BTO awards ceremony takes place in London

The five BTO Marsh Awards for Ornithology, and the Dilys Breese Medal for communication, have been handed out during a ceremony at the Natural Eye 2018 exhibition at London's Mall Galleries.

The Marsh Award for Ornithology was presented to Dr Juliet Vickery. Juliet has been at the forefront of ornithological science and communication for over two decades, with her research focusing on key issues throughout bird conservation. Dr Stuart Nelson was presented with The Innovative Ornithology Award, as his work on creating potentially automated acoustic recording stations for monitoring data – mainly on bats but also birds – was acknowledged by the BTO. 

David Stroud, from the Government's Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), received the International Ornithology Award. David is a member of the Ramsar Convention’s Scientific and Technical Review Panel and was, until very recently, Chair of the Technical Committee of the African Eurasian Waterbirds Agreement. As well as this he has contributed substantially to the work of Wetlands International – the EU Birds Directive's Ornis Committee and its Scientific Working Group. 

The Young Ornithologist Award was given to Louis Driver, a trainee bird ringer who submits all his nest data to the Nest Records Scheme and logs his field observations into BirdTrack. Spurn Bird Observatory Trust were presented with the Local Ornithology award, following the publication of The Birds of Spurn by the late Andy Roadhouse. The work set new standards when it comes to local bird study and how long-term datasets can be brought to life, with the high level of detail reflective of eight years of hard work. 

Martin Hughes-Games was awarded the Dilys Breese Medal, which acknowledges an outstanding communicator of science to new audiences. Martin's dedication in bringing the BTO's work to a wider public, during his time on the BBC's Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Winterwatch, as well as on social media, led to his selection. 

Following the cereomny, Dr Andy Clements, British Trust for Ornithology CEO, said: "It's great to be able to award outstanding scientists and communicators. Their work often highlights challenges facing birds and the conservation action needed to ensure that we can all enjoy seeing them in the future. We are grateful to the Marsh Christian Trust for supporting ornithology in this way and to our partners the Society of Wildlife Artists for welcoming us to an outstanding and appropriate venue."