German working group for the protection of owls
| German Working Group for the Protection of Owls (AG Eulen) |
|
|---|---|
| legal form | registered association |
| founding | 1976 |
| precursor | Little Owl AG |
| purpose | Owl research and protection |
| Chair | Michael Jöbges |
| Website | www.ageulen.de |
The German Working Group for the Protection of Owls (AG Eulen) is a Germany-wide nature conservation association that deals with research and the protection of owls . The AG Owls is a registered non-profit association . It sees itself as an association of German-speaking owl specialists. In addition to individuals, working groups, clubs, associations and institutions can be members.
The association pursues nature and species protection by collecting, evaluating and passing on knowledge and experience on the biology and protection of owls. There is a species specialist for every owl species occurring in Germany and a national representative for every federal state. Every year a conference is organized at changing locations, mostly within Germany, in cooperation with local associations or groups.
history
In December 1974 a Little Owl AG was founded in Soest (North Rhine-Westphalia) as a working group of the Westphalian Ornithological Society and the Society of Rhenish Ornithologists by about 30 people present. In March 1975, the Barn Owl AG of the two ornithological societies was founded in Alsdorf . In 1976 the two working groups held separate meetings. At the end of 1976 they were united as a working group for the protection of threatened owls , abbreviated as AG owls . At the merger, it was decided annually to publish information sheets and leaflets on special topics and to hold member meetings.
In a first position paper in 1976 it was demanded: The aim of the working group is to protect the owls on a scientific basis. In 1978 the uniform method standards developed by the working group for the detection of little owls were published. In 1979 the work area was expanded to include the entire Federal Republic of Germany at that time. The AG Eulen joined the Federal Association of the DBV with the support of the then DBV President Claus König . In 1981 the first nationwide conference on biology and protection of the little owl and barn owl was held at the University of Giessen with 150 participants . At the second nationwide owl conference in 1985 with 190 participants, five owl species were already discussed in lectures.
From 1985 onwards, the AG Eulen held annual meetings, only in 1988 there was no meeting. In 1986 a nationwide rough owl and pygmy owl conference followed in the moated castle of Mitwitz . In the same year detailed studies from 1974 to 1984 of the habitat requirements of the little owl in Germany were published. In 1990 the first all-German owl conference took place in Homburg an der Saar.
From 1990 there was close cooperation with the Working Group for the Re-introduction of the Eagle Owl (AzWU). From 1994 the AG Owls took over the tasks of the Federal Working Group (BAG) Owl Protection in the Federal Technical Committee (BFA) Ornithology and Bird Protection of the NABU. In 1994 the AG Eulen was co-organizer of the 3rd international symposium on population ecology of birds of prey and owl species of the monitoring birds of prey and owls of Europe in Friedrichsbrunn . The AG Owls held its annual meeting at the symposium. In 1995, the Owl Group was co-organizer of the rough-footed owl and pygmy owl conference in Germany in Bad Blankenburg . From 2000 the working group set up a homepage with the address www.ageulen.de. In October 2015, the AG Eulen resigned from its function as a federal working group (BAG) owl protection in the Federal Committee of Ornithology and Bird Protection of the German Nature Conservation Union ( NABU ) following a resolution by the general assembly of AG Eulen .
In 2000 the first international conference of the AG Owls in the Harz followed , with speakers and participants from all over Europe. It was the 2nd European Owl Symposium. 220 participants came to the conference in St. Andreasberg . The conference languages were German and English. There were 44 lectures and 24 posters. In addition to 30 contributions from Germany, there were also contributions from Finland (6), Switzerland (6), Belarus (4), Czech Republic / Slovakia (4), Great Britain (3), the Netherlands (3), Denmark (2), Italy ( 2), Poland (2), Belgium (1), Bulgaria (1), France (1), Norway (1) and Slovenia (1). From 2002, the working group carried out the international symposium on population ecology of birds of prey and owl species every four years with the monitoring of birds of prey and owls in Europe . In 2003 the AG in Dornbirn , Vorarlberg , carried out the 3rd European Owl Symposium on the Ecology and Protection of European Owls in the Inatura . A large number of Austrians and Swiss took part in this conference.
In 2004 the AG Eulen was co-organizer of the symposium little owl protection in North Rhine-Westphalia in the agricultural center Haus Riswick in Kleve . In 2005 the eagle owl became bird of the year with the help of AG Bird of the Year . The working group was co-organizer of the international eagle owl conference in Aschaffenburg . In 2008 the AG co-organized the World Owl Conference in Groningen . During this World Owl Conference, the annual meeting of the Owls Group also took place one afternoon. In October 2008 the working group became a registered association with the changed name Deutsche Arbeitsgemeinschaft zur Schutz der Eulen eV - AG Eulen . In 2011 the AG Eulen was again co-organizer of the little owl conference on the endangerment and protection of the little owl in Germany at the Metelen species protection center . The Owls Group has had a Facebook profile since May 2014 . In 2017, the AG Eulen co-organized the World Owl Conference in Evora (Portugal) and became a member of the German Council for Bird Protection (DRV).
Owl panorama
In 1975, a first came to info 5 format of the AG owls out in DIN A. From No. 37 the info became the circular of the AG in DIN A 5 format. This circular from the Eulen group became the trade journal Eulen-Rundblick in A4 format with the first number 39 in 1993. Since 2007, one issue has been published a year.
The Owl Rundblick publishes original works on owls or owl research and protection, reviews of specialist literature on owls, news about owl topics and information about the Owl Group. Articles about the presentations at the annual conferences can be published in the following Eulenrundblick since 2004. Conference contributions from individual conferences were also published in special issues of specialist journals such as Die Vogelwelt and Vogel und Umwelt .
Members
Almost all German owl specialists have been members since the 1990s. There are also members in all neighboring countries. Individual members also come from other European countries, especially from Eastern Europe, and the USA. About 20% of the members are other working groups or groups from other nature conservation associations, especially NABU, as well as authorities. The number of members rose sharply in three phases. The first major increase in membership came at the end of the 1970s, when the area of activity was expanded to include the whole of Germany, then in the mid-1980s, when it was decided to expand the content to all owl species, and then after German reunification in the early 1990s .
Chairperson
- 1974–1987 Klaus-Michael Exo
- 1988–1989 Albert Harbodt
- 1990–1994 Karl Radler
- 1994–1998 Wolfgang Scherzinger
- 1999–2004 Ortwin Schwerdtfeger
- 2004–2007 Hubertus Illner
- 2007–2017 Jochen Wiesner
- since 2017 Michael Jöbges
literature
- Klaus-Michael Exo, Ortwin Schwerdtfeger: 25 years AG Eulen: Review and outlook. Owl Rundblick 2002, 50: 7-10.
- Jochen Wiesner: The German Working Group for the Protection of Owls e. V. Der Falke 2014/61, special issue Eulen in Deutschland, pp. 10–11.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ https://www.ageulen.de/doku.php?id=ag_eulen:chronik
- ↑ https://www.ageulen.de/doku.php?id=ag_eulen:vorstand
- ↑ Karl Radler, Ortwin Schwerdtfeger: The owl round views. Owl panorama 2002 50: 15-16.
- ^ Karl-Heinz Diez, Ortwin Schwerdtfeger: The members of the group owls and their work areas. Owl Panorama 2002 50: 13-14.