Colin Miskelly – a fine Fellow

We are dedicating this blog post to acknowledge two honours recently bestowed on one of our own, Curator Vertebrates Dr Colin Miskelly. He has been made a Fellow of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand and received the New Zealand Association of Scientists Cranwell Medal. A huge congratulations on these achievements, Colin!

Fellow of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand

Curator Colin Miskelly, himself a rare bird in his field, is has been announced as the 12th person to be identified as a Fellow of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand, which is limited to six living recipients. This is an incredible honour to receive and recognises Colin’s decades of dedicated work to understanding Aotearoa New Zealand’s birds and their conservation and management.

To parrot the Society’s citation which gives a wonderful bird’s eye view of Colin’s incredible career in ornithology:

“Through his keen life-long interest in birds, an enquiring mind and his immense enthusiasm for the science of ornithology Colin has been an active member of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand for most of his life; Colin joined the Society at the age of 13.

“As a young teenager Colin once saw a poster featuring takahē, black robin and kākāpō and printed on it was the headline Wanted: Alive. Colin wondered then if he would ever see these critically endangered species in his lifetime, or if they would become extinct before he did. We all now know that these three iconic species are very much alive today.

“Some years later, Colin took a bottle of port to the summit of Rangatira Island in the Chatham Islands to celebrate his 21st birthday, watching the sunset, alone. The rest of Don Merton’s pioneering black robin conservation team had left the island that morning for Christmas. Colin enjoyed the rare privilege – unmatched by anybody else at that time – of watching the growth of a new family of black robins. In that breeding season, 1983/84, the black robin population doubled from 9 to 18, launching an era of world-leading bird recovery programmes for New Zealand and a lifetime of bird research and conservation for Colin. From that early beginning on Rangatira Island Colin has significantly advanced understanding through his meticulous research of the conservation biology and ornithology of many species of New Zealand indigenous birds, including endangered species.

“Commencing with ecological research on snipe on Snares Islands for his doctorate studies at Canterbury University Colin showed how an improved understanding of the biology of this little-known group of birds could be applied effectively for achieving the translocation of birds from one site to another. The knowledge and experience gained from his Snares Islands studies provided the confidence to plan the translocation of other groups of birds to pest-free sites, including islands, notably of species that are rare or endangered in their natural habitats. Particular examples are eight species of burrow-nesting seabirds in the family Procellariidae (fulmars, petrels, prions and shearwaters). That these translocations were successful is testament to Colin’s ambition and knowledge to make a meaningful contribution to reducing the conservation threat ranking of several seabird species.

“Since 2008 Colin has been a member (and formerly the chair) of a panel that regularly reviews the conservation status of New Zealand birds and has co-authored all reports published since 2008. This work has informed the Government and others on the priorities for protection and conservation and continues to provide a sound basis for planning seabird translocations. Colin was the lead author of a comprehensive review entitled Conservation translocations of New Zealand birds, 1863–2012.

“In order to provide an authoritative source of information that will enable birds to be reliably identified Dr. Miskelly was the concept originator and project manager of New Zealand Birds Online – the digital encyclopaedia of New Zealand Birds. He wrote many of the species’ accounts and continues to edit the birds-online website. It continues to be a popular source of reliable information about all of the birds found in here and regularly receives more than 1 million views annually from visitors in New Zealand and from across the world.

“Recognising that ornithology has been a prominent part of natural history science in New Zealand Colin contributed to a special issue commemorating 150 years of the Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, published in 2013. The chapter is entitled Colonial ornithology in New Zealand – the legacy of the New Zealand Institute. Building on numerous field visits Colin has substantially increased knowledge of the occurrence, distribution and ecology of birds living in the Chatham Islands and in New Zealand’s subantarctic islands. He was lead author of Chatham Islands: heritage and conservation and of Lost gold: ornithology of the subantarctic Auckland Islands. Lost gold was the winner of the 2021 Whitley Award for science and conservation awarded by the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. Both publications consolidate contemporary literature on the conservation biology of many bird species in these island groups.

“At the forefront of efforts to ensure that the identity of New Zealand bird species was up-to-date Colin led the detailed and time-consuming compilation of the fifth edition of the Checklist of the birds of New Zealand, published in 2022. Like its predecessors, the aim of the fifth edition is to provide information on the nomenclature, taxonomy, classification, distribution (current, historical, and fossil), and status of the birds of the New Zealand region. It is the most comprehensive of the various checklists produced by the Ornithological Society, covering 427 species, including post-Pleistocene extinct species. Colin put a huge amount of time – day and night – into the formation of the weblinks of the on-line version of the checklist to ensure that the checklist was accurate, comprehensive and up to date.

“In addition to these significant publications Colin has been a regular and prolific contributor to new research published in Notornis for many years, indeed there are few issues recently when a paper or short note from Colin has not been published. Colin has been the author or a co-author of 52 papers, 33 short notes, 5 letters, one book review and was the lead author of one occasional publication published in Notornis. A short selection of representative publications is listed in an annex.

“With his cheerful personality, his enthusiasm and willingness to share his knowledge about birds, Colin has encouraged and supported his friends, colleagues, and others to become careful observers of birds and to encourage them in a range of studies. He is a keen advocate for the Society and for promoting interest in it. Colin has been a Councillor since 2010 and continues to be so. Colin has been Convenor of the Records Appraisal Committee since 2011, and Convenor of the Checklist Committee since 2021. He was a member of both committees for several years beforehand.

“Council is of the unanimous view that Colin Miskelly has rendered distinguished and outstanding service to New Zealand ornithology for more than 35 years through a wide range of studies and his consistent and determined promotion of ornithological science, and for his support of many people who have become careful observers of birds. No less importantly, Colin has provided long-term leadership as an influential office holder in Council and in two specialist committees thereby substantially increasing the scientific standing of the Society and of strengthening its governance. Council is delighted to elect Colin as a Fellow of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand.”

Cranwell Medal, New Zealand Association of Scientists

Adding another feather to his cap and hot on the heels of the Fellowship announcement, Colin has also just been awarded the Cranwell Medal for “excellence in communicating science to the general public in any area of science or technology” by the New Zealand Association of Scientists.

The NZAS is an independent body that stands for and advocates for science and scientists in New Zealand. Colin is one of four people to receive a medal in their annual awards. In their citation, they said:

“Colin…is one of Aotearoa’s leading and most passionate ornithologists, specialising in bird conservation and the history of science. He has a strong record of public engagement across a range of platforms and has given numerous interviews to the national and international media. He has written over 200 Te Papa science blog posts, contributed to several museum exhibitions and edited several popular books. Perhaps his most significant science communication project to date was his development of New Zealand Birds Online – the digital encyclopaedia of New Zealand Birds. This website went live in 2013 and is the definitive guide to New Zealand birds, with a webpage for every living, extinct, fossil, vagrant and introduced bird species.”

In a typically generous way, when Te Papa’s Tumu Whakarae Courtney Johnson congratulated Colin on the award, he immediately noted all the leaders and colleagues he has worked with who have helped create these digital opportunities for the public to engage with the rich research and knowledge generated within and beyond Te Papa and told her that “the Cranwell Medal is very much a Te Papa gong”. Having said that, we’re extremely proud to see his dedication and his gift for ingenious and engaging communication recognised in such an important way.

After an entirely non-scientific study, the bird that Colin has been photographed with the most appears to be the prion. Please enjoy this selection.

Congratulations again, Colin, on these well-deserved honours.