Kenneth Williamson

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

MBOU (c. 1914 – 14 June 1977) was a British

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

who had a strong association with

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and with

bird migration Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

Life

Williamson was born in

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

. After briefly working as a journalist, Williamson started training in biology at the

Manx Museum The Manx Museum (Thie Tashtee Vannin) in Douglas, Isle of Man is the national museum of the Isle of Man. It is run by Manx National Heritage. In general, the museum covers 10,000 years the history of the Isle of Man from the Stone Age to the modern ...

. He served with the

British occupation of the Faroe Islands in World War II The British occupation of the Faroe Islands during World War II, also known as Operation Valentine, was implemented immediately following the German invasion of Denmark and Norway. It was a small component of the roles of Nordic countries in Wo ...

from 1941 to 1945. After the war he continued his biological training at the

Yorkshire Museum The Yorkshire Museum is a museum in York, England. It was opened in 1830, and has five permanent collections, covering biology, geology, archaeology, numismatics and astronomy. History The museum was founded by the Yorkshire Philosophical Soci ...

under Reginald Wagstaffe. He was employed as a Museum Assistant for Natural History from 1946 until April 1949 when he left to become the Director of the

Fair Isle Fair Isle (; sco, Fair Isle; non, Friðarey; gd, Fara) is an island in Shetland, in northern Scotland. It lies about halfway between mainland Shetland and Orkney. It is known for its bird observatory and a traditional style of knitting. Th ...

Bird Observatory A bird observatory is a centre for the study of bird migration and bird populations. They are usually focused on local birds, but may also include interest in far-flung areas. Most bird observatories are small operations with a limited staff, many ...

. He remained in the role of director until 1957 when he left to be the inaugural Migration Research Officer for the

British Trust for Ornithology The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is an organisation founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles. The Prince of Wales has been patron since October 2020. History Beginnings In 1931 Max Nicholson wrote: In the United State ...

. He served as editor of the journal ''Bird Migration'' (1958–1963). He served on the

British Birds Rarities Committee The British Birds Rarities Committee (BBRC), established in 1959, is the national bird rarities committee for Britain. It assesses claimed sightings of bird species that are rarely seen in Britain, based on descriptions, photographs and video re ...

(1959–1963). On 2 March 1959 Williamson was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

. His proposers were

George Waterston George Waterston OBE FRSE FZS LLD (10 April 1911 – 30 September 1980) was a 20th-century Scottish stationer , ornithologist and conservationist. From 1949 to 1954 he owned the remote Scottish island, Fair Isle. He founded the Inverleith Fi ...

Vero Wynne-Edwards Vero Copner Wynne-Edwards, CBE, FRS, FRSE (4 July 1906 – 5 January 1997) was an English zoologist. He was best known for his advocacy of group selection, the theory that natural selection acts at the level of the group. Life He was born ...

, John Berry and

James Ritchie James Ritchie may refer to: * James Ritchie (rugby union) (1907–1942), Scottish international rugby union player * James Ritchie (naturalist) (1882–1958), President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh * James Ritchie (Massachusetts politician) (1 ...

. He died unexpectedly during the night of 14 June 1977.

Personal life

He married Esther Louise Rein of

Tórshavn Tórshavn (; lit. "Thor's harbour"), usually locally referred to as simply ''Havn'', is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the ...

in 1944, with whom he had a daughter and a son.

Publications

As well as numerous ornithological papers, books authored or co-authored by Williamson include: * 1937 – ''The Sky’s Their Highway''. Putnam: London. (Illustrated by

Charles Tunnicliffe Charles Frederick Tunnicliffe, OBE, RA (1 December 1901 – 7 February 1979) was an internationally renowned naturalistic painter of British birds and other wildlife. He spent most of his working life on the Isle of Anglesey. He is popularly ...

) * 1948 – ''The Atlantic Islands. A Study of the Faeroe Life and Scene''. Collins: London. * 1960 – ''St Kilda Summer''. Hutchinson: London. (With J. Morton Boyd). * 1963 – ''A Mosaic of Islands''. Oliver & Boyd: London. (With J. Morton Boyd). * 1965 – ''Fair Isle and its Birds''. Oliver & Boyd: London.

References

* Williamson, Kenneth; & Boyd, J. Morton. (1960). ''St Kilda Summer''. Hutchinson: London. * Williamson, Kenneth. (1970). ''The Atlantic Islands''. Routledge & Kegan Paul: London. (2nd edition). 1914 births 1977 deaths British ornithologists Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh People from Bury, Greater Manchester 20th-century British zoologists Yorkshire Museum people {{UK-ornithologist-stub