK, sampled in 1965–67, showed a pattern of area effects, with steep clines among groups of populations differing in shell colour and banding morph frequencies. In 2010, most of these populations were resampled. In particular, a continuous transect made in 19...

The life of birds is based on flight, which has both constrained their diversification and opened ecological opportunities. It affects their size and their abundance. Their ecology is based on the exploitation of patchy and variable resources, migration being the most obvious manifestation of this. A few birds are flightless. The taxonomic diversit...

A survey of the occurence of birds in gardens in 14 countries in western Europe was conducted between 23 October 1988 and 20 May 1989. Most of the 440 participating gardens were on the edge of towns and 40% had trees, grass and shrubs. Their average size as 1608 m 2. One hundred and seventy-six species of birds were recorded in all, with a mean of...

A survey of the numbers, distribution and habitat preferences of breeding Lapwings in England and Wales was conducted by members of the British Trust for Ornithology in spring (April) 1987. One randomly selected tetrad was surveyed in each 10-km square of the National Grid which contained any land. A total of 123 134 pairs was estimated, with 95% c...

Capsule Daylength, rather than latitude, was found to be an important determinant of variation in clutch size.Aims To describe the nature of spatial and temporal variation in clutch size, and explore the ecological correlates of these patterns.Methods We tested the prediction that seasonal declines in clutch size will be greater at higher latitudes...

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. Demogra...

It is important to monitor bird populations both in their own right and as indicators of the general health of wildlife habitats. The objectives of the British Trust for Ornithology's Integrated Population Monitoring programme relate to breeding bird populations in Britain and Ireland and involve the estimation of demographic parameters as well as...

The Common Birds Census documents changes in the populations of the more abundant British land birds. Here we analyse the CBC data for various English passerines to discover the separate effects of weather and of density‐dependent feedback on their annual population changes. Density dependence is generally apparent in the data from woodland plots,...

We use ornithological atlas data to assess evidence for the existence of a number of spatial patterns of range contraction in British breeding birds. For 18 of the 25 species which suffered the greatest range contractions between 1968 and 1991, there wais a greater likelihood of local extinction in areas where the species was initially less widespr...

Summary • Population estimates are of fundamental importance for setting conservation priorities and for numerous aspects of conservation biology. • Distance sampling, which takes undetected individuals into account, is one of the most widely used methods for generating population estimates. We use this method to generate estimates of the national...

Small mammals were trapped on five islands for short periods during the summers of 1964 and 1965, with the following results: Handa: Rattus norvegicus only, probably no other species present. Muck: Sorex araneus, S. minutus, Apodemus sylvaticus and Microtus agrestis; R. norvegicus also present. Pabay: S. minutus and Neomys fodiens; probably no othe...

For species that are still widespread, obtaining accurate and precise measures of population change inevitably means gathering representative sample data rather than undertaking a complete census. In the UK, a system of raising ‘alerts’ utilises stochastic models for such data to identify species in rapid (>50%) or moderate (25–50%) decline across...

The chicks of the cliff nesting auks go to sea when only one-third the weight of the adults and before the flight-feathers are fully grown. Sea-going occurs in the evening (except in the high Arctic) and the advantages and disadvantages of this timing are discussed. In the Guillemot, the behaviour which occurs on the ledges before the first-flight...

We used distance sampling software (distance, version 4·1 Release 2; Buckland et al. 2001; Thomas et al. 2004) to calculate total avian density within each 1 km × 1 km plot surveyed in 2000 (the year with the most data). We modelled the decline in detectability with distance from the transect line and took the heterogeneity in detectability between...

Various animals have been observed to select food in a way that changes according to the relative frequency of the different foods available. Sometimes only the strength of selection varies, its direction remaining constant, but sometimes the direction of selection also changes. Selection of a food may be more intense as that food becomes rarer, or...

In some wading birds (Charadrii) each adult rears a brood alone. The female leaves her first clutch with her first mate before herself rearing a clutch fertilized by a second male, who is already tending its first mate's first clutch. We here develop a simple model to account for the exchange of mates between clutches, and relate it to reported fie...

Collaborative research by networks of amateurs has had a major role in ornithology and conservation science and will continue to do so. It has been important in establishing the facts of migration, systematically recording distribution, providing insights into habitat requirements and recording variation in numbers, productivity and survival, thus...

Increasing housing density is an important component of global land transformation, with major impacts on patterns of biodiversity. However, while there have been many studies of the changes in biodiversity across rural–urban gradients, which are influenced in large part by housing densities, how biodiversity changes across the full range of region...

The study examined lateral preference in use of hands, feet, eyes, and ears in a group of nearly 5000 schoolchildren in Northern Ireland. Performance tests were carried out by student teachers during their school-based work in 2002 and data were submitted on-line. Six tasks were used-writing, throwing a ball, kicking a ball, hopping, listening to q...

Aim To assess whether spatial variation in sampling effort drives positive correlations between human population density and species richness. Location British 10 × 10 km squares. Methods We calculated three measures of species richness from atlas data of breeding birds in Britain: total species richness, species richness standardised for sampling...

Before one starts Objectives The definition of objectives is particularly important in studies of the abundance of animals or plants because it will determine whether one needs to make a full count of the individuals present in an area (or, at least, an estimate of that number) or whether an index of numbers is satisfactory. By an index, we mean a...

This is an updated version of the best selling first edition, Ecological Census Techniques, with updating, some new chapters and authors. Almost all ecological and conservation work involves carrying out a census or survey. This practically focussed book describes how to plan a census, the practical details and shows with worked examples how to ana...

Environmental energy availability explains much of the spatial variation in species richness at regional scales. While numerous mechanisms that may drive such total species–energy relationships have been identified, knowledge of their relative contributions is scant. Here, we adopt a novel approach to identify these drivers that exploits the compos...

Environmental energy availability can explain much of the spatial variation in species richness. Such species-energy relationships encompass a diverse range of forms, and there is intense debate concerning which of these predominate, and the factors promoting this diversity. Despite this there has been relatively little investigation of whether the...

Positive correlations between energy and species richness are frequently observed, but the causal mechanisms of such species–energy relationships have rarely been identified conclusively. The more individuals hypothesis (MIH) describes one possible cause of positive species–energy relationships. It suggests that greater resource availability in hig...

1. Positive correlations between energy and species richness are frequently observed, but the causal mechanisms of such species-energy relationships have rarely been identified conclusively. 2. The more individuals hypothesis (MIH) describes one possible cause of positive species-energy relationships. It suggests that greater resource availability...

A major goal of ecology is to understand spatial variation in species richness. The latter is markedly influenced by energy availability and appears to be influenced more by common species than rare ones; species-energy relationships should thus be stronger for common species. Species-energy relationships may arise because high-energy areas support...

A major goal of ecology is to understand spatial variation in species richness. The latter is markedly influenced by energy availability and appears to be influenced more by common species than rare ones; species–energy relationships should thus be stronger for common species. Species–energy relationships may arise because high-energy areas support...

There is a long tradition of natural history study in Britain (Allen 1976 and this book), with ornithology as one of its components. In Victorian times, much of the interest was manifested by the collection of specimens (as ‘stuffed birds’), equivalent in many ways to today’s ‘twitching’, in which people’s focus is on extending the list of species...

Aims To determine the numbers of birds nesting on or in houses and gardens in Great Britain. Methods A questionnaire survey of 12 687 households in Great Britain was conducted in 2000, of which 6035 responded. A follow-up survey, to which 1757 responded, showed that people with no nests on their properties had been less likely to respond in the ini...

There is growing concern about increased population, regional, and global extinctions of species. A key question is whether extinction rates for one group of organisms are representative of other taxa. We present a comparison at the national scale of population and regional extinctions of birds, butterflies, and vascular plants from Britain in rece...

There is little understanding in ecology as to how biodiversity patterns emerge from the distribution patterns of individual species. Here we consider the question of the contributions of rare (restricted range) and common (widespread) species to richness patterns. Considering a species richness pattern, is most of the spatial structure, in terms o...

1. A monitoring network for UK terrestrial mammals, the Tracking Mammals Partnership, is currently being set up to provide a coordinated programme to collect surveillance and monitoring data. 2. Monitoring UK mammals is important for a number of reasons including: setting conservation priorities; measuring the effects of conservation management; ma...

For almost four decades the British Trust for Ornithology has monitored populations of the commoner 35-50% of species of British breeding birds. The monitoring involves surveillance of numbers, breeding output and survival rates across the whole of the United Kingdom. A formal alert system allows serious declines to be identified and brought to the...

iscussions; I. Woodward for providing productivity data; L. A. Hansen for assistance with access to the African bird database on behalf of the Zoological Museum University of Copenhagen ( ZMUC); and E. Baker, N. Baker, F. Dowsett-Lemaire, R. Dowsett, J. Fjelds, M. E. Gartshore, H. M. de Klerk, M. Languy, R. B. Payn, COC/BirdLife Cameroon, and BirdL...

Using data on the spatial distribution of the British avifauna, we address three basic questions about the spatial structure of assemblages: (i) Is there a relationship between species richness (alpha diversity) and spatial turnover of species (beta diversity)? (ii) Do high richness locations have fewer species in common with neighbouring areas tha...

Data from the British Trust for Ornithology Common Birds Census and two atlases of breeding birds were used to examine the form of the interspecific abundance–range size relationship for the British avifauna. The relationship is positive for both farmland and woodland habitats and over two different periods, with some evidence of curvilinearity, us...

In a companion paper, we started an examination of the anatomy of the interspecific relationship between local abundance and geographical range size in the British avifauna by analysing its spatial dynamics. Here, we use the same data to extend this study to a consideration of the temporal dynamics of the relationship. Most species of British breed...

The life of birds is based on flight, which has both constrained their diversification and opened ecological opportunities. It affects their size and their abundance. Their ecology is based on the exploitation of patchy and variable resources, migration being the most obvious manifestation of this. A few birds are flightless. The taxonomic diversit...

We use ornithological atlas data to assess evidence for the existence of a number of spatial patterns of range contraction in British breeding birds. For 18 of the 25 species which suffered the greatest range contractions between 1968 and 1991, there was a greater likelihood of local extinction in areas where the species was initially less widespre...

1. Using data on the spatial distribution of the British avifauna, we address three basic questions about the spatial structure of assemblages: (i) Is there a relationship between species richness (alpha diversity) and spatial turnover of species (beta diversity)? (ii) Do high richness locations have fewer species in common with neighbouring areas...

1. The abundance and distribution of species tend to be linked, such that species declining in abundance often tend also to show declines in the number of sites they occupy, while species increasing in abundance tend also to be increasing in occupancy. Therefore, intraspecific abundance–occupancy relationships are commonly positive. 2. The intraspe...

1. We tested the species diversity–energy hypothesis using the British bird fauna. This predicts that temperature patterns should match diversity patterns. We also tested the hypothesis that the mechanism operates directly through effects of temperature on thermoregulatory loads; this further predicts that seasonal changes in temperature cause matc...

A report by the British Trust for Ornithology under contract to the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (Contract No: F76-01-241). British Trust for Ornithology,The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk, IP24 2PU.

This paper assesses the best measure of body size for a range of passerine species, from data provided by British bird observatories. For each species we determine the proportion of variance in body mass explained by wing length, tarsus length, tail length and head length (head + bill) by multiple regression, while also accounting for variance due...

The effect of visits to nests of open-nesting passerines was investigated over two years using a randomized sampling design; the only such study ever undertaken in the UK. There was no overall effect of nest visiting on nesting success (the analysis had a power of 85% to detect a difference of 10% in success rates between control and visited nests)...

This book is a unique collection of evolutionary and ecological perspectives in the study of biodiversity by some of the leading researchers in the field. The seventeen chapters are divided into three sections, each section beginning with an overview of its contents. The book traces past landmarks, current questions, and future trends in biodiversi...

1. It has been proposed to establish roost refuges to limit the disturbance to internationally important over-wintering populations of waders on the Wash. 2. Waders have been caught regularly on the Wash since 1959. By 1993, 24 576 oystercatchers, 4125 grey plovers, 38 041 knots, 96 801 dunlins and 11 729 redshanks had been ringed at 85 roost sites...

British birds and mammals are compared in terms of their frequency distributions of abundance and body mass and in respect of the relation between abundance and body mass. Body masses of non-flying mammals are greater than those of resident birds which are, in turn, heavier than migrants; bats are lightest. The frequency distribution of masses are...

the map in Fig. 2 should have been marked with a 'W, as indicated here, to represent Wytham. Counties with insufficient data are shown in beige, and not in white as stated in the figure legend.

SMALL birds increase their fat reserves in winter as insurance against reduced or unpredictable food supplies1: fat is accumulated daily from feeding and utilized overnight2. Field observations indicate that birds often maintain smaller reserves than expected2, which implies that there is a cost of being fat3. One such cost could be that an increas...

The length of primary 3 (ascendent) has been strongly promoted in some countries as a better measure of body size than wing length for small passerines. This is because it is believed to offer a more repeatable measure and to be safer for the bird. New data from the British ringing scheme suggest that, for trained observers, repeatability of primar...

Nature is the international weekly journal of science: a magazine style journal that publishes full-length research papers in all disciplines of science, as well as News and Views, reviews, news, features, commentaries, web focuses and more, covering all branches of science and how science impacts upon all aspects of society and life.

We examine the relation between body size, abundance, and taxonomy in the wintering bird assemblages in Britain and Ireland. The regression slope of abundance on body size across species in both assemblages is not significantly different from that predicted by an `energetic equivalence rule', but the proportion of the variance in abundance explaine...

Studies of the relationship between body weight and population abundance for animal species based on pooling data from many taxa and assemblages suggest that abundance scales with weight to the -0.75 power. Since metabolic rate scales with weight as (plus)0.75, this result has been taken as evidence that all species in assemblages used equal amount...

Nature is the international weekly journal of science: a magazine style journal that publishes full-length research papers in all disciplines of science, as well as News and Views, reviews, news, features, commentaries, web focuses and more, covering all branches of science and how science impacts upon all aspects of society and life.

An important reason for monitoring populations of birds is that their conservation is important in its own right. It is important to have a sufficient knowledge of underlying population processes to determine the probable causes of any population decline so that steps can be taken to halt or even reverse it. The subsequent success, or otherwise, of...

The need for environmental monitoring has never been greater. Burgeoning human populations, the greater demands they make on resources, and technological developments all result in massive and continuing increase in the impact of people on their environments. We have passed through a period in which environmental monitoring has had little academic...

Birds as Monitors of Environmental Change looks at how bird populations are affected by pollutants, water quality, and other physical changes and how this scientific knowledge can help in predicting the effects of pollutants and other physical changes in the environment.

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THE relationship between abundance and body size is the subject of considerable debate in ecology1-15. Several data sets spanning a large range of body sizes show linear negative relationships between abundance and weight l-6 when these are measured on a logarithmic scale. But other studies of the abundances of species from single taxa, such as bir...

Nature is the international weekly journal of science: a magazine style journal that publishes full-length research papers in all disciplines of science, as well as News and Views, reviews, news, features, commentaries, web focuses and more, covering all branches of science and how science impacts upon all aspects of society and life.

Experiments to measure the strength of frequency-dependent selection on dimorphic populations of distasteful, brightly coloured prey were carried out, using pastry cylinders as prey and wild birds as predators. When the two forms were haphazardly intermingled, the birds took a relative excess of whichever form happened to be the rarer if all prey i...

Nature is the international weekly journal of science: a magazine style journal that publishes full-length research papers in all disciplines of science, as well as News and Views, reviews, news, features, commentaries, web focuses and more, covering all branches of science and how science impacts upon all aspects of society and life.