135 Years of Ornithology in Bulgaria: The Role of the National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences in the Development of Ornithology in Bulgaria – Representatives, Collections and Achievements

For the first time, an attempt has been made to present in a systematized form chronologically the development of ornithological studies at the National Museum of Natural History in Sofia (Bulgaria) from its foundation in the last decades of the 19th century to the present day. This 135-year period (1889-2024) includes the work of 12 curators of the ornithological collections. Their major contributions and most-significant ornithological publications are also presented.