One thing I like about the BES/SFE conference is that it's so diverse, featuring sessions from computational ecology to conservation management and policy. For somebody like me who has broad interests, this feels like home. Despite the large number of attendants, each session is surprisingly small, hosting its own microcosm of an ecological community.
There are many interesting talks but some talks stood out for me because of their broad relevance or simply because ... I found them cool. Like the talk on using diaries and photographs of Charles Elton to infer vegetation changes in a woodland.
Most of you might well know Charles Elton's contribution to ecology (concept of ecosystems, foodwebs, niche etc). But fewer might be aware of the fact that Charles Elton was a naturalist and a meticulous diary writer. Luckily, his nature observations in Wytham Woods have been archived (and should be digitized soon).
At the BES/SFE meeting, Keith Kirby from the Department of Plant Sciences Oxford University, gave an interesting talk with the title "In Elton’s footsteps: using photographs and diary entries (1942-1965) to explore change in Wytham Woods, Oxfordshire, southern England.)". By studying his diaries and comparing them to present day vegetation, he could point to some interesting changes in vegetation that have occurred since the middle of the last centuries, like the decline of dead wood, or even spread of single species like Brachypodium pinnatum (on some limestone outcrops).
He pointed out that field ecologists have changed too, as is evident from some of Elton's photographs. Women would certainly not wear skirts today and no, ecologists would not do fieldwork with a cigarette in their mouth :-)
He pointed out that field ecologists have changed too, as is evident from some of Elton's photographs. Women would certainly not wear skirts today and no, ecologists would not do fieldwork with a cigarette in their mouth :-)
Keith is an experienced woodland ecologist with a big grey beard. After the talk, when he was asked how we all can contribute to passing our observations on to the next generation he answered: 'Facebook. There's got to be something about that Facebook thing.' I loved that!