April 1 is International Bird Day

Photo by Ilya Ukolov
Photo by Ilya Ukolov

In Russia, International Bird Day officially takes place on April 1. It is an annual event timed to the return of birds from places of wintering.

The holiday dedicated to birds was celebrated for the first time in the American town of Oil City in 1894. A teacher of biology organized the event at school. The idea was supported by local newspapers that started to promote holiday. Soon Bird Day was widely celebrated in the USA and Europe.

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Photo by Mansur Serganov
Photo by Mansur Serganov

The International Convention on the Protection of Birds Beneficial in Agriculture was adopted in Paris In 1902. It was signed by more than 10 countries. And in 1950, the International Convention for the Protection of Birds was signed in Paris, replacing the previous document for most of the participating governments.

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Photo by Yury Sorokin
Photo by Yury Sorokin

The idea of ​​celebrating Bird Day was supported in Russia. Even in days of Imperial Russia, the Russian Geographical Society was engaged in protection of birds. Moreover, the protection of birds was in the focus of the Russian Society for the Acclimatization of Animals and Plants and the Russian Society for the Patronage of Animals. Young men organizations, e.g., May unions for studying and protecting birds, were also founded. After the revolution of 1917 the May unions were closed, but the idea of ​​ bird protection was supported by Young Naturalists Organizations. In the summer of 1924, the first and only USSR All-Union Congress of Young People was held, at which instructor of the Central Bio-station Nikolai Dergunov proposed to establish Bird Day. Since 1926, this date has been celebrated annually.

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Photo by Lina Erendey
Photo by Lina Erendey