Description
Between 1883 and 1939, Denmark's 45 lighthouses and lightships served a critical role during nocturnal bird migration. Throughout this period, lighthouse keepers and other observers documented 1,212 observations of bird activity at these maritime structures. These records captured a variety of bird species utilizing the lighthouses as navigational aids during their migrations. The keepers meticulously recorded the presence and behavior of these birds and collected specimens, which were subsequently sent to the museum in Copenhagen for preservation and cataloguing. This project provides valuable historical insights into bird migration patterns and their interactions with maritime navigation aids. By combining the 1,212 documented observations with preserved specimens and weather data, the project offers a unique perspective on how early 20th-century human infrastructure influenced bird migration. The results enhance our understanding of historical biodiversity and contribute to contemporary studies on bird migration and environmental impacts.
Data Records
The data in this occurrence resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 1,212 records.
This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.
Versions
The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.
How to cite
Researchers should cite this work as follows:
Tanalgo K (2024). AveLightDen: Birds fallen at Danish Lighthouses Based on Literature (1883–1939). Version 1.1. Training Organization. Occurrence dataset. https://training-ipt-a.gbif.org/resource?r=danishlighthouse&v=1.1
Rights
Researchers should respect the following rights statement:
The publisher and rights holder of this work is Training Organization. To the extent possible under law, the publisher has waived all rights to these data and has dedicated them to the Public Domain (CC0 1.0). Users may copy, modify, distribute and use the work, including for commercial purposes, without restriction.
GBIF Registration
This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: a2686236-5628-4663-8eff-dbeb1cc7a3ad. Training Organization publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by GBIF Secretariat.
Keywords
Occurrence; Observation
Contacts
- Metadata Provider
- Associate Professor
- Kabacan 9407, North Cotabato
- 09777771412
- Metadata Provider
Geographic Coverage
Denmark
| Bounding Coordinates | South West [56.823, 8.263], North East [57.113, 8.599] |
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Taxonomic Coverage
No Description available
| Kingdom | Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Aves |
| Order | Cuculiformes, Anseriformes, Galliformes, Passeriformes, Pelecaniformes, Falconiformes, Gruiformes, Columbiformes, Apodiformes, Charadriiformes, Podicipediformes, Caprimulgiformes, Procellariiformes, Strigiformes, Piciformes |
| Family | Troglodytidae, Laridae, Sylviidae, Corvidae, Phylloscopidae, Regulidae, Columbidae, Muscicapidae, Motacillidae, Cuculidae, Podicipedidae, Emberizidae, Stercorariidae, Haematopodidae, Picidae, Hydrobatidae, Sturnidae, Fringillidae, Scolopacidae, Charadriidae, Calcariidae, Bombycillidae, Hirundinidae, Strigidae, Alaudidae, Phasianidae, Falconidae, Turdidae, Apodidae, Rallidae, Caprimulgidae, Acrocephalidae, Cinclidae, Paridae, Ardeidae, Locustellidae, Anatidae |
Temporal Coverage
| Start Date / End Date | 1886-08-31 / 0037-01-19 |
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Project Data
Between 1883 and 1939, Denmark's 45 lighthouses and lightships served a critical role during nocturnal bird migration. Throughout this period, lighthouse keepers and other observers documented a total of 1,212 observations of bird activity at these maritime structures. These records captured a variety of bird species utilizing the lighthouses as navigational aids during their migrations. The keepers meticulously recorded the presence and behavior of these birds and collected specimens, which were subsequently sent to the museum in Copenhagen for preservation and cataloguing. This project provides valuable historical insights into bird migration patterns and their interactions with maritime navigation aids. By combining the 1,212 documented observations with preserved specimens and weather data, the project offers a unique perspective on how early 20th-century human infrastructure influenced bird migration. The results enhance our understanding of historical biodiversity and contribute to contemporary studies on bird migration and environmental impacts.
| Title | AveLightDen: Birds fallen at Danish Lighthouses Based on Literature (1883–1939) |
|---|
Sampling Methods
Bird sightings and the collection of deceased birds were systematically conducted by the lighthouse keepers. These specimens, collected during the migration periods, were subsequently sent to the Zoological Museum of Copenhagen for further analysis and preservation. Wind speed was recorded using the Beaufort scale, a system for measuring wind intensity (more information can be found at [DMI Beaufort Scale](http://www.dmi.dk/laer-om/temaer/vejr/vejrgudernes-hvirvlende-dans/beaufort-skalaen/) and [Wikipedia Beaufort Scale](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaufort_scale)). The dataset includes detailed descriptions of wind conditions, which can be reviewed at [DanBIF Wind Descriptions](http://danbif.dk/links/litteratur/Fyrfaldne-fugle_Vind_Forkortelser.pdf). This comprehensive documentation of bird observations and environmental conditions provides valuable insights into how wind patterns may have influenced bird migration and behavior.
| Study Extent | Denmark |
|---|---|
| Quality Control | All listed species and their distribution in the database using the Catalogue of Life taxonomy names were aligned and standardized (https://www.catalogueoflife.org) and the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) database (https://www.itis.gov/). We plotted and mapped all species occurrence within the Species Link to curate species occurrence within the range. Biodiversity records outside the range or within unusual locations were counter-checked with the original reference and corrected. |
Method step description:
- Documentation of invasive species from the field.
- Reviewing of the initial identification of the species.
- Validation of the species and occurrence records.
- Organizing the species occurrence records and associated metadata following Darwin Core Standards in Microsoft Office Excel format (.csv)
- Curating species occurrence in Quantum GIS.
Additional Metadata
| Alternative Identifiers | https://training-ipt-a.gbif.org/resource?r=danishlighthouse |
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