The Greenland White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons flavirostris

10 Acknowledgements
A thesis is supposed to be primarily the work of
a single individual, but all the happy experiences
recounted here would simply not have been possible
without the enormous help and support of
a huge number of people. It is invidious to list
folk as if to rank to assistance, but there are so
many I would wish to acknowledge. First and
foremost, I would like to thank my parents for
indulging their son and allowing him to pursue
his often rather eccentric interests, the freedom
to explore has given me great pleasure ever since.
My family, especially my wife Anne, but latterly
also Gwen and Mia, have been enormously tolerant
in my absence, yet so welcoming on every
home coming – I could have achieved nothing
without their support throughout. At university,
Andrew Agnew, an inspirational character who
influenced so many graduates of our day, ignited
my interest in the glorious but frustrating field of
ecology into full flame. It was he more than anyone
who proved to us we could achieve the impossible,
and many of us owe him a tremendous
debt. It was Will and Alison Higgs, however, who
turned the dream of an expedition to Greenland
into the reality of 1979, and to them we all are
especially grateful for everything that has flowed
since. My thanks also to David Stroud, with
whom it continues to be a great privilege to work.
David is one of the great “backroom boffins” who
has steered nature conservation through the
stormy waters of the 1990s, but to see him come
alive in the field is to be reminded of the cost to
research of his enormous personal commitment
to conservation. It has been a great experience to
work with David over many years and I am indebted
to him for so much constructive help and
flow of great ideas and discussions, many of
which are presented here. His detailed comments
upon an earlier draft were a tremendous boost.
They reminded me what an adventure it had been
to work together in the early days. I owe a tremendous
personal debt to Hugh Boyd, who in
1979 placed enormous faith in a ragged band of
undergraduates, the fledgling Greenland Whitefronted
Goose Study and to our continuing surprise
has (apparently) been taking us seriously
ever since. It is impossible to describe the influence
Hugh has had upon my life, and he continues
to be there whenever needed, for which I have
never been adequately able to express my gratitude,
either in word or deed. Hugh was even pa-
tient and kind enough to read this entire thesis
several times and offer constructive and highly
stimulating comments. His transatlantic perspective
and great patience with incompetence is immeasurable
and he continues to stimulate, open
doors and cross-fertilise for us all. For this I am
especially extremely grateful. We met Hugh
thanks to the good offices of Sir Peter Scott who
was also gracious enough to understand our enthusiasm
when we started our studies. His influence
remains tangible almost every day, and I was
very grateful to him for the opportunity to contribute
to his work at the Wildfowl Trust, latterly
the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. I must also express
my deep gratitude to Henning Noer, who
not only engineered the unlikely prospect of my
working at Kalø in Denmark, but was also responsible
for finding me time in my work plan to compile
this thesis. I sincerely hope that its production
will provide some satisfaction and stimulus
that he, too, will one day deliver his own dispotat!
Although never the major subject of investigation,
the study of Greenland White-fronted Geese has
been supported financially by a huge number of
people and institutions. I would especially like
to thank all the people who privately supported
our expeditions to Greenland, and all the adopters
of ringed birds who enthusiastically followed the
subsequent movements of geese marked in
Greenland. Acknowledgements of the major
sources of financial support given to projects in
recent years are given in the accompanying papers.
However, I would especially thank the Wildfowl
& Wetlands Trust and the Danish National
Environmental Research Institute for their commitment
and for supporting this work whilst in
their employ over the years. The Irish National
Parks & Wildlife Service were kind enough to
fund a review of the research programme in 1990,
which funded Stephanie Warren’s work at that
time, but I gratefully acknowledge their support
in many different ways over many years.
Indeed, looking back on so many happy times
spent in Ireland, it is with much warmth that I
enjoy the friendship of many there. I must single
out Alyn Walsh for his companionship and skill
on so many catching expeditions and so many
happy hours in the field. His family, Alice and
Oran, have also been so welcoming and kind
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