Publisher's Synopsis
The oceanographic and coastal features of the British Isles provide ideal habitats for breeding seabirds and it is no surprise that the British and Irish seabird population are of international importance, both in sheer numbers and in species diversity. Indeed, for some species, British waters are host to the greater part of the world's population.;This book presents the most up to date information available on these seabird populations, their numbers and distributions, and their changing fortunes in recent years. The surveys of Operations Seafarer, carried out in 1969 and 1970 provided a baseline for future work which led to the establishment of the Seabird Colony Register by the Seabird Group and the Nature Conservancy Council. The result and analysis of their counts during 1985 to 1987 form the basis for this book. Improved census methodology and a new computerized data base set the standards for seabird monitoring in future decades.;The book begins by describing the general biology and population trends of British seabirds and goes on to assess the results and to analyze each of the 24 breeding species in detail. Full descriptions of the counting methods and the estimating factors used provide guidelines for future surveys not only in Britain, but whenever seabirds are of interest and importance.
