British Birds |
BRITISH BIRDS NUMBER 12, VOL. XLV, DECEMBER, 1952. THE BIRDS OF INNER LONDON, 1900-1950. BY S. CRAMP AND W. G. TF.AGLE. IN 1929 A. Holte Macpherson published A List of the Birds of Inner London (antea, vol. xxii, 222-44) outlining the history and status of the birds occurring in an oblong area with boundaries running 4 miles east and west and z\ miles north and south ot Charing Cross. Since then an account, necessarily restricted, has been given annually in this magazine (A. Holte Macpherson 1930-41, G. Carmichael Low and Miss M. S. van Oostveen 1942 and 1946, G. Carmichael Low 1943-45, Miss M. S. van Oostveen 1947, C. B. Ashby 1948-49 and W. G. Teagle 1950). This paper summarizes the information available on the birds of this major urban area for the period 1900-50, paying particular attention to the changes in numbers and distribution of the more important species, many of which are striking. The boundaries of Inner London, although purely artificial, enclose an area of ecological significance, including most of the densely populated core of the capital, all the central parks (except for a small portion of Victoria Park) and some districts in the west and north containing houses with large gardens. It is rich in water, with a long stretch of the Thames, and lakes in many of the parks. The reservoirs and the larger, wilder open spaces, such as Hampstead Heath and Wimbledon Common, are excluded. To survive in such an area a species must be able to adapt itself to living in close proximity with man.
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