Personal
Born in the Baby-boomer generation in Worthing I was initially educated in Worthing with secondary education at Steyning Grammar School (SGS) (in the boarding house). Here one of the biology masters (Jo Luker) was a member of SDOS (then just the Shoreham Ornithological Society) who encouraged me to do some bird surveys of the Mill Pond area at Steyning. One of my class friends was Michael Goddard who then lived on Mill Hill opposite both Dr John Stafford and Catherine Biggs, both key and founder members of the local society. Michael was being trained to ring birds in the society’s ‘Sanctuary’; an activity I joined in during the mid-1960s at the same time as joining SDOS. I left SGS in 1967 to enter medical school at Edinburgh University by which time, with teaching from Dr Barrie Watson, I had gained my A ringing permit. I continued regular ringing at the ‘Sanctuary’ from this point until forced to leave the site in 2007, initially only during university vacations, but very regularly after moving back to Sussex. From 2007, with the help of John Crix, Barrie Watson and the local land managers I set up and have been part of the team ringing in Ladywell. In 1973 I graduated from medical school and started a medical career with my first post at Southlands Hospital before taking up various hospital posts in both Portsmouth and Brighton and finally settling in a general practice in Worthing where I stayed until retirement in 2008. In the same year as graduating I married Denise in St Peter’s Church Shoreham; Denise was a Shoreham resident and a member of the long-standing Shoreham family and owners of Lucking’s men’s outfitters which older Shoreham residents will recall. Sadly, none of our four children have taken up bird watching seriously despite being dragged out by me in their youth.
SDOS involvement
I joined SDOS as a junior member in 1963 and wrote my first piece for the annual report in 1968. Thereafter, I drafted at least one article for the annual reports until the society ceased producing these publications in 2013. These pieces invariable included a Sanctuary report, a summary of local ringing and an annual review of sea-watching from the local beaches. In 1986 I compiled and edited the “Birds of Shoreham” and made contributions to both the 50 and 70 year anniversary SDOS celebration publications. Prior to 1971 the society prided itself on producing the annual report ready for the spring AGM meeting but this worthy tradition was thwarted in 1971 when the national postal strike prevented my report drafts reaching Cyril Helyer (the report editor) whilst I was in Scotland. After returning to Sussex on a permanent basis I became more involved with the society’s administration being the society’s recorder for seven years from 1975 and then chair until 1986.
Sussex OS involvement
I have been considerably more involved with the county society having first been on Council in 1978, holding the position of ‘Scientific Officer’ (now split into three posts of secretary to the Scientific Committee, surveys officer and archivist) from 1984 to 1989 and Vice President, involving chairing council, for five years from 1992. I first joined the SOS Scientific Committee in 1980, spent several years chairing this group and remain on this committee as the society’s database manager. This last point is, perhaps, my most significant contribution to county ornithology having been involved in the system development in the late 1980s, its evolution and subsequent maintenance with the database now holding over eight million records. This, along with the society’s membership, has to be the major asset of the SOS under-pinning the work done by the recording, bird report and conservation teams. My work with the database has forged links with the BTO, RSPB and Sussex Biodiversity Record Centre and for the past 15 years I have represented the SOS on the Committee for Biological Recorders. For decades I have been involved with the Sussex Bird Report, not only in producing record analysis and maps for the authors but also writing and editing species accounts and writing regular papers on a variety of subjects. Perhaps the most important publication was in 2012 working with Dr Helen Crabtree to produce the 400+ page digital publication “Sussex Bird Atlas 2007-11: the maps” which combined information about all Sussex atlases and was the bedrock for the celebrated and award winning 2014 Birds of Sussex (BoS). As well as being involved with the 2014 BoS I was the assistant editor for the 1996 BoS. I endeavour to take part in as many national or county surveys as time and location allows and have pulled together the sea-watching data for both the local beaches (since 1977) and other sites in the county. For various activities in the SOS I have been the recipient or joint recipient of the SOS President’s Award on three occasions, have been granted an honorary life membership and some years ago was awarded a Stonechat goblet for long term service to the society.
Summary
I have been birdwatching for 60+ years, being an active member of SDOS for most of this time and being very involved with the SOS for nearly 50 years. My main ornithological interests include migration and survey work. Supporting the former I have held a BTO ringing permit for nearly 60 years and compiled the local sea-watching since 1977.