Aitche is for Auk: the Life and Afterlife of the Great Auk
Fifty years of studying auks on various offshore islands has allowed me to reconstruct the life of the ultimate auk: the great auk — the most iconic of extinct birds. No ornithologist ever saw one alive and our ability to evaluate the great auk’s life rests on its extraordinary afterlife. All that remains of the great auk are a few empty eggshells, skeletons and mounted specimens, preserved for posterity by a succession of obsessive collectors. Not only do these relics tell a fascinating story, they also provide a poignant reminder of what we have lost and what we may yet still lose.
Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow 221st Lecture Series
Date: Wednesday 15 March 2023
Time: 19:30 - 21:00
Venue: Sir Charles Wilson Building LT 201
Category: Public lectures
Speaker: Professor Tim Birkhead, Sheffield University
Tim Birkhead FRS is emeritus professor of behaviour and evolution at the University of Sheffield. His research on promiscuity and sperm competition in birds re-shaped our understanding of bird mating systems. He also maintains a long-term study of guillemots on Skomer Island, Wales. In additon to his scientific work, he has also written several popular books on birds, the latest being Birds and Us published in 2022, which provides 12,000 year history of our relationship with birds from cave art to conservation.