Rarities Committees, following the model of the British one, are active in most of the European countries, co-operating in support of faunistic research. These are teams of experts in field ornithology, assigned to verify reports of bird species recognized as “faunistically important” to a certain area and period. Acceptance by the proper committee is a perequist for consideration of a record’s validity, thus for its acknowledgement at international range as a scientific fact.
The Polish Avifaunistic Commission exists since 1972, appointed at the 10th Congress of the Polish Zoological Society by a resolution of the General Meeting of the Ornithological Section. It started as composed of: Ludwik Tomiałojć (chairman), Jerzy Gotzman (secretary), Jan Bednorz, Jerzy Desselberger and Jacek Wasilewski. In the following tenures J. Wasilewski was replaced by Józef Witkowski, and J. Gotzman by Tadeusz Stawarczyk, the latter performing the function of chairman after L. Tomiałojć’s resignation in 1995; at that time the Commission’s manner of work was modernized, as well as its staff enlarged to six persons, and after the next modernization in 2008 to seven. As a member of the Association of European Records and Rarities Committees (AERC), the Commission follows its guidelines and remains in steady contact with foreign experts.
Current basic information is periodically published as communiqués in the quarterly “Notatki Ornitologiczne / Ornis Polonica”, where since 1984 also annual reports have regularly been appearing. The Commission’s pronouncements are given on the principle of unanimity of all its members, who express their opinion on each report individually. In case of concordant acceptance positive pronouncements are given immediately; controversial reports are discussed on sessions held twice yearly.
Present members of the Avifaunistic Commission:
Tadeusz Stawarczyk (chairman)
Muzeum Przyrodnicze UWr
Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335 Wrocław; tel. 691 401 028; e-mail: tadeusz.stawarczyk@uwr.edu.pl
Zbigniew Kajzer (secretary)
tel. 502 564 982, e-mail: atricilla@interia.pl
Tomasz Cofta
Hoene 5A m.5, 80-041 Gdańsk; tel. 58 306 93 73; e-mail: tomek1@orunia.nsm.pl
Marcin Faber
tel. 601 251 888; e-mail: marfaber@poczta.onet.pl
Jan Lontkowski
Muzeum Przyrodnicze UWr
Sienkiewicza 21, 50-335 Wrocław; tel. 691 025 750; e-mail: jlont@biol.uni.wroc.pl
Paweł Malczyk
tel. 692 496 319; e-mail: pawmal@gazeta.pl
Michał Skakuj
tel. 500 229 194; e-mail: michal.skakuj@michalskakuj.com
Paweł Szymański
Zakład Ekologii Behawioralnej, Instytut Biologii Środowiska UAM
ul. Uniwersytetu Poznańskiego 6, 61-614 Poznań; e-mail: paweelszymanski@gmail.com