Banbury Ornithological Society - 1850 - The Birds of Oxfordshire and its Neighbourhood, Matthews

The Birds of Oxfordshire and its Neighbourhood was compiled by the Reverends Andrew and Henry Matthews and published as a series of articles in the Zoologist from 1849-1850. The information is derived from their own observations in the vicinity of Weston-on-the-Green, where they lived, and also from correspondents in Abingdon, Fringford and Chipping Norton.

The Matthews attest to enumerating 232 birds in their list, out of 346-7 on the British List at that time. O.V. Aplin listed 242 species. Not all of the species listed by the Matthews are now accepted.

Whilst not as authorative as the Aplin's list, the information is very useful for providing even earlier evidence on the species abundance in that time. Sadly, like a lot of ornithology of the time, most of the evidence came from the shooting of birds, even of rarities.

A digital copy of the book can be downloaded and read from this link: The Birds of Oxfordshire and its Neighbourhood.

Sean Woodcock, MP for Banbury visited the BOS reserve at Balscote Quarry recently, to see conservation in action. Steve Holliday, one of the site wardens said, “Balscote may be a small site (6ha) but, through positive management, it holds Red List birds such as Lapwing and Yellowhammer, 24 species of butterfly and much more." We looked at the vital role volunteers play in habitat management on site and, in light of BOS data on local bird declines, how we can develop a more joined-up approach to nature conservation locally. We finished by discussing how new proposals in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill can benefit, not harm, biodiversity.

Two Islands - Handa, Scotland & The Farnes, Northumberland - Graham Lenton

Handa a beautiful island off the north-west coast of the Highlands of Scotland boasts up to 150,000 seabirds. Its location seems to have its own weather pattern and the island is uninhabited apart from a seasonal warden and reserve volunteers. It is accessed by a ten-minute ferry from the hamlet of Tarbet and its white sandy shores and clear blue waters make it appear almost tropical. The seabird colonies of puffin, guillemot, razorbill, kittiwake and fulmar are easily viewed from the top of the island where sea cliffs of the Torridonian Sandstone reach over 300ft (100metres). Other notable birds that breed on the island are great and arctic skua, stonechat, wheatear, cuckoo, twite, oystercatcher, arctic tern, common, herring and great black-backed gulls, shag, eider, red grouse, ringed plover, snipe, rock dove, meadow and rock pipit and reed bunting. Most of the divers can be seen flying or on the sea around the island and black guillemots are often seen in the bay. Read more ...

1850 - The Birds of Oxfordshire and its Neighbourhood, Matthews

Sean Woodcock MP visits Balscote Quarry

14 September 2026 - Indoor Meeting at 7.30pm