Birds in South-East Scotland 2007-13 A Tetrad Atlas of the Birds of Lothian and Borders

About this book

South-east Scotland is a significant region for breeding, passage and wintering birds, holding large proportions of Britain’s Gannets, Goshawks, Water Rails, non-breeding Red-necked Grebes, Slavonian Grebes, Pink-footed Geese and Velvet Scoters – just a small number of the 277 species that feature in Birds in South-East Scotland 2007-13. This exhaustive tetrad study, based on 1,770 2 × 2 km plots and nearly half-a-million items of data collected by over 850 observers, covers the recording areas of Lothian and Borders, an area of 6,456 km². The varied habitats of this region, from estuarine mud and sandflats of the inner Forth to rocky shorelines backed by cliffs in Berwickshire, from the cereal farming areas of the Merse and lochs and reservoirs of the hills to the extensive stands of conifer plantations, as well as heather-clad uplands, river courses and the built-up areas of Edinburgh, all contribute in providing a varied avian fauna, which is fully reflected in this milestone publication.

Contents

Dedication to Ray Murray   3
Foreword / James Main   7
Atlas Working Group   8
Acknowledgements   11
Glossary of terms and abbreviations   13

CHAPTERS
1. Introduction / Ian Andrews   15
2. Definition of the area / Ian Andrews   17
3. Habitats in SE Scotland and their use by birds / Neville Crowther, Stan da Prato and Harry Dott   19
4. Weather during 2007-13 / David Parkinson   57
5. Methodology, coverage and the database / Ian Andrews   59
6. Population estimation / Tom Brewis   65
7. Changes in the avifauna of SE Scotland over a 20-year period / Ian Andrews and Mark Holling   71
8. Interpretation of the species maps, charts and tables / Ian Andrews   79

SPECIES ACCOUNTS   83

APPENDICES
1. Rare and scarce species recorded in Lothian and Borders, 2007-13   475
2. Other feral and escaped species recorded in Lothian and Borders, 2007-13   481
3. Summary of SE Scotland bird population estimates   482
4. Breakdown of detailed breeding codes per species, 2008-13   490
5. Supplementary species population data   500
6. Gazetteer of commonly used place names in Lothian and Borders   513
7. Summary tables and statistics   516
8. Changes to the BTO dataset   519
9. Atlas observers   521
10. Extra Wetland Bird Survey counts   524
11. Scientifc names of non-avian species referred to in the text   531

References   533
Index   539

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