Alice Hibbert-Ware (1869–1944) was a New Zealand-born

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

and educator, who is particularly notable for her research and report on the

Little Owl The little owl (''Athene noctua''), also known as the owl of Athena or owl of Minerva, is a bird that inhabits much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, the Palearctic east to Korea, and North Africa. It was introduced into Britain at t ...

and described as one of the "unsung heroines of modern ecology."

Biography

Hibbert-Ware was born in Geraldine in the South Island of New Zealand in 1869. She moved to

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

, England after the death of her father, along with her mother, brother and five sisters. From age 13, Hibbert-Ware attended

Cheltenham Ladies' College Cheltenham Ladies' College (CLC) is a private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding and day school for girls aged 11 or older in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school was established in 1853 to provide "a sound academic edu ...

where she took an interest in science. She became a teacher and regularly travelled in Europe and New Zealand birdwatching with

Gulielma Lister Gulielma Lister (28 October 1860 – 18 May 1949) was a British botanist and mycologist who was considered an international authority on Mycetozoa. Life Lister was born in Sycamore House, 881 High Road, Leytonstone (East London) on 28 October 1 ...

. Lister and Hibbert-Ware were some of the first women elected to the

Linnean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature collec ...

. She was also a member of Essex Field Club, the

British Mycological Society The British Mycological Society is a learned society established in 1896 to promote the study of fungi. Formation The British Mycological Society (BMS) was formed by the combined efforts of two local societies: the Woolhope Naturalists' Fiel ...

London Natural History Society The London Natural History Society (or LNHS as it is commonly known) is a local natural history society within the UK concerned with recording the wildlife of London, covering a circular area covering a 20-mile radius from St. Paul's Cathedral. T ...

, and was on the Council of the School Nature Study Union. Hibbert-Ware regularly wrote for the School Nature Study Union, sharing her observations to teachers. During the First World War, Hibbert-Ware took on the role of curator for the Museum of St George's in the East in

Stepney Stepney is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. Stepney is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name was applied to ...

. In 1919, Hibbert-Ware moved to "White Cottage" on the edge of

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the Lond ...

. In 1931, after Hibbert-Ware's sister-in-law died, she moved to

Girton, Cambridgeshire Girton is a village and civil parish of about 1,600 households, and 4,500 people, in Cambridgeshire, England. It lies about to the northwest of Cambridge, and is the home of Girton College, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge ...

to care for her brother, a vicar. During this time, she was the manager of a nearby village school,

Impington Village College Impington Village College is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Impington in the English county of Cambridgeshire. The buildings of 1938–1939 by Walter Gropius and Maxwell Fry are Grade I listed. The school opened in 1939, tw ...

. She died on 29 January 1944 in Girton, Cambridgeshire.

The Little Owl Food Inquiry

Hibbert-Ware is most notable for her ornithological research into the

's feeding habits. She first published her observations of the Little Owl in 1918. In the 1930s, there was a campaign, largely by the hunting groups including British Field Sports Society, to remove the Little Owl from the list of protected birds, with the accusation that they killed chicks of poultry and game birds. By 1936, the Little Owl had been removed from the protected list from fifteen counties under the approval of the Home Office. Hibbert-Ware was asked by the

British Trust for Ornithology The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is an organisation founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles. The William, Prince of Wales, Prince of Wales has been patron since October 2020. History Beginning In 1931 Max Nicholson ...

to lead an inquiry from 1936-1937. Her research involved the analysis of 2460 pellets, 76 nests and larders and 28 gizzards. She wrote in her report that only two game chicks and seven poultry chicks were taken during the 16 months studied and that the Little Owl fed largely on insects year round and some small rodents. As a newspaper at the time put it "the Little Owl was found 'not guilty'" of killing songbirds or chicks as a result of her report.

Ministry of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

accepted her report and, via the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

, sent sending a memorandum to every local authority stating that "the Little Owl is to be ranked with other Owls as a very useful bird."

Honours

In 1948, a wildlife garden was set up in her memory in

, opposite the church.

Publications

* Hibbert-Ware, A. (1922)
Notes on the Gizzard Contents of Birds Collected by Mr. Miller Christy.
''The Essex Naturalist'', 20: 142-150. * Hibbert-Ware, A. (1934). The Food of the Little Owl. ''Cambridge Bird Club Report'', 1934: 23-25. * Hibbert-Ware, A. (1936). Report of an Investigation of the Food of Captive Little Owls. ''British Birds'', 29: 302-305. * Hibbert-Ware, A. (1938). Birds of Girton College Grounds. ''Girton Review'', 107: 3- 9. * Hibbert-Ware, A. (1938). Report of the Little Owl Food Inquiry 1936-37. ''British Birds'', 31: 162-187, 205-229, 249-264. * Hibbert-Ware, A (1940). An investigation of the pellets of the Common Heron (Ardea cinerea cinerea). ''Ibis'', 82: 433-450. * Hibbert-Ware, A., & Ruttledge, R.F. (1944). A study of the inland food habits of the Common Curlew. ''British Birds'', 38: 22-27.

References

External links