Insignia of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club

The Belfast Naturalists' Field Club is a club of naturalists based in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. Founded in 1863, the club was an important part of the education system for Victorian naturalists and worked largely through first-hand field studies.P.W. Jackson (1992) The Irish Naturalist: 33 years of natural history in Ireland 1892-1924. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal'' 24(3): 95-101 It has been credited with playing an important role in the elucidation of

glacial A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...

and post-glacial sea levels, climates and

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

beaches and issuing the first of the regional handbooks for meetings of the

British Association for the Advancement of Science The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chie ...

as far back as 1874. The club has four sections,

Archeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

Botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

Geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

and

Zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

, and has published several books and a periodical. The

Herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

of the BNFC is now in the

Ulster Museum The Ulster Museum, located in the Botanic Gardens in Belfast, has around 8,000 square metres (90,000 sq. ft.) of public display space, featuring material from the collections of fine art and applied art, archaeology, ethnography, treasure ...

.Hackney, P. (Ed.) (1992). Stewart & Corry's Flora of the North-east of Ireland.'' Third edition. Institute of Irish Studies, The Queen's University of Belfast.

History

The club was formed as the first of a series of Field Clubs (followed by clubs in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

(1886),

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

(1892), and

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

(1892)) established in response to the increasing interest in natural sciences in the Victorian Society of Ireland.

Ralph Tate Ralph Tate (11 March 1840 – 20 September 1901) was a British-born botanist and geologist, who was later active in Australia. Early life Tate was born at Alnwick in Northumberland, the son of Thomas Turner Tate (1807–1888), a teacher of math ...

visited Belfast to give a series of lectures on

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

which stimulated Samuel Alexander Stewart to gather a group of field botanists. The first public meeting was held on the March 6, 1863 in the Museum Buildings, now the Ulster Museum. Tate wrote a draft Constitution. The first field trip organized by the Club occurred on 6 April 1863 when 88 members travelled to

Islandmagee Islandmagee () is a peninsula and civil parish on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, located between the towns of Larne and Whitehead. It is part of the Mid and East Antrim Borough Council area and is a sparsely populated rural ...

to collect fossils. Since then members of the Club have visited many areas including the

Cavehill Cave Hill or Cavehill is a rocky hill overlooking the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, with a height of . It is marked by basalt cliffs and caves, and its distinguishing feature is 'Napoleon's Nose', a tall cliff which resembles the profile ...

, the

Giant's Causeway The Giant's Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic fissure eruption. It is located in County Antrim on the north coast of Northern Ireland, about three miles (5 km) northeast of ...

Mount Stewart Mount Stewart is a 19th-century house and garden in County Down, Northern Ireland, owned by the National Trust. Situated on the east shore of Strangford Lough, a few miles outside the town of Newtownards and near Greyabbey, it was the Irish s ...

and

Strangford Lough Strangford Lough (from Old Norse ''Strangr Fjörðr'', meaning "strong sea-inlet"PlaceNames N ...

to name but a few."Deane,C.Douglas" 1983. "The Ulster Countryside." Century Books.

Books

* ''Systematic Lists Illustrative of the Flora, Fauna, Palaeontology and Archeology of the North of Ireland,'' 1870 * ''Guide to Belfast and the adjacent counties,'' 1874 * ''Catalogue of a Collection of Irish Antiquities,'' 1874 * ''A Guide to Belfast and the Counties of Down & Antrim,'' 1902 * ''A Preliminary Report on the Survey of the County Armagh Flora, 1965-1967,'' 1968 * ''Urban Flora of Belfast: A project of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club.'' 1997, by Stan Beesley, John Wilde.

Periodicals

''Annual Report and Proceedings of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club''
ref name="British Museum">''Serial Publications in the British Museum (Natural History) Library.'' British Museum, 1980
Library Search
/ref> * ''

The Irish Naturalists' Journal The ''Irish Naturalists' Journal'' () is a scientific journal covering all aspects of natural history. It has been published since 1925. It was predecessed by ''The Irish Naturalist'' (1892−1924). References External links *''The Irish Na ...

'' (contributor/coauthor)

Notable members

* John Kaye Charlesworth * Richard Hayward * Mary Johnstone Lynn * Margaret Williamson Rea *

Arthur Wilson Stelfox Arthur Wilson Stelfox (15 December 1883–19 May 1972) was an Irish naturalist and architect. Stelfox was a recognised authority on Hymenoptera and on non-marine Mollusca especially the genus ''Pisidium''. He also made important contributi ...

Margarita Dawson Stelfox Margarita Dawson Stelfox ARCScI (1886 – 1971) was an Irish botanist, specialising in Mycetozoa. Life Margarita Dawson Stelfox was born Margarita Dawson Mitchell in 1886 in Lisburn to Elizabeth (née Pounden) and the Rev. George P. Mitchell. ...

References

Further references

*Scott, R. 2004. ''Wild Belfast on Safari in the City''. The Blackstaff Press, Belfast. . *Crowther, Peter. 2013. ''Citizen Science 150 years of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club.'' National Museums Northern Ireland. {{ISBN, 090076158X

External links

Belfast Naturalists' Field Club WebsiteDigitized works by and about the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club
at

Biodiversity Heritage Library The Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) is the world’s largest open access digital library for biodiversity literature and archives. BHL operates as worldwide consortiumof natural history, botanical, research, and national libraries working toge ...

Ulster Museum Collections Highlights Tour: Citizen Science: 150 years of the Belfast Naturalists’ Field Club
Clubs and societies in Northern Ireland History of Belfast Science and technology in Northern Ireland Naturalist societies Biology organisations based in the United Kingdom Paleontology in the United Kingdom Geology societies