Wild bird care in the garden - UFAW International Animal Welfare Symposium, Zoological Society of London, London UK
In recent years, there has been a huge growth of interest in feeding garden birds in many countries. In the UK, the amounts provided make a significant contribution to the annual food requirements of many bird populations. At a time when human changes to the environment are a major threat to many other species, garden bird feeding is grass roots, do-it-yourself wildlife management on a large scale.Whether we like it or not, in meeting the needs of the vast and rapidly growing human population and in tackling the associated environmental consequences, the whole world is becoming a managed environment. Can lessons learned from caring for free-living backyard wildlife be applied more widely to help conserve biodiversity and to avoid adversely affecting wildlife welfare?
The aim of this symposium is to consider these questions and to share the results of recent research and advances in understanding on various aspects of the feeding and management of garden birds (matters that UFAW and others have been working on together in recent years through the Garden Bird Health Initiative - see http://www.ufaw.org.uk/gbhi.php). Topics will include nutritional aspects, effects on breeding and survival, epidemiology of diseases, and technological advances.
Programme Details
Speakers who will be contributing talks to the symposium in the following areas include:
James Kirkwood (Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, UK) Introduction: the garden bird health initiative
Chris Whittles (CJ WildBird Foods Ltd) The history of garden bird feeding
Darryl Jones (Griffith University, Australia) Feeding wild birds: why we need to know more about a global experiment
Jonathan Blount and Stuart Bearhop (University of Exeter, UK) Impacts of over-winter feeding on health and productivity
S James Reynolds (University of Birmingham, UK) Effects of food supplementation in spring and early summer on breeding performance
Will Peach (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, UK) The RSPB house sparrow feeding trial in London
Mike Toms and David Glue (British Trust for Ornithology, UK) Provision of supplementary food at garden feeding stations and its value to wild birds in Britain and Ireland
Liz Coiffait, Liz Humphreys, Rob Robinson, Becki Lawson and Mike Toms (BTO and Institute of Zoology, UK) Factors influencing disease transmission at garden feeding stations: a national analysis
David Leech and Vivienne Greenough (British Trust for Ornithology, UK) Monitoring breeding success of urban birds: the BTOs nest box challenge
Becki Lawson (Institute of Zoology, UK) Trichomonosis - an emerging threat to garden birds
André Dhondt (Cornell University, USA) Dynamics of mycoplasmal conjunctivitis in house finches
Scott McBurney, Spencer Greenwood, Raphaël Vanderstichel and María Forzán (University of Prince Edward Island, Canada) A pilot study to determine epidemiological factors associated with the emergence of trichomonosis in wild finch populations of the Canadian Maritime Provinces
Registration details:
The cost of registering for this meeting is £35.00. This price covers attendance at the symposium and refreshments but delegates will have to make their own lunch and accommodation arrangements. Further details, including a registration form, can be found on the UFAW website - http://www.ufaw.org.uk/wildbirdcareinthegarden.php.
Venue:
The symposium is being held in the Zoological Society of London's Huxley Lecture Theatre, which is located on the opposite side of the road to the main entrance to London Zoo and to the right (ZSL, Outer Circle, Regent's Park London NW1 4RY). Camden Town, on the Northern line, is the nearest underground station.
Background to UFAW:
UFAW, the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, is an internationally-recognised, independent, scientific and educational animal welfare charity. The organization promotes high standards of welfare for farm, companion, laboratory and captive wild animals and those with which we interact in the wild. Information about the charity is at www.ufaw.org.uk.
Contact Details:
Stephen Wickens, Development Officer, UFAW, The Old School, Brewhouse Hill, Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire, AL4 8AN, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 1582 831818; Fax: +44 (0) 1582 831414; Website: www.ufaw.org.uk; Email: wickens@ufaw.org.uk
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