David Lack and the birth of radar ornithology

Abstract

The use of radar to detect ships and aircraft became a key part of Britain's defence in the early part of the Second World War, but not all echoes were those of operational targets. David Lack, of the Army Operational Research Group, showed that many unexplained echoes came from flying birds, despite critics at the time. Careful observation combined with experiments provided observers with means of differentiating birds from boats and aircraft. Lack went on to use his wartime experience to launch the science of radar ornithology during the 1950s, which formed the basis of a development that continues to the present day with a range of more sophisticated radar equipment.