Ethnoornithology is an interdisciplinary subject and combines anthropological, cognitive and linguistic perspectives with natural scientific approaches to the description and interpretation of people's knowledge and use of birds.
The broader focus is on how birds are perceived, used and managed in human societies, including their use for food, medicine and personal adornment, as well as their use in divination and ritual.
The work of Ralph Bulmer in New Guinea, culminating in his collaboration with Ian Saem Majnep in writing Birds of My Kalam Country (1977), set a new standard for ethnoornithological research, and this book has deservedly become a classic of modern ethno-ornithology.
Mark Bonta's Seven Names for the Bellbird (2003), which highlights the importance of local traditions and practices relating to birds for the future of biodiversity conservation in Honduras, and Ricardo Rozzi's Multi-ethnic Bird Guide of the Subantarctic Forests of South America (2003), which focuses on the integration of traditional ornithological knowledge and environmental ethics in southern Chile, provide good examples of this trend.
This realisation is the basis for founding the Ethno-ornithology World Archive (EWA), a collaborative project between Oxford University (linking the Department of Zoology and School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography) and BirdLife International.