OSME’s 42nd Annual General Meeting
We held our first ever Zoom AGM on Saturday November the 28th and it was great to see so many members joining us from around the world. One of the few silver linings to the coronavirus pandemic has...
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Finding Steppe Whimbrel in Abu Dhabi
Guest blog by Oscar Campbell – with thanks to Simon Lloyd The start of it all. It was this image that really got us thinking seriously that we might, at last, have got the cigar. The underwing...
Armenian Ups and Downs: Diary notes and photographs of three visiting naturalists in Armenia
By Peter Marren and Richard Price. Privately published. 2020. Hardback. 76pp. Price £20 (£15 for OSME members)[Available from Home Farm Publishing Company, Letheringsett, Norfolk NR25 7JL, UK] Armenia is a small mountainous country in the Lesser Caucasus...
Save the date: 23rd January 2021 – OSME’s first online Winter Meeting
OSME will hold their first ever Winter Meeting online n 23rd January 2021, a hugely successful online Summer Meeting using Zoom.
The OSME expedition to Yemen in 1985 – personal reflections
Guest blog by Chris Bowden The opportunity to spend two months in the field in North Yemen (as it was at the time) was something that I had no hesitation in applying to join… and what an...
The Socotra Wildlife Association – conserving wildlife through awareness and capacity building
Guest blog by Ali Yahya Ali Bin Mahrous and Nasser Abdulrahman Ahmed of the Socotra Wildlife Association The Socotra Wildlife Association is a non-governmental, voluntary, environmental organization established in November 2014 and officially registered at the local branch...
Birds of Faynan, Past and Present
Steven Mithen, Fares Khoury, Ben Greet, Judith White and Nebras Maslamani. 2019. Birds of Faynan: past and present. Faynan Heritage. University of Reading, Reading, UK, pp197. ISBN 9780704915909. (In English and Arabic) Hardcopy price is uncertain: Amazon...
Helping European Rollers in Northern Cyprus
A guest blog by Amie Wheeldon on encouraging the re-establishment of European Rollers at breeding grounds in Northern Cyprus The European Roller Coracias garrulus is a charismatic species that was once more abundant in Cyprus, where it...
The Trevor Poyser Species Conservation Fund: call for applications
The Trevor Poyser Species Conservation Fund is now open for applications until the 1st December 2020. The fund supports research projects that lead to clear conservation benefits for a Globally Threatened species that occurs within the OSME...
Tape lures maximise the slaughter of songbirds in Cyprus
Guest blog by Matteo Sebastianelli Crossing the Mediterranean Sea represents a crucial step for migrant birds every year as they travel between Africa and Eurasia. Mediterranean islands are the first landmasses sighted after hours of uninterrupted flight...
OSME’s 42nd Annual General Meeting – register now to attend our first online AGM
This year, due to COVID-19, and in line with guidance from the Charity Commission, the OSME Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held online via Zoom. All members are invited to attend and non-members will be able...
Socotra celebrates International Vulture Awareness Day for the third year
A guest blog by Ali Yahya Ali Bin Mahrous of the Socotra Wildlife Association Socotra, for the third year, has again joined the world in celebrating International Vulture Awareness Day. Together with my colleagues in the Socotra...
Bee-eaters and beekeepers in Cyprus: a conflict with a solution
Guest blog by Tassos Shialis The problem The migration of bee-eaters in spring and autumn through Cyprus is a wonderful event for nature lovers and bird watchers. At the same time, beekeepers in Cyprus are not happy...
OSME’s first online Summer Meeting: The best thing to come out of lockdown!
Amid the uncertainty of a worldwide pandemic, we found a global sense of community and a shared passion for birdlife in the OSME region. A first for OSME Our annual Summer Meeting in Thetford, England is always...