Percy Algernon Taverner (June 10, 1875 – May 9, 1947) was a Canadian ornithologist and architect.
He was born Percy Algernon Fowler in Guelph, Ontario in 1875. When his parents separated and his mother remarried, he took on his new parent's surname. Taverner, a self-taught naturalist, was the first ornithologist at the National Museum of Canada, now the Canadian Museum of Nature, from 1912 to 1942. He helped establish Point Pelee National Park and a number of bird sanctuaries across Canada, including Bonaventure Island.
Books by Taverner include:
He died in Ottawa in 1947. He is buried in Beechwood Cemetery.
The Taverner Cup, a 24-hour competitive birdathon held in eastern Ontario and western Quebec, is named after him.
Taverner is the subject of a biography entitled "A Life With Birds: Percy A. Taverner, Canadian Ornithologist", by Jack Cranmer-Byng, published in 1996 by the Ottawa Field-Naturalists Club.
The Timberline Sparrow, currently considered to be a sub-species of Brewer's Sparrow, and a sub-species of Canada Goose were given the name taverneri in his honour.
As an architect, Taverner designed in Chicago, Detroit and Ottawa, including homes on Rosedale Avenue and Leonard Avenue in Ottawa.