Date:
17 January 2024Price:
Free (SOC member) eventTime:
7.30pm - 9.00pmVenue:
OnlineBooking Info:
Booking not requiredEvents for SOC members
We’re delighted to present the 2023/2024 programme of monthly Zoom meetings for all Club members, which are arranged in conjunction with the excellent local meetings organised by branches. To receive the Zoom joining link, you must be an SOC member and be signed up to the Branch News & Events – Talks & Workshops mailing list.
Can’t make it on the night? Don’t worry, a link to the talk recording is circulated to members afterwards. Unfortunately, sometimes our emails end up in spam/junk folders. If you can’t locate anything from us, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call us on 01875 871 330.
The Great Auk: A Q&A with Professor Tim Birkhead & Professor Neil Metcalfe
Hosted by Dr Chris Wernham
| Q&A |
The Great Auk is among the most iconic of all birds. Flightless and finished off by men in the 1840s, the species is now a powerful symbol of what we have lost and what is at stake.
With many of the world’s seabirds now in steep decline, the story of Great Auk has the power and potential to help protect what’s left. No biologist saw the species alive. As a result, much of what we know about the Great Auk’s way of life has —until recently— been based on anecdotes and stories. Despite this, it has been possible using current scientific methods, to reconstruct much of the bird’s extraordinary biology. The Great Auk had a life (last millions of years), a death, and in the form of its relics (eggs, skins and skeletons), a long and productive afterlife.
Great Auk artwork © Tim Birkhead
