The Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS) is an

ornithological 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 ...

organization that was formally established in 1886 as the Wilson Ornithological Chapter of the

Agassiz Association The Agassiz Association was a society founded in 1875 for the study of natural science, named for Swiss-American naturalist Louis Agassiz. Its founder and first president was Harlan Hoge Ballard (1853–1934). History According to its Constitution ...

. It is based at the Museum of Zoology,

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

, United States. It was named after Alexander Wilson, a prominent early American ornithologist. The name of the group later evolved through being generally known as the Wilson Ornithological Club (or just the Wilson Club) until it became the WOS in 1955. It publishes the ''

Wilson Journal of Ornithology ''The Wilson Journal of Ornithology'' (until 2006 ''The Wilson Bulletin'') is a quarterly scientific journal published by the Wilson Ornithological Society. Both the society and its journal were named after American ornithologist Alexander Wilson ...

'' (previously the ''Wilson Bulletin'').WOS: History
/ref> It is a member of the

Ornithological Council The Ornithological Council is an association of ornithology, ornithological organisations based in the Americas involved in bird study and conservation. It was established by Richard C. Banks and incorporated in Washington, D.C. in 1992 as a non-pro ...

Awards

The premier award made by WOS is the

Margaret Morse Nice Medal The Margaret Morse Nice Medal is an ornithological award made annually by the Wilson Ornithological Society (WOS). It was established in 1997 and named in honour of ornithologist Margaret Morse Nice (1883-1974). The medal recipient is expected ...

, first awarded in 1997, commemorating notable ornithologist

Margaret Morse Nice Margaret Morse Nice (December 6, 1883 – June 26, 1974) was an American ornithologist, ethologist, and child psychologist who made an extensive study of the life history of the song sparrow and was author of ''Studies in the Life History of the S ...

. The recipient gives the Plenary lecture at the WOS Annual Meeting.WOS: Awards
/ref>

References

External links

Wilson Ornithological Society
1886 establishments in Michigan Ornithological organizations in the United States Organizations established in 1886 Organizations based in Ann Arbor, Michigan Environmental organizations based in Michigan University of Michigan {{ornithology-org-stub