The Bird Brain of Britain Award

sponsored by The Catalan Tourist Board

Bird Brain of Britain 2010

What would Birdfair be without its most popular high profile quiz? How much do these experts know under pressure? That pressure is even greater now it’s not just their pride at stake but also £2000 worth of prize money generously donated by The Catalan Tourist Board. This money will be spent on conservation projects or donated to a bird charity.

The four contestants with their specialist subjects are:

Pete Morris representing the African Bird Club with Birds of Madagascar

James Eaton representing the Oriental Bird Club with Bornean Endemics

Stuart Elsom representing the Neotropical Bird Club with British Bird Rarities in the 1980’s

Nick Moran representing the Ornithological Society of the Middle East with Rare Birds in the United Arab Emirates

2010 results:

The winner of the 2010 Bird Brain of Britain was Nick Moran of OSME with 20 points. Second was James Eaton of OBC with 19 points. Third was Stuart Elsom of NBC with 17 points and 3 passes. Fourth place went to Pete Morris of ABC with 17 points and 5 passes.

To see footage from the 2010 competition, click on the following videos (courtesy of Phil Bull):

Bird Brain of Britain 2009

Another great success – as always! The four contestants and their specialist subjects were: Nigel Redman representing the African Bird Club with Birds of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa, Jez Bird representing the Oriental Bird Club with Threatened Birds in Asia, Martin Fowlie representing the Neotropical Bird Club with Extinct Birds since 1600 and Richard Prior representing the Ornithological Society of the Middle East with The Birds of Lebanon.

Bird Brain of Britain 2008

The £1000 received by the winners, The Neotropical Bird Club, was incorporated into their conservation budget and formed a significant contribution.Two of the main projects funded from this have been: Juan Ignacio Areta. The mystery of the bamboo bird: will the Purple-winged Ground Dove come to seeding stands of Takuarusu bamboo in Argentina? Santiago Imberti. The Argentinean breeding endemic: Hooded Grebe. Might it have become a Critically Endangered species?The first of these projects focuses on a Critically Endangered species of which almost nothing is known and the second will reassess the conservation status of species that was only discovered in the 1970s and appears to have undergone a steep decline.The

African Bird Club has used its £500 winnings from the 2008 Bird Brain contest towards research into the ecology of Stripe-backed Tits in Uganda.

The £250 won by David Murdoch of OSME has been placed in the Restricted Fund for use on a project dealing with critically endangered species.

The British Trust for Ornithology put the £250 won at last years Bird Brain of Britain quiz towards the 2007-11 Bird Atlas project. This is the biggest stock take of Britain’s birds ever to be undertaken. Once the fieldwork and analysis have been completed, it will inform conservation policy for the next 20 years.

A big thank you to The Catalan Tourist Board for sponsoring this event!