ANNUAL REPORT ON THE BIRDS OF EPPING FOREST FOR
THE YEAR 1916.
Introduction.
The Ornithological Committee presents the first of what it is hoped
will be an Annual Report on the birds of Epping Forest.
The term Epping Forest is intended to indicate all that land which
is under the control of the Corporation of the City of London.
The annual period will commence on 1st January and close on
31st December.
The topographical nomenclature is that of Mr. E. N. Buxton's
Guide. In one instance a name has been created, the open ground,
on which stands the site of the old High Beach Church, is described
herein as Old Church Plain, and in the future it may be necessary to
designate further unnamed ground.
Apart from the list given by Mr. E. N. Buxton in his unique
guide no other record of the avifauna of this area seems to exist, and
this list, which in the first instance does not confine itself strictly to
Epping Forest and again quotes many vague records, is now old.
To-day naturalists throughout the world are convinced that the
formation of natural reserves is essential if many species of our flora
and fauna are to be retained. In Epping Forest we have the material
at hand. The Act of 1878 provides "that the Conservators shall at all
times, as far as possible, preserve the natural aspect of the forest."
1916