WBFT The Chinese Crested-tern was rediscovered breeding in Taiwan in 2000 Zoom In

Fund supports rare bird research

02-11-2005

The British Birdwatching Fair and the RSPB (BirdLife in the UK) have jointly established the Birdfair/RSPB Research Fund for Endangered Birds. The fund will provide research grants of up to US$2,000 to support ecological research, surveys and searches for birds listed by IUCN as "Critically Endangered" or "Endangered".

Priority is given to people working in their own countries, particularly those associated with a local BirdLife Partner or other conservation NGO.

"These grants represent an extremely efficient use of relatively small sums of money. Supporting researchers working in-country helps to ensure that the expertise and knowledge gained remains there after the end of the project." —Paul Donald, RSPB Senior Research Biologist

Previous successes of the scheme include the discovery of Chinese Crested-terns Sterna bernsteini in Fujian, China, a survey of Spotted (Nordmann’s) Greenshank Tringa guttifer and Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes in Malaysia, searches for the Entre Ríos Seedeater Sporophila zelichi in Argentina and research support for efforts to save the Pale-headed Brush-finch Atlapetes pallidiceps from extinction in Ecuador.