Development of the British and Irish ringing scheme and its role in conservation biology

We review the development of scientific and conservation objectives for the British and Irish Ringing Scheme, which has been run by the BTO since 1937. A brief introduction to the workings and growth of the scheme is provided. The types of data collected via ringing and their status within the Scheme are discussed. We demonstrate how ringing contributes to important areas of conservation science within Britain and Ireland (integrated population monitoring and studies of population dynamics, research on migration and other movements and a range of other applied uses). Recent and current development of mechanisms for increasing the conservation value of data from the Ringing Scheme, and future directions towards this aim, are also discussed.