John Parslow

John Leonard Frederick Parslow (1935–2015) was an English ornithologist and author.

For the British general, see John Parslow (British Army officer).

John Parslow
Born
John Leonard Frederick Parslow

(1935-07-10)10 July 1935
London, England
Died23 October 2015(2015-10-23) (aged 80)
NationalityEnglish
Occupation
Employer

Parslow was born on 10 July 1935 in London, and, after wartime evacuation to Cornwall, was educated at Chingford Grammar School.[1] He undertook National Service at RAF Bawdsey, as a radar operator, from which he was demobbed in 1952.[1]

After work in the Bird Room of the British Museum, he joined the Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology in 1959, as assistant to David Lack.[1] he moved to the Nature Conservancy Council's Monks Wood Experimental Station in 1967 to work as an information scientist, investigating the effects of pesticides on the food chain of birds.[1] He was the RSPB's Director of Conservation and Reserves from 1975–1987.[1]

Parslow did pioneering work on the detection of bird migration using radar.[2][3] He was also involved in the creation of a bird observatory at St. Agnes on the Isles of Scilly, which operated from 1957–1967.[1]

Parslow was the author of several books, a number of papers on bird migration, and a series of articles for British Birds.[1]

He died at home on 23 October 2015,[1][4] and was buried at the Arbory Trust Woodland Burial Ground in Barton, Cambridgeshire.[4] He was married twice, to Rosemary, with whom he had a son and two daughters, and to Mariko, who survived him.[1]

Bibliography
  • Parslow, John (1973). Breeding Birds of Britain and Ireland: Historical Survey (1st ed.). Berkhampsted: T & A D Poyser Ltd. ISBN 978-0-85661-001-1.
  • Thorburn's Birds - Revised By John Parslow. James Fisher (ed.). Book Club Associates. 1976.CS1 maint: others (link)
  • Heinzel, Hermann; Fitter, R. S. R.; Parslow, John (1979). The Birds of Britain and Europe with North Africa and the Middle East (4th Revised ed.). London: Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-219234-7.
  • Bird Watchers' Britain: The Unique Pocket Guide to Bird Watching Walks. John Parslow (ed.). Pan Books. 1983. ISBN 978-0-330-28028-0.CS1 maint: others (link)
  • Parslow, John (2010). Breeding Birds of Britain and Ireland. Berkhampsted England: Poyser. ISBN 978-1-4081-3707-9.

References
  1. Thomas, Gareth (October 2016). "John Leonard Frederick Parslow (1935-2015)". British Birds. 109 (10): 635–636.
  2. Riddiford, Nick (1985). "Grounded migrants versus radar: a case-study". Bird Study. 32 (2): 116–121. doi:10.1080/00063658509476866. ISSN 0006-3657.
  3. Parslow, J.L.F. (1969). "The migration of passerine night migrants across the English Channel Studied by radar". Ibis. 111: 48–79. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919x.1969.tb01604.x.
  4. Reynolds, Peter (December 2015). "John Leonard Frederick Parslow 1935 - 2015" (PDF). Kingston Parish & Church Magazine. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
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