Misplaced Pages

#429570

159-528: Sir Peter Markham Scott (14 September 1909 – 29 August 1989) was a British ornithologist , conservationist , painter, naval officer , broadcaster and sportsman . The only child of Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott , he took an interest in observing and shooting wildfowl at a young age and later took to their breeding. He established the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge in 1946 and helped found

318-610: A binomial name , categorising them into different genera. However, ornithology did not emerge as a specialised science until the Victorian era—with the popularization of natural history, and the collection of natural objects such as bird eggs and skins. This specialization led to the formation in Britain of the British Ornithologists' Union in 1858. In 1859, the members founded its journal The Ibis . The sudden spurt in ornithology

477-544: A fleet , convoy , or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were originally conceived in 1885 by Fernando Villaamil for the Spanish Navy as a defense against torpedo boats , and by the time of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, these "torpedo boat destroyers" (TBDs) were "large, swift, and powerfully armed torpedo boats designed to destroy other torpedo boats". Although

636-507: A godfather along with J. M. Barrie , creator of Peter Pan . Kathleen Scott remarried in 1922. Her second husband, Hilton Young (later Lord Kennet), became stepfather to Peter. In 1923, Peter Scott's half-brother, Wayland Young , was born. Scott was educated at Oundle School and Trinity College, Cambridge , initially reading Natural Sciences but graduating in the History of Art in 1931. At Cambridge, he shared lodging with John Berry and

795-614: A menagerie and sponsored translations of Arabic texts, among which the popular Arabic work known as the Liber Moaminus by an unknown author which was translated into Latin by Theodore of Antioch from Syria in 1240-1241 as the De Scientia Venandi per Aves , and also Michael Scotus (who had removed to Palermo) translated Ibn Sīnā 's Kitāb al-Ḥayawān of 1027 for the Emperor, a commentary and scientific update of Aristotle's work which

954-577: A pintail ). She, too, became an artist, painting birds. A son, Falcon, was born in 1954. Having been appointed a military MBE in the 1942 Birthday Honours , he was promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Civil Division (CBE) in the 1953 Coronation Honours . Having been appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 1973 New Year Honours for services to conservation and the environment, he

1113-616: A self-propelled torpedoes in the Battle of Caldera Bay in 1891, thus surpassing its main function of hunting torpedo boats. Fernando Villaamil , second officer of the Ministry of the Navy of Spain , designed his own torpedo gunboat to combat the threat from the torpedo boat. He asked several British shipyards to submit proposals capable of fulfilling these specifications. In 1885, the Spanish Navy chose

1272-646: A 1966 British short documentary film , produced by British Transport Films . In 1967, it won an Oscar for Best Short Subject at the 39th Academy Awards . In August 1986, an ITV Special was transmitted by Central Independent Television (Production No.6407) on Scott entitled Interest the Boy in Nature featuring Konrad Lorenz , Prince Philip, David Attenborough and Gerald Durrell ; written, produced and directed by Robin Brown. In 1996 Scott's life and work in wildlife conservation

1431-606: A Latin translation of Aristotle's work on animals from Arabic here around 1215, which was disseminated widely and was the first time in a millennium that this foundational text on zoology became available to Europeans. Falconry was popular in the Norman court in Sicily, and a number of works on the subject were written in Palermo . Emperor Frederick II of Hohenstaufen (1194–1250) learned about an falconry during his youth in Sicily and later built up

1590-692: A classification of birds, De Differentiis Avium (around 1572), that was based on structure and habits. Konrad Gesner wrote the Vogelbuch and Icones avium omnium around 1557. Like Gesner, Ulisse Aldrovandi , an encyclopedic naturalist, began a 14-volume natural history with three volumes on birds, entitled ornithologiae hoc est de avibus historiae libri XII , which was published from 1599 to 1603. Aldrovandi showed great interest in plants and animals, and his work included 3000 drawings of fruits, flowers, plants, and animals, published in 363 volumes. His Ornithology alone covers 2000 pages and included such aspects as

1749-569: A crew of 60. In terms of gunnery, speed, and dimensions, the specialised design to chase torpedo boats and her high-seas capabilities, Destructor was an important precursor to the TBD. The first classes of ships to bear the formal designation TBD were the Daring class of two ships and Havock class of two ships of the Royal Navy. Early torpedo gunboat designs lacked the range and speed to keep up with

SECTION 10

#1732873417430

1908-633: A destroyer was the German U-19 , rammed by HMS  Badger on 29 October 1914. While U-19 was only damaged, the next month, HMS  Garry successfully sank U-18 . The first depth-charge sinking was on 4 December 1916, when UC-19 was sunk by HMS Llewellyn . The submarine threat meant that many destroyers spent their time on antisubmarine patrol. Once Germany adopted unrestricted submarine warfare in January 1917, destroyers were called on to escort merchant convoys . US Navy destroyers were among

2067-454: A displacement of 9,200 tons, and with an armament of more than 90 missiles, guided-missile destroyers such as the Arleigh Burke class are actually larger and more heavily armed than most previous ships classified as guided-missile cruisers. The Chinese Type 055 destroyer has been described as a cruiser in some US Navy reports due to its size and armament. Many NATO navies, such as

2226-516: A doubt magnificent fighting vessels... but unable to stand bad weather". During the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, the commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy TBD Akatsuki described "being in command of a destroyer for a long period, especially in wartime... is not very good for the health". Stating that he had originally been strong and healthy, he continued, "life on a destroyer in winter, with bad food, no comforts, would sap

2385-535: A further three similar classes were produced around 1930. The Le Fantasque class of 1935 carried five 138 millimetres (5.4 in) guns and nine torpedo tubes, but could achieve speeds of 45 knots (83 km/h), which remains the record speed for a steamship and for any destroyer. The Italians' own destroyers were almost as swift; most Italian designs of the 1930s were rated at over 38 knots (70 km/h), while carrying torpedoes and either four or six 120 mm guns. Germany started to build destroyers again during

2544-446: A maximum speed of 22.6 knots (41.9 km/h), which made her one of the faster ships in the world in 1888. She was armed with one 90 mm (3.5 in) Spanish-designed Hontoria breech-loading gun, four 57 mm (2.2 in) ( 6-pounder ) Nordenfelt guns, two 37 mm (1.5 in) (3-pdr) Hotchkiss cannons and two 15-inch (38 cm) Schwartzkopff torpedo tubes. The ship carried three torpedoes per tube. She carried

2703-448: A model for many studies in non-mammalian immunology. Studies in bird behaviour include the use of tamed and trained birds in captivity. Studies on bird intelligence and song learning have been largely laboratory-based. Field researchers may make use of a wide range of techniques such as the use of dummy owls to elicit mobbing behaviour, and dummy males or the use of call playback to elicit territorial behaviour and thereby to establish

2862-582: A policy of the British Ornithologists' Union to keep out women. Unlike the RSPB, which was primarily conservation oriented, the British Trust for Ornithology was started in 1933 with the aim of advancing ornithological research. Members were often involved in collaborative ornithological projects. These projects have resulted in atlases which detail the distribution of bird species across Britain. In Canada, citizen scientist Elsie Cassels studied migratory birds and

3021-586: A resource for taxonomic studies. The use of bird skins to document species has been a standard part of systematic ornithology. Bird skins are prepared by retaining the key bones of the wings, legs, and skull along with the skin and feathers. In the past, they were treated with arsenic to prevent fungal and insect (mostly dermestid ) attack. Arsenic, being toxic, was replaced by less-toxic borax . Amateur and professional collectors became familiar with these skinning techniques and started sending in their skins to museums, some of them from distant locations. This led to

3180-622: A single hit. In most cases torpedo and/or dual-purpose gun armament was reduced to accommodate new anti-air and anti-submarine weapons. By this time the destroyers had become large, multi-purpose vessels, expensive targets in their own right. As a result, casualties on destroyers were among the highest. In the US Navy, particularly in World War II, destroyers became known as tin cans due to their light armor compared to battleships and cruisers. The need for large numbers of antisubmarine ships led to

3339-408: A skeleton, and my bones are full of rheumatism ." In 1898, the US Navy officially classified USS  Porter , a 175-foot (53 m) long all steel vessel displacing 165 tons, as a torpedo boat, but her commander, LT. John C. Fremont, described her as "...a compact mass of machinery not meant to keep the sea nor to live in... as five-sevenths of the ship are taken up by machinery and fuel, whilst

SECTION 20

#1732873417430

3498-403: A spurt of bird studies in this area. The study of imprinting behaviour in ducks and geese by Konrad Lorenz and the studies of instinct in herring gulls by Nicolaas Tinbergen led to the establishment of the field of ethology . The study of learning became an area of interest and the study of bird songs has been a model for studies in neuroethology. The study of hormones and physiology in

3657-431: A threat to large capital ships near enemy coasts. The first seagoing vessel designed to launch the self-propelled Whitehead torpedo was the 33-ton HMS  Lightning in 1876. She was armed with two drop collars to launch these weapons; these were replaced in 1879 by a single torpedo tube in the bow. By the 1880s, the type had evolved into small ships of 50–100 tons, fast enough to evade enemy picket boats. At first,

3816-924: A tract on falconry, and introduced the words "incubation" and "oviparous" into the English language. Towards the late 18th century, Mathurin Jacques Brisson (1723–1806) and Comte de Buffon (1707–1788) began new works on birds. Brisson produced a six-volume work Ornithologie in 1760 and Buffon's included nine volumes (volumes 16–24) on birds Histoire naturelle des oiseaux (1770–1785) in his work on science Histoire naturelle générale et particulière (1749–1804). Jacob Temminck sponsored François Le Vaillant [1753–1824] to collect bird specimens in Southern Africa and Le Vaillant's six-volume Histoire naturelle des oiseaux d'Afrique (1796–1808) included many non-African birds. His other bird books produced in collaboration with

3975-462: A transparent top and visible cues such as the direction of sunlight may be controlled using mirrors or the positions of the stars simulated in a planetarium . The entire genome of the domestic fowl ( Gallus gallus ) was sequenced in 2004, and was followed in 2008 by the genome of the zebra finch ( Taeniopygia guttata ). Such whole-genome sequencing projects allow for studies on evolutionary processes involved in speciation . Associations between

4134-404: A turtleback (i.e. rounded) forecastle that was characteristic of early British TBDs. HMS  Daring and HMS  Decoy were both built by Thornycroft , displaced 260 tons (287.8 tons full load), and were 185 feet in length. They were armed with one 12-pounder gun and three 6-pounder guns, with one fixed 18-in torpedo tube in the bow plus two more torpedo tubes on a revolving mount abaft

4293-457: A two-part article in The Auk , noting the tensions between amateurs and professionals, and suggested the possibility that the "vast army of bird lovers and bird watchers could begin providing the data scientists needed to address the fundamental problems of biology." The amateur ornithologist Harold F. Mayfield noted that the field was also funded by non-professionals. He noted that in 1975, 12% of

4452-467: Is another technique that has the advantage of preserving stomach contents and anatomy, although it tends to shrink, making it less reliable for morphometrics. The study of birds in the field was helped enormously by improvements in optics. Photography made it possible to document birds in the field with great accuracy. High-power spotting scopes today allow observers to detect minute morphological differences that were earlier possible only by examination of

4611-447: Is commonplace knowledge to the mere collector, such as that hunting parties often travel more or less in circles. David Lack's studies on population ecology sought to find the processes involved in the regulation of population based on the evolution of optimal clutch sizes. He concluded that population was regulated primarily by density-dependent controls , and also suggested that natural selection produces life-history traits that maximize

4770-612: Is extinct and all extant ostrich races are today restricted to Africa . Other old writings such as the Vedas (1500–800 BC) demonstrate the careful observation of avian life histories and include the earliest reference to the habit of brood parasitism by the Asian koel ( Eudynamys scolopaceus ). Like writing, the early art of China, Japan, Persia, and India also demonstrate knowledge, with examples of scientifically accurate bird illustrations. Aristotle in 350 BC in his History of animals noted

4929-571: Is held by the Cambridge University Cruising Club. Like his mother, he displayed a strong artistic talent and he became known as a painter of wildlife, particularly birds; he had his first exhibition in London in 1933. His wealthy background allowed him to follow his interests in art, wildlife and many sports, including wildfowling , sailing , gliding and ice skating . He represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland at sailing at

Peter Scott - Misplaced Pages Continue

5088-547: Is often regarded as the greatest ornithological work in history. The emergence of ornithology as a scientific discipline began in the 18th century, when Mark Catesby published his two-volume Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands , a landmark work which included 220 hand-painted engravings and was the basis for many of the species Carl Linnaeus described in the 1758 Systema Naturae . Linnaeus' work revolutionised bird taxonomy by assigning every species

5247-576: Is the first such record of North American birds, significantly antedating Audubon. In the early 19th century, Lewis and Clark studied and identified many birds in the western United States. John James Audubon , born in 1785, observed and painted birds in France and later in the Ohio and Mississippi valleys. From 1827 to 1838, Audubon published The Birds of America , which was engraved by Robert Havell Sr. and his son Robert Havell Jr. Containing 435 engravings, it

5406-569: The Dryad class – all built for the Royal Navy during the 1880s and the 1890s. In the 1880s, the Chilean Navy ordered the construction of two Almirante Lynch class torpedo gunboats from the British shipyard Laird Brothers, which specialized in the construction of this type of vessel. The novelty is that one of these Almirante Lynch -class torpedo boats managed to sink the ironclad Blanco Encalada with

5565-465: The Durandal -class torpilleur d'escadre . The United States commissioned its first TBD, USS  Bainbridge , Destroyer No. 1, in 1902, and by 1906, 16 destroyers were in service with the US Navy. Torpedo boat destroyer designs continued to evolve around the turn of the 20th century in several key ways. The first was the introduction of the steam turbine . The spectacular unauthorized demonstration of

5724-466: The Battle of Jutland , which involved pitched small-boat actions between the main fleets, and several foolhardy attacks by unsupported destroyers on capital ships. Jutland also concluded with a messy night action between the German High Seas Fleet and part of the British destroyer screen. The threat evolved by World War I with the development of the submarine , or U-boat . The submarine had

5883-563: The Bulo Burti boubou ( Laniarius liberatus , no longer a valid species) and the Bugun liocichla ( Liocichla bugunorum ), using blood, DNA and feather samples as the holotype material, has now become possible. Other methods of preservation include the storage of specimens in spirit. Such wet specimens have special value in physiological and anatomical study, apart from providing better quality of DNA for molecular studies. Freeze drying of specimens

6042-536: The English Channel . Scott is credited with designing the Western Approaches ship camouflage scheme, which disguised ship superstructures. In July 1940, he managed to get the destroyer HMS Broke , in which he was serving, experimentally camouflaged, differently on the two sides. To starboard, the ship was painted blue-grey all over, but with white in naturally shadowed areas as countershading , following

6201-504: The French , Spanish , Dutch , Danish , and German , use the term " frigate " for their destroyers, which leads to some confusion. The emergence and development of the destroyer was related to the invention of the self-propelled torpedo in the 1860s. A navy now had the potential to destroy a superior enemy battle fleet using steam launches to fire torpedoes. Cheap, fast boats armed with torpedoes called torpedo boats were built and became

6360-624: The Loch Ness Phenomena Investigation Bureau with Conservative MP David James , who had previously been Polar Adviser on the 1948 film Scott of the Antarctic , based on his father's polar expedition. In 1975 Scott proposed the scientific name Nessiteras rhombopteryx for the Loch Ness Monster (based on a blurred underwater photograph of a supposed fin) so that it could be registered as an endangered species. The name

6519-556: The Nature in Art Trust (a role in which his wife Philippa succeeded him). Scott tutored numerous artists including Paul Karslake . From 1973 to 1983, Scott was Chancellor of the University of Birmingham . In 1979, he was awarded an Honorary Degree (Doctor of Science) from the University of Bath . Scott continued with his love of sailing, skippering the 12-metre yacht Sovereign in

Peter Scott - Misplaced Pages Continue

6678-572: The World Wide Fund for Nature , the logo of which he designed. He was a yachting enthusiast from an early age and took up gliding in mid-life. He was part of the UK team for the 1936 Summer Olympics and won a bronze medal in sailing a one-man dinghy . He was knighted in 1973 for his work in conservation of wild animals and was also a recipient of the WWF Gold Medal and the J. Paul Getty Prize . Scott

6837-467: The chicken and poultry techniques. He used a number of traits including behaviour, particularly bathing and dusting, to classify bird groups. William Turner 's Historia Avium ( History of Birds ), published at Cologne in 1544, was an early ornithological work from England. He noted the commonness of kites in English cities where they snatched food out of the hands of children. He included folk beliefs such as those of anglers. Anglers believed that

6996-612: The combined attack on Dieppe ". He was further mentioned in despatches on 28 September 1943 for an action in the English Channel on 26 July 1943. On 1 June 1943, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) "for skill and gallantry in action with enemy light forces" for an action in the English Channel on 15 April 1943 while commanding H.M. Steam Gunboat "Grey Goose". In the London Gazette of 9 November 1943, he

7155-421: The osprey emptied their fishponds and would kill them, mixing the flesh of the osprey into their fish bait. Turner's work reflected the violent times in which he lived, and stands in contrast to later works such as Gilbert White 's 1789 The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne that were written in a tranquil era. In the 17th century, Francis Willughby (1635–1672) and John Ray (1627–1705) created

7314-506: The 1820s and 1830s, with pioneers such as J. Dovaston (who also pioneered in the use of bird feeders), but instruction manuals did not begin to insist on the use of optical aids such as "a first-class telescope" or "field glass" until the 1880s. The rise of field guides for the identification of birds was another major innovation. The early guides such as Thomas Bewick's two-volume guide and William Yarrell's three-volume guide were cumbersome, and mainly focused on identifying specimens in

7473-569: The 1930s as part of Hitler's rearmament program. The Germans were also fond of large destroyers, but while the initial Type 1934 displaced over 3,000 tons, their armament was equal to smaller vessels. This changed from the Type 1936 onwards, which mounted heavy 150 millimetres (5.9 in) guns. German destroyers also used innovative high-pressure steam machinery; while this should have helped their efficiency, it more often resulted in mechanical problems. Once German and Japanese rearmament became clear,

7632-681: The 1936 Summer Olympics , winning a bronze medal in the O-Jolle monotype class. He also participated in the Prince of Wales Cup in 1938 during which he and his crew on the Thunder and Lightning dinghy designed a modified wearable harness (now known as a trapeze ) that helped them win. During the Second World War , Scott served in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve . As a sub-lieutenant, during

7791-732: The 1964 challenge for the America's Cup which was held by the United States. Sovereign suffered a whitewash 4–0 defeat in a one-sided competition where the American boat was of a noticeably faster design. From 1955 to 1969 he was the president of The International Yacht Racing Union (now World Sailing). He was one of the founders of the World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly called the World Wildlife Fund), and designed its panda logo. His pioneering work in conservation also contributed greatly to

7950-454: The 19th century. In 1901, Robert Ridgway wrote in the introduction to The Birds of North and Middle America that: There are two essentially different kinds of ornithology: systematic or scientific, and popular. The former deals with the structure and classification of birds, their synonymies, and technical descriptions. The latter treats of their habits, songs, nesting, and other facts pertaining to their life histories. This early idea that

8109-527: The Birds by Roger Tory Peterson in 1934, to Birds of the West Indies published in 1936 by Dr. James Bond - the same who inspired the amateur ornithologist Ian Fleming in naming his famous literary spy . The interest in birdwatching grew in popularity in many parts of the world, and the possibility for amateurs to contribute to biological studies was soon realized. As early as 1916, Julian Huxley wrote

SECTION 50

#1732873417430

8268-531: The British and American navies consciously focused on building destroyers that were smaller, but more numerous than those used by other nations. The British built a series of destroyers (the A class to I class ), which were about 1,400 tons standard displacement, and had four 4.7-inch (119 mm) guns and eight torpedo tubes; the American Benson class of 1938 was similar in size, but carried five 5-inch (127 mm) guns and ten torpedo tubes. Realizing

8427-596: The Elder described birds, among other creatures, in his Historia Naturalis . The earliest record of falconry comes from the reign of Sargon II (722–705 BC) in Assyria . Falconry is thought to have made its entry to Europe only after AD 400, brought in from the east after invasions by the Huns and Alans . Starting from the eighth century, numerous Arabic works on the subject and general ornithology were written, as well as translations of

8586-574: The Indian ruler of Jamnagar. Ornithologist While early ornithology was principally concerned with descriptions and distributions of species, ornithologists today seek answers to very specific questions, often using birds as models to test hypotheses or predictions based on theories. Most modern biological theories apply across life forms, and the number of scientists who identify themselves as "ornithologists" has therefore declined. A wide range of tools and techniques are used in ornithology, both inside

8745-533: The Mediterranean, and Pierre Belon , who described the fish and birds that he had seen in France and the Levant. Belon's Book of Birds (1555) is a folio volume with descriptions of some 200 species. His comparison of the skeleton of humans and birds is considered as a landmark in comparative anatomy . Volcher Coiter (1534–1576), a Dutch anatomist, made detailed studies of the internal structures of birds and produced

8904-472: The Royal Navy's first Havock class of TBDs, up to the First World War with 300-foot (91 m) long destroyers displacing 1,000 tons was not unusual. Construction remained focused on putting the biggest possible engines into a small hull, though, resulting in a somewhat flimsy construction. Often, hulls were built of high-tensile steel only 1 ⁄ 8  in (3.2 mm) thick. By 1910,

9063-683: The Russian fleet in port, firing a total of 18 torpedoes, but only two Russian battleships, Tsesarevich and Retvizan , and a protected cruiser , Pallada , were seriously damaged due to the proper deployment of torpedo nets . Tsesarevich , the Russian flagship, had her nets deployed, with at least four enemy torpedoes "hung up" in them, and other warships were similarly saved from further damage by their nets. While capital-ship engagements were scarce in World War I, destroyer units engaged almost continually in raiding and patrol actions. The first shot of

9222-461: The Second World War, Polish ( kontrtorpedowiec , now obsolete). Once destroyers became more than just catchers guarding an anchorage, they were recognized to be also ideal to take over the offensive role of torpedo boats themselves, so they were also fitted with torpedo tubes in addition to their antitorpedo-boat guns. At that time, and even into World War I, the only function of destroyers

9381-511: The USN with the Paulding class of 1909. In spite of all this variety, destroyers adopted a largely similar pattern. The hull was long and narrow, with a relatively shallow draft. The bow was either raised in a forecastle or covered under a turtleback; underneath this were the crew spaces, extending 1 ⁄ 4 to 1 ⁄ 3 the way along the hull. Aft of the crew spaces was as much engine space as

9540-486: The Victorian era observed the variations in bird forms and habits across geographic regions, noting local specialization and variation in widespread species. The collections of museums and private collectors grew with contributions from various parts of the world. The naming of species with binomials and the organization of birds into groups based on their similarities became the main work of museum specialists. The variations in widespread birds across geographical regions caused

9699-492: The artist Barraband are considered among the most valuable illustrated guides ever produced. Louis Pierre Vieillot (1748–1831) spent 10 years studying North American birds and wrote the Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de l'Amerique septentrionale (1807–1808?). Vieillot pioneered in the use of life histories and habits in classification. Alexander Wilson composed a nine-volume work, American Ornithology , published 1808-1814, which

SECTION 60

#1732873417430

9858-526: The battle fleet, and as they inherently became larger, they became officially designated "torpedo-boat destroyers", and by the First World War were largely known as "destroyers" in English. The antitorpedo boat origin of this type of ship is retained in its name in other languages, including French ( contre-torpilleur ), Italian ( cacciatorpediniere ), Portuguese ( contratorpedeiro ), Czech ( torpédoborec ), Greek ( antitorpiliko , αντιτορπιλικό ), Dutch ( torpedobootjager ) and, up until

10017-440: The behaviour, with many names being onomatopoeic , and still in use. Traditional knowledge may also involve the use of birds in folk medicine and knowledge of these practices are passed on through oral traditions (see ethno-ornithology ). Hunting of wild birds as well as their domestication would have required considerable knowledge of their habits. Poultry farming and falconry were practised from early times in many parts of

10176-431: The boundaries of bird territories. Studies of bird migration including aspects of navigation, orientation, and physiology are often studied using captive birds in special cages that record their activities. The Emlen funnel , for instance, makes use of a cage with an inkpad at the centre and a conical floor where the ink marks can be counted to identify the direction in which the bird attempts to fly. The funnel can have

10335-427: The categories of those that are applicable to specimens and those that are used in the field, but the classification is rough and many analysis techniques are usable both in the laboratory and field or may require a combination of field and laboratory techniques. The earliest approaches to modern bird study involved the collection of eggs, a practice known as oology . While collecting became a pastime for many amateurs,

10494-449: The class gave the guns high-angle turrets for antiaircraft warfare, and the 24-inch (61 cm), oxygen-fueled Long Lance Type 93 torpedo . The later Hatsuharu class of 1931 further improved the torpedo armament by storing its reload torpedoes close at hand in the superstructure, allowing reloading within 15 minutes. Most other nations replied with similar larger ships. The US Porter class adopted twin 5-inch (127 mm) guns, and

10653-528: The control of behaviour has also been aided by bird models. These have helped in finding the proximate causes of circadian and seasonal cycles. Studies on migration have attempted to answer questions on the evolution of migration, orientation, and navigation. The growth of genetics and the rise of molecular biology led to the application of the gene-centered view of evolution to explain avian phenomena. Studies on kinship and altruism, such as helpers , became of particular interest. The idea of inclusive fitness

10812-475: The cooperation of people and organizations in different countries. Wild birds impact many human activities, while domesticated birds are important sources of eggs, meat, feathers, and other products. Applied and economic ornithology aim to reduce the ill effects of problem birds and enhance gains from beneficial species. Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in

10971-412: The descriptions of bird species. These skin collections have been used in more recent times for studies on molecular phylogenetics by the extraction of ancient DNA . The importance of type specimens in the description of species make skin collections a vital resource for systematic ornithology. However, with the rise of molecular techniques, establishing the taxonomic status of new discoveries, such as

11130-465: The design submitted by the shipyard of James and George Thomson of Clydebank . Destructor ( Destroyer in Spanish) was laid down at the end of the year, launched in 1886, and commissioned in 1887. Some authors considered her as the first destroyer ever built. She displaced 348 tons, and was the first warship equipped with twin triple-expansion engines generating 3,784 ihp (2,822 kW), for

11289-442: The destroyer". The German aviso Greif , launched in 1886, was designed as a " Torpedojäger " (torpedo hunter), intended to screen the fleet against attacks by torpedo boats. The ship was significantly larger than torpedo boats of the period, displacing some 2,266 t (2,230 long tons), with an armament of 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns and 3.7 cm (1.5 in) Hotchkiss revolver cannon . The first vessel designed for

11448-478: The development of the discipline of landscape ecology . John Hurrell Crook studied the behaviour of weaverbirds and demonstrated the links between ecological conditions, behaviour, and social systems. Principles from economics were introduced to the study of biology by Jerram L. Brown in his work on explaining territorial behaviour. This led to more studies of behaviour that made use of cost-benefit analyses . The rising interest in sociobiology also led to

11607-559: The distribution patterns of birds. For Darwin, the problem was how species arose from a common ancestor, but he did not attempt to find rules for delineation of species. The species problem was tackled by the ornithologist Ernst Mayr , who was able to demonstrate that geographical isolation and the accumulation of genetic differences led to the splitting of species . Early ornithologists were preoccupied with matters of species identification. Only systematics counted as true science and field studies were considered inferior through much of

11766-436: The editorial policy of the journal, leading both to a unification of field and laboratory studies and a shift of research from museums to universities. Ornithology in the United States continued to be dominated by museum studies of morphological variations, species identities, and geographic distributions, until it was influenced by Stresemann's student Ernst Mayr . In Britain, some of the earliest ornithological works that used

11925-492: The environment. Camera traps have been found to be a useful tool for the detection and documentation of elusive species, nest predators and in the quantitative analysis of frugivory, seed dispersal and behaviour. Many aspects of bird biology are difficult to study in the field. These include the study of behavioural and physiological changes that require a long duration of access to the bird. Nondestructive samples of blood or feathers taken during field studies may be studied in

12084-458: The explicit purpose of hunting and destroying torpedo boats was the torpedo gunboat . Essentially very small cruisers, torpedo gunboats were equipped with torpedo tubes and an adequate gun armament, intended for hunting down smaller enemy boats. By the end of the 1890s, torpedo gunboats were made obsolete by their more successful contemporaries, the TBDs, which were much faster. The first example of this

12243-511: The expression of Bmp4 have been shown to be associated with changes in the growth and shape of the beak. The chicken has long been a model organism for studying vertebrate developmental biology . As the embryo is readily accessible, its development can be easily followed (unlike mice ). This also allows the use of electroporation for studying the effect of adding or silencing a gene. Other tools for perturbing their genetic makeup are chicken embryonic stem cells and viral vectors . With

12402-508: The expression of genes and behaviour may be studied using candidate genes. Variations in the exploratory behaviour of great tits ( Parus major ) have been found to be linked with a gene orthologous to the human gene DRD4 (Dopamine receptor D4) which is known to be associated with novelty-seeking behaviour. The role of gene expression in developmental differences and morphological variations have been studied in Darwin's finches . The difference in

12561-578: The failed evacuation of the 51st Highland Division he was the British naval officer sent ashore at Saint-Valery-en-Caux in the early hours of 11 June 1940 to evacuate some of the wounded. This was the last evacuation of British troops from the port area of St Valery that was not disrupted by enemy fire. Then he served in destroyers in the North Atlantic but later moved to commanding the First (and only) Squadron of Steam Gun Boats against German E-boats in

12720-545: The first American units to be dispatched upon the American entry to the war, and a squadron of Japanese destroyers even joined Allied patrols in the Mediterranean. Patrol duty was far from safe; of the 67 British destroyers lost in the war, collisions accounted for 18, while 12 were wrecked. At the end of the war, the state-of-the-art was represented by the British W class . The trend during World War I had been towards larger destroyers with heavier armaments. A number of opportunities to fire at capital ships had been missed during

12879-457: The first major system of bird classification that was based on function and morphology rather than on form or behaviour. Willughby's Ornithologiae libri tres (1676) completed by John Ray is sometimes considered to mark the beginning of scientific ornithology. Ray also worked on Ornithologia , which was published posthumously in 1713 as Synopsis methodica avium et piscium . The earliest list of British birds, Pinax Rerum Naturalium Britannicarum ,

13038-439: The fitness of individuals. Others, such as Wynne-Edwards , interpreted population regulation as a mechanism that aided the "species" rather than individuals . This led to widespread and sometimes bitter debate on what constituted the "unit of selection". Lack also pioneered the use of many new tools for ornithological research, including the idea of using radar to study bird migration. Birds were also widely used in studies of

13197-713: The fleet they were supposed to protect. In 1892, the Third Sea Lord , Rear Admiral John "Jacky" Fisher ordered the development of a new type of ships equipped with the then-novel water-tube boilers and quick-firing small-calibre guns. Six ships to the specifications circulated by the admiralty were ordered initially, comprising three different designs each produced by a different shipbuilder: HMS  Daring and HMS  Decoy from John I. Thornycroft & Company , HMS  Havock and HMS  Hornet from Yarrows , and HMS  Ferret and HMS  Lynx from Laird, Son & Company . These ships all featured

13356-487: The formation of huge collections of bird skins in museums in Europe and North America. Many private collections were also formed. These became references for comparison of species, and the ornithologists at these museums were able to compare species from different locations, often places that they themselves never visited. Morphometrics of these skins, particularly the lengths of the tarsus, bill, tail, and wing became important in

13515-538: The greatest firepower of all destroyers in the world throughout the first half of the 1920s. This was largely because, between their commissioning in 1920 and 1926, they retained the armament that they had while serving in the Italian Navy as scout cruisers ( esploratori ). When initially ordered by Romania in 1913, the Romanian specifications envisioned three 120 mm guns, a caliber which would eventually be adopted as

13674-576: The habit of bird migration , moulting, egg laying, and lifespans, as well as compiling a list of 170 different bird species. However, he also introduced and propagated several myths, such as the idea that swallows hibernated in winter, although he noted that cranes migrated from the steppes of Scythia to the marshes at the headwaters of the Nile . The idea of swallow hibernation became so well established that even as late as in 1878, Elliott Coues could list as many as 182 contemporary publications dealing with

13833-471: The hand. The earliest of the new generation of field guides was prepared by Florence Merriam , sister of Clinton Hart Merriam , the mammalogist. This was published in 1887 in a series Hints to Audubon Workers: Fifty Birds and How to Know Them in Grinnell's Audubon Magazine . These were followed by new field guides, from the pioneering illustrated handbooks of Frank Chapman to the classic Field Guide to

13992-504: The hibernation of swallows and little published evidence to contradict the theory. Similar misconceptions existed regarding the breeding of barnacle geese . Their nests had not been seen, and they were believed to grow by transformations of goose barnacles , an idea that became prevalent from around the 11th century and noted by Bishop Giraldus Cambrensis ( Gerald of Wales ) in Topographia Hiberniae (1187). Around 77 AD, Pliny

14151-400: The ideas of Abbott Handerson Thayer from the First World War. To port, the ship was painted in "bright pale colours" to combine some disruption of shape with the ability to fade out during the night, again with shadowed areas painted white. However, he later wrote that compromise was fatal to camouflage, and that invisibility at night (by painting ships in white or other pale colours) had to be

14310-462: The introduction of smaller and cheaper specialized antisubmarine warships called corvettes and frigates by the Royal Navy and destroyer escorts by the USN. A similar programme was belatedly started by the Japanese (see Matsu -class destroyer). These ships had the size and displacement of the original TBDs from which the contemporary destroyer had evolved. Some conventional destroyers completed in

14469-439: The introduction of trinomial names. The search for patterns in the variations of birds was attempted by many. Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling (1775–1854), his student Johann Baptist von Spix (1781–1826), and several others believed that a hidden and innate mathematical order existed in the forms of birds. They believed that a "natural" classification was available and superior to "artificial" ones. A particularly popular idea

14628-476: The labels associated with these early egg collections made them unreliable for the serious study of bird breeding. To preserve eggs, a tiny hole was made and the contents extracted. This technique became standard with the invention of the blow drill around 1830. Egg collection is no longer popular; however, historic museum collections have been of value in determining the effects of pesticides such as DDT on physiology. Museum bird collections continue to act as

14787-530: The laboratory and out in the field, and innovations are constantly made. Most biologists who recognise themselves as "ornithologists" study specific biology research areas, such as anatomy , physiology , taxonomy , ecology , or behaviour . The word "ornithology" comes from the late 16th-century Latin ornithologia meaning "bird science" from the Greek ὄρνις ornis ("bird") and λόγος logos ("theory, science, thought"). The history of ornithology largely reflects

14946-510: The laboratory. For instance, the variation in the ratios of stable hydrogen isotopes across latitudes makes establishing the origins of migrant birds possible using mass spectrometric analysis of feather samples. These techniques can be used in combination with other techniques such as ringing. The first attenuated vaccine developed by Louis Pasteur , for fowl cholera, was tested on poultry in 1878. Anti-malarials were tested on birds which harbour avian-malarias. Poultry continues to be used as

15105-654: The late 1940s and 1950s were built on wartime experience. These vessels were significantly larger than wartime ships and had fully automatic main guns, unit machinery, radar, sonar, and antisubmarine weapons, such as the squid mortar . Examples include the British Daring -class , US Forrest Sherman -class , and the Soviet Kotlin -class destroyers. Some World War II–vintage ships were modernized for antisubmarine warfare, and to extend their service lives, to avoid having to build (expensive) brand-new ships. Examples include

15264-641: The mouth of the River Nene and follows the old sea bank along The Wash , from Scott's lighthouse near Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire to the ferry crossing at King's Lynn . The Sir Peter Scott National Park is located in central Jamnagar , in Gujarat, India. Jamnagar also has a Sir Peter Scott Bird Hospital . These institutions in Jamnagar were founded as a result of the friendship between Peter Scott and Jam Sahib ,

15423-593: The need for heavier gun armament, the British built the Tribal class of 1936 (sometimes called Afridi after one of two lead ships). These ships displaced 1,850 tons and were armed with eight 4.7-inch (119 mm) guns in four twin turrets and four torpedo tubes. These were followed by the J-class and L-class destroyers, with six 4.7-inch (119 mm) guns in twin turrets and eight torpedo tubes. Antisubmarine sensors included sonar (or ASDIC), although training in their use

15582-454: The niche hypothesis and Georgii Gause 's competitive exclusion principle. Work on resource partitioning and the structuring of bird communities through competition were made by Robert MacArthur . Patterns of biodiversity also became a topic of interest. Work on the relationship of the number of species to area and its application in the study of island biogeography was pioneered by E. O. Wilson and Robert MacArthur . These studies led to

15741-410: The novelist Elizabeth Jane Howard in 1942 and had a daughter, Nicola, born a year later. Howard left Scott in 1946 and they were divorced in 1951. In 1951, Scott married his assistant, Philippa Talbot-Ponsonby , while on an expedition to Iceland in search of the breeding grounds of the pink-footed goose . A daughter, Dafila, was born later in the same year ( dafila is the old scientific name for

15900-463: The oldest indications of an interest in birds. Birds were perhaps important as food sources, and bones of as many as 80 species have been found in excavations of early Stone Age settlements. Waterbird and seabird remains have also been found in shell mounds on the island of Oronsay off the coast of Scotland . Cultures around the world have rich vocabularies related to birds. Traditional bird names are often based on detailed knowledge of

16059-498: The order within the crow family. Where he failed to find five genera, he left a blank insisting that a new genus would be found to fill these gaps. These ideas were replaced by more complex "maps" of affinities in works by Hugh Edwin Strickland and Alfred Russel Wallace . A major advance was made by Max Fürbringer in 1888, who established a comprehensive phylogeny of birds based on anatomy, morphology, distribution, and biology. This

16218-554: The organisation with which he was ever afterwards closely associated, the Severn Wildfowl Trust (now the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust ) with its headquarters at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire. There, through a captive breeding programme, he saved the nene or Hawaiian goose from extinction in the 1950s. In the years that followed, he led ornithological expeditions worldwide, and became a television personality, popularising

16377-610: The papers in American ornithology journals were written by persons who were not employed in biology related work. Organizations were started in many countries, and these grew rapidly in membership, most notable among them being the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) in Britain and the Audubon Society in the US, which started in 1885. Both these organizations were started with

16536-565: The potential to hide from gunfire and close underwater to fire torpedoes. Early-war destroyers had the speed and armament to intercept submarines before they submerged, either by gunfire or by ramming. Destroyers also had a shallow enough draft that they were difficult to hit with torpedoes. The desire to attack submarines under water led to rapid destroyer evolution during the war. They were quickly equipped with strengthened bows for ramming, and depth charges and hydrophones for identifying submarine targets. The first submarine casualty credited to

16695-500: The powers of the strongest men in the long run. A destroyer is always more uncomfortable than the others, and rain, snow, and sea-water combine to make them damp; in fact, in bad weather, there is not a dry spot where one can rest for a moment." The Japanese destroyer-commander finished with, "Yesterday, I looked at myself in a mirror for a long time; I was disagreeably surprised to see my face thin, full of wrinkles, and as old as though I were 50. My clothes (uniform) cover nothing but

16854-468: The primary objective of conservation. The RSPB, born in 1889, grew from a small Croydon -based group of women, including Eliza Phillips , Etta Lemon , Catherine Hall and Hannah Poland . Calling themselves the "Fur, Fin, and Feather Folk", the group met regularly and took a pledge "to refrain from wearing the feathers of any birds not killed for the purpose of food, the ostrich only exempted." The organization did not allow men as members initially, avenging

17013-505: The relative lengths of wing feathers in warblers) are vital in establishing identity. Captured birds are often marked for future recognition. Rings or bands provide long-lasting identification, but require capture for the information on them to be read. Field-identifiable marks such as coloured bands, wing tags, or dyes enable short-term studies where individual identification is required. Mark and recapture techniques make demographic studies possible. Ringing has traditionally been used in

17172-579: The remaining two-sevenths, fore and aft, are the crew's quarters; officers forward and the men placed aft. And even in those spaces are placed anchor engines, steering engines, steam pipes, etc. rendering them unbearably hot in tropical regions." The TBD's first major use in combat came during the Japanese surprise attack on the Russian fleet anchored in Port Arthur at the opening of the Russo-Japanese War on 8 February 1904. Three destroyer divisions attacked

17331-413: The second of a three-part BBC Two series, The Way We Went Wild , about television wildlife presenters and were described as being largely responsible for the way that the British and much of the world view wildlife. Scott's life was also the subject of a BBC Four documentary called Peter Scott – A Passion for Nature produced in 2006 by Available Light Productions (Bristol). In 1962, he co-founded

17490-549: The series, "Nature Parliament". In the early 1950s, his designs were used on a range of tableware, "Wild Geese", by Midwinter Pottery . Scott took up gliding in 1956 and became a British champion in 1963. He was chairman of the British Gliding Association (BGA) for two years from 1968 and was president of the Bristol & Gloucestershire Gliding Club. He was responsible for involving Prince Philip in gliding. He

17649-767: The shift in policy of the International Whaling Commission and signing of the Antarctic Treaty , the latter inspired by his visit to his father's base on Ross Island in Antarctica. Scott was a long-time vice-president of the British Naturalists' Association , whose Peter Scott Memorial Award was instituted after his death, to commemorate his achievements. He died of a heart attack on 29 August 1989 in Bristol , at age 79. Scott narrated Wild Wings ,

17808-454: The ship at least had the armament to deal with them. Another forerunner of the torpedo-boat destroyer (TBD) was the Japanese torpedo boat Kotaka ( Falcon ), built in 1885. Designed to Japanese specifications and ordered from the Isle of Dogs, London Yarrow shipyard in 1885, she was transported in parts to Japan, where she was assembled and launched in 1887. The 165-foot (50 m) long vessel

17967-651: The sole objective. By May 1941, all ships in the Western Approaches (the North Atlantic) were ordered to be painted in Scott's camouflage scheme. The scheme was said to be so effective that several British ships including HMS Broke collided with each other. The effectiveness of Scott's and Thayer's ideas was demonstrated experimentally by the Leamington Camouflage Centre in 1941. Under a cloudy overcast sky,

18126-1032: The specimen "in the hand". The capture and marking of birds enable detailed studies of life history. Techniques for capturing birds are varied and include the use of bird liming for perching birds, mist nets for woodland birds, cannon netting for open-area flocking birds, the bal-chatri trap for raptors, decoys and funnel traps for water birds. The bird in the hand may be examined and measurements can be made, including standard lengths and weights. Feather moult and skull ossification provide indications of age and health. Sex can be determined by examination of anatomy in some sexually nondimorphic species. Blood samples may be drawn to determine hormonal conditions in studies of physiology, identify DNA markers for studying genetics and kinship in studies of breeding biology and phylogeography. Blood may also be used to identify pathogens and arthropod-borne viruses . Ectoparasites may be collected for studies of coevolution and zoonoses . In many cryptic species, measurements (such as

18285-487: The standard for future Italian destroyers. Armed with three 152 mm and four 76 mm guns after being completed as scout cruisers, the two warships were officially re-rated as destroyers by the Romanian Navy . The two Romanian warships were thus the destroyers with the greatest firepower in the world throughout much of the interwar period. As of 1939, when the Second World War started, their artillery, although changed,

18444-538: The start of the 21st century, destroyers are the global standard for surface-combatant ships, with only two nations (the United States and Russia ) officially operating the heavier cruisers , with no battleships or true battlecruisers remaining. Modern guided-missile destroyers are equivalent in tonnage but vastly superior in firepower to cruisers of the World War II era, and are capable of carrying nuclear-tipped cruise missiles . At 510 feet (160 m) long,

18603-411: The steam-driven displacement (that is, not hydroplaning ) torpedo boat had become redundant as a separate type. Germany, nevertheless, continued to build such boats until the end of World War I, although these were effectively small coastal destroyers. In fact, Germany never distinguished between the two types, giving them pennant numbers in the same series and never giving names to destroyers. Ultimately,

18762-570: The study of wildfowl and wetlands . His BBC natural history series, Look , ran from 1955 to 1969 and made him a household name. It included the first BBC natural history film to be shown in colour, The Private Life of the Kingfisher (1968), which he narrated. He wrote and illustrated several books on the subject, including his autobiography, The Eye of the Wind (1961). In the 1950s, he also appeared regularly on BBC radio 's Children's Hour , in

18921-600: The study of living birds was merely recreation held sway until ecological theories became the predominant focus of ornithological studies. The study of birds in their habitats was particularly advanced in Germany with bird ringing stations established as early as 1903. By the 1920s, the Journal für Ornithologie included many papers on the behaviour, ecology, anatomy, and physiology, many written by Erwin Stresemann . Stresemann changed

19080-499: The study of migration. In recent times, satellite transmitters provide the ability to track migrating birds in near-real time. Techniques for estimating population density include point counts , transects , and territory mapping. Observations are made in the field using carefully designed protocols and the data may be analysed to estimate bird diversity, relative abundance, or absolute population densities. These methods may be used repeatedly over large timespans to monitor changes in

19239-563: The subsequent Mahan class and Gridley classes (the latter of 1934) increased the number of torpedo tubes to 12 and 16, respectively. In the Mediterranean, the Italian Navy's building of very fast light cruisers of the Condottieri class prompted the French to produce exceptional destroyer designs. The French had long been keen on large destroyers, with their Chacal class of 1922 displacing over 2,000 tons and carrying 130 mm guns;

19398-429: The technology of the time would allow - several boilers and engines or turbines. Above deck, one or more quick-firing guns were mounted in the bows, in front of the bridge; several more were mounted amidships and astern. Two tube mountings (later on, multiple mountings) were generally found amidships. Between 1892 and 1914, destroyers became markedly larger; initially 275 tons with a length of 165 feet (50 m) for

19557-505: The term "destroyer" had been used interchangeably with "TBD" and "torpedo boat destroyer" by navies since 1892, the term "torpedo boat destroyer" had been generally shortened to simply "destroyer" by nearly all navies by the First World War . Before World War II , destroyers were light vessels with little endurance for unattended ocean operations; typically, a number of destroyers and a single destroyer tender operated together. After

19716-561: The term "torpedo boat" came to be attached to a quite different vessel – the very fast-hydroplaning, motor-driven motor torpedo boat . Navies originally built TBDrs to protect against torpedo boats, but admirals soon appreciated the flexibility of the fast, multipurpose vessels that resulted. Vice-Admiral Sir Baldwin Walker laid down destroyer duties for the Royal Navy: Early destroyers were extremely cramped places to live, being "without

19875-481: The tests showed that a white ship could approach six miles (9.6 km) closer than a black-painted ship before being seen. On 8 July 1941, it was announced that Scott had been mentioned in despatches "for good services in rescuing survivors from a burning Vessel" in April 1941 while serving on HMS Broke . On 2 October 1942, it was announced that he had again been mentioned in despatches "for gallantry, daring and skill in

20034-545: The threat had evolved once again. Submarines were more effective, and aircraft had become important weapons of naval warfare; once again the early-war fleet destroyers were ill-equipped for combating these new targets. They were fitted with new light antiaircraft guns, radar , and forward-launched ASW weapons, in addition to their existing dual-purpose guns , depth charges , and torpedoes. Increasing size allowed improved internal arrangement of propulsion machinery with compartmentation , so ships were less likely to be sunk by

20193-427: The threat of a torpedo-boat attack to a battle fleet was considered to exist only when at anchor, but as faster and longer-range torpedo boats and torpedoes were developed, the threat extended to cruising at sea. In response to this new threat, more heavily gunned picket boats called "catchers" were built, which were used to escort the battle fleet at sea. They needed significant seaworthiness and endurance to operate with

20352-457: The trends in the history of biology , as well as many other scientific disciplines, including ecology , anatomy , physiology , paleontology , and more recently, molecular biology. Trends include the move from mere descriptions to the identification of patterns, thus towards elucidating the processes that produce these patterns. Humans have had an observational relationship with birds since prehistory , with some stone-age drawings being amongst

20511-449: The turbine-powered Turbinia at the 1897 Spithead Navy Review, which, significantly, was of torpedo-boat size, prompted the Royal Navy to order a prototype turbine-powered destroyer, HMS  Viper of 1899. This was the first turbine warship of any kind, and achieved a remarkable 34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph) on sea trials. By 1910, the turbine had been widely adopted by all navies for their faster ships. The second development

20670-467: The two funnels. Later, the bow torpedo tube was removed and two more 6-pounder guns added, instead. They produced 4,200 hp from a pair of Thornycroft water-tube boilers, giving them a top speed of 27 knots, giving the range and speed to travel effectively with a battle fleet. In common with subsequent early Thornycroft boats, they had sloping sterns and double rudders. The French navy, an extensive user of torpedo boats, built its first TBD in 1899, with

20829-646: The two shared many views. As a student he was also an active member of the Cambridge University Cruising Club , sailing against Oxford in the 1929 and 1930 Varsity Matches. He studied art at the State Academy in Munich for a year followed by studies at the Royal Academy Schools, London. One of the few non-wildlife paintings that he produced during his career, 'Dinghies Racing on Lake Ontario',

20988-587: The war at sea was fired on 5 August 1914 by HMS  Lance , one of the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla , in an engagement with the German auxiliary minelayer Königin Luise . Destroyers were involved in the skirmishes that prompted the Battle of Heligoland Bight , and filled a range of roles in the Battle of Gallipoli , acting as troop transports and as fire-support vessels, as well as their fleet-screening role. Over 80 British destroyers and 60 German torpedo boats took part in

21147-401: The war, because destroyers had expended all their torpedoes in an initial salvo. The British V and W classes of the late war had sought to address this by mounting six torpedo tubes in two triple mounts, instead of the four or two on earlier models. The V and W classes set the standard of destroyer building well into the 1920s. Two Romanian destroyers Mărăști and Mărășești , though, had

21306-533: The war, destroyers grew in size. The American Allen M. Sumner -class destroyers had a displacement of 2,200 tons, while the Arleigh Burke class has a displacement of up to 9,600 tons, a difference of nearly 340%. Moreover, the advent of guided missiles allowed destroyers to take on the surface-combatant roles previously filled by battleships and cruisers. This resulted in larger and more powerful guided missile destroyers more capable of independent operation. At

21465-1044: The widespread interest in birds, use of a large number of people to work on collaborative ornithological projects that cover large geographic scales has been possible. These citizen science projects include nationwide projects such as the Christmas Bird Count , Backyard Bird Count, the North American Breeding Bird Survey , the Canadian EPOQ or regional projects such as the Asian Waterfowl Census and Spring Alive in Europe. These projects help to identify distributions of birds, their population densities and changes over time, arrival and departure dates of migration, breeding seasonality, and even population genetics. The results of many of these projects are published as bird atlases . Studies of migration using bird ringing or colour marking often involve

21624-463: The word ecology appeared in 1915. The Ibis , however, resisted the introduction of these new methods of study, and no paper on ecology appeared until 1943. The work of David Lack on population ecology was pioneering. Newer quantitative approaches were introduced for the study of ecology and behaviour, and this was not readily accepted. For instance, Claud Ticehurst wrote: Sometimes it seems that elaborate plans and statistics are made to prove what

21783-562: The works of ancient writers from Greek and Syriac . In the 12th and 13th centuries, crusades and conquest had subjugated Islamic territories in southern Italy, central Spain, and the Levant under European rule, and for the first time translations into Latin of the great works of Arabic and Greek scholars were made with the help of Jewish and Muslim scholars, especially in Toledo , which had fallen into Christian hands in 1085 and whose libraries had escaped destruction. Michael Scotus from Scotland made

21942-568: The world. Artificial incubation of poultry was practised in China around 246 BC and around at least 400 BC in Egypt. The Egyptians also made use of birds in their hieroglyphic scripts, many of which, though stylized, are still identifiable to species. Early written records provide valuable information on the past distributions of species. For instance, Xenophon records the abundance of the ostrich in Assyria (Anabasis, i. 5); this subspecies from Asia Minor

22101-486: Was HMS  Rattlesnake , designed by Nathaniel Barnaby in 1885, and commissioned in response to the Russian War scare . The gunboat was armed with torpedoes and designed for hunting and destroying smaller torpedo boats . Exactly 200 feet (61 m) long and 23 feet (7.0 m) in beam, she displaced 550 tons. Built of steel, Rattlesnake was unarmoured with the exception of a 3 ⁄ 4 -inch protective deck. She

22260-446: Was also due in part to colonialism . At 100 years later, in 1959, R. E. Moreau noted that ornithology in this period was preoccupied with the geographical distributions of various species of birds. No doubt the preoccupation with widely extended geographical ornithology, was fostered by the immensity of the areas over which British rule or influence stretched during the 19th century and for some time afterwards. The bird collectors of

22419-554: Was armed with a single 4-inch/25-pounder breech-loading gun , six 3-pounder QF guns and four 14-inch (360 mm) torpedo tubes, arranged with two fixed tubes at the bow and a set of torpedo-dropping carriages on either side. Four torpedo reloads were carried. A number of torpedo gunboat classes followed, including the Grasshopper class, the Sharpshooter class , the Alarm class , and

22578-452: Was armed with four 1-pounder (37 mm) quick-firing guns and six torpedo tubes, reached 19 knots (35 km/h), and at 203 tons, was the largest torpedo boat built to date. In her trials in 1889, Kotaka demonstrated that she could exceed the role of coastal defense, and was capable of accompanying larger warships on the high seas. The Yarrow shipyards, builder of the parts for Kotaka , "considered Japan to have effectively invented

22737-622: Was awarded a Bar to the DSC for actions in the English Channel on the 4th and 27 September 1943 while commanding the First SGB Flotilla. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Military Division (MBE) in the 1942 Birthday Honours . Scott stood as a Conservative in the 1945 general election in Wembley North and narrowly failed to be elected. In 1946, he founded

22896-455: Was based on the Ancient Greek for "monster of Ness with diamond-shaped fin", but it was later pointed out by The Daily Telegraph to be an anagram of "Monster hoax by Sir Peter S". Robert H. Rines , who took two supposed pictures of the monster in the 1970s, responded by pointing out that the letters could also be read as an anagram for, "Yes, both pix are monsters, R." Scott married

23055-463: Was born in London at 174, Buckingham Palace Road , the only child of Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott and his wife, Kathleen ( née Edith Agnes Kathleen Bruce), a sculptor. He was only two years old when his father died. Robert Scott, in a last letter to his wife, advised her to "make the boy interested in natural history if you can; it is better than games." He was named after Sir Clements Markham , mentor of Scott's polar expeditions, and

23214-598: Was celebrated in a major BBC Natural World documentary, produced by Andrew Cooper and narrated by Sir David Attenborough. Filmed across three continents from Hawaii to the Russian arctic, In the Eye of the Wind was the BBC Natural History Unit 's tribute to Scott and the organisation he founded, the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust, on its 50th anniversary. In June 2004, Scott and Sir David Attenborough were jointly profiled in

23373-400: Was developed further by Hans Gadow and others. The Galapagos finches were especially influential in the development of Charles Darwin 's theory of evolution. His contemporary Alfred Russel Wallace also noted these variations and the geographical separations between different forms leading to the study of biogeography . Wallace was influenced by the work of Philip Lutley Sclater on

23532-462: Was indifferent. Antisubmarine weapons changed little, and ahead-throwing weapons, a need recognized in World War I, had made no progress. During the 1920s and 1930s, destroyers were often deployed to areas of diplomatic tension or humanitarian disaster. British and American destroyers were common on the Chinese coast and rivers, even supplying landing parties to protect colonial interests. By World War II,

23691-684: Was involved in establishing Gaetz Lakes bird sanctuary. In the United States, the Breeding Bird Surveys , conducted by the United States Geological Survey , have also produced atlases with information on breeding densities and changes in the density and distribution over time. Other volunteer collaborative ornithology projects were subsequently established in other parts of the world. The tools and techniques of ornithology are varied, and new inventions and approaches are quickly incorporated. The techniques may be broadly dealt under

23850-579: Was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II during a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on 27 February 1973. In the 1987 Birthday Honours , he was appointed to the Order of the Companions of Honour as a Member (CH) "for services to conservation". In 1987 he was also elected Fellow of the Royal Society . The fish Scotts' wrasse Cirrhilabrus scottorum was named after Peter and Philippa Scott for their “great contribution in nature conservation". The Peter Scott Walk passes

24009-488: Was part of Ibn Sīnā's massive Kitāb al-Šifāʾ . Frederick II eventually wrote his own treatise on falconry, the De arte venandi cum avibus , in which he related his ornithological observations and the results of the hunts and experiments his court enjoyed performing. Several early German and French scholars compiled old works and conducted new research on birds. These included Guillaume Rondelet , who described his observations in

24168-668: Was pioneered by Charles Sibley and Jon Edward Ahlquist , resulting in what is called the Sibley–Ahlquist taxonomy . These early techniques have been replaced by newer ones based on mitochondrial DNA sequences and molecular phylogenetics approaches that make use of computational procedures for sequence alignment , construction of phylogenetic trees , and calibration of molecular clocks to infer evolutionary relationships. Molecular techniques are also widely used in studies of avian population biology and ecology. The use of field glasses or telescopes for bird observation began in

24327-580: Was still close to cruiser standards, amounting to nine heavy naval guns (five of 120 mm and four of 76 mm). In addition, they retained their two twin 457 mm torpedo tubes and two machine guns, plus the capacity to carry up to 50 mines. The next major innovation came with the Japanese Fubuki class or "special type", designed in 1923 and delivered in 1928. The design was initially noted for its powerful armament of six 5-inch (127 mm) guns and three triple torpedo mounts. The second batch of

24486-530: Was the Quinarian system popularised by Nicholas Aylward Vigors (1785–1840), William Sharp Macleay (1792–1865), William Swainson , and others. The idea was that nature followed a "rule of five" with five groups nested hierarchically. Some had attempted a rule of four, but Johann Jakob Kaup (1803–1873) insisted that the number five was special, noting that other natural entities such as the senses also came in fives. He followed this idea and demonstrated his view of

24645-475: Was the replacement of the torpedo boat-style turtleback foredeck by a raised forecastle for the new River-class destroyers built in 1903, which provided better sea-keeping and more space below deck. The first warship to use only fuel oil propulsion was the Royal Navy's TBD HMS  Spiteful , after experiments in 1904, although the obsolescence of coal as a fuel in British warships was delayed by oil's availability. Other navies also adopted oil, for instance

24804-687: Was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1956 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at the King's Theatre, Hammersmith , London. As a member of the Species Survival Commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature , he helped create the Red Data books , the group's lists of endangered species. Scott was the founder President of the Society of Wildlife Artists and President of

24963-519: Was to protect their own battle fleet from enemy torpedo attacks and to make such attacks on the battleships of the enemy. The task of escorting merchant convoys was still in the future. An important development came with the construction of HMS Swift in 1884, later redesignated TB 81. This was a large (137 ton) torpedo boat with four 47 mm quick-firing guns and three torpedo tubes. At 23.75 knots (43.99 km/h; 27.33 mph), while still not fast enough to engage enemy torpedo boats reliably,

25122-426: Was used to interpret observations on behaviour and life history, and birds were widely used models for testing hypotheses based on theories postulated by W. D. Hamilton and others. The new tools of molecular biology changed the study of bird systematics, which changed from being based on phenotype to the underlying genotype . The use of techniques such as DNA–DNA hybridization to study evolutionary relationships

25281-436: Was written by Christopher Merrett in 1667, but authors such as John Ray considered it of little value. Ray did, however, value the expertise of the naturalist Sir Thomas Browne (1605–82), who not only answered his queries on ornithological identification and nomenclature, but also those of Willoughby and Merrett in letter correspondence. Browne himself in his lifetime kept an eagle, owl, cormorant, bittern, and ostrich, penned

#429570