About EOU

The EOU: A vision of European-wide Ornithology

Birds know no boundaries, and the same should hold for their study. The foundation of the EOU was inspired by the historical opportunities when the walls that divided Europe were taken down and for the first time in decades, ornithologists from across Europe were free to meet.

A first unifying meeting of European ornithologists was convened in Bologna in 1997, which was the official founding event of the EOU. The foundation was marked by the donation of Poster art, presented by the Bolognese host Fernando Spina. The picture shown here is a photograph of the poster copy kindly provided by Lukas Jenni, who is a founding member of the EOU. The poster decorates the Swiss Ornithological Institute in Sempach, Switzerland, which has been an outstanding supporter of the EOU, including the sponsoring of the present webpage.

Since then, conferences have been held every 2 years in different parts of Europe, and the EOU has grown to become a lively community. True to its founding ideas, it aims to integrate European ornithology by a balanced international representation, and by organizing affordable conferences that combine frontline bird science with support of research under difficult conditions. For example, we particularly encourage contributions from countries with limited international exposure, support early-stage researchers, and foster bottom-up initiatives aimed at promoting ornithology.

Our logo bird: the Whiskered Tern (Chlidonias hybrida)

The logo of the EOU displays its avian patron species, the Whiskered Tern. This originates back to the founding event in Bologna, being the species of choice of the first conference organizer Fernando Spina.

We are always on the look-out for pictures of Whiskered Terns. The one’s used here and on the website header of the Terns in flight are by Piotr Chara, and the headshot here shows a Whiskered Tern at a breeding colony in Poland and has been kindly provided by Piotr Minias from Lodz, Poland.