When writing your annotations, you can use reporting verbs to refer to either the author (“the author claims”) or the text (“the article outlines”). In this case you should use present tense ("argues" not "argued").
For articles that report on research studies, you can use the past tense to refer to the study (“this study examined...”).
Example annotation: [All bolded text in brackets identify parts of the annotation and should not be included in your own writing]
[Citation] Baker, J., & Whelan, R. J. (1994) Ground Parrots and fire at Barren Grounds, New South Wales: a long-term study and an assessment of management implications. Emu, 94(4), pp 300-304.
[Context] This study was based on a series of censuses of Ground Parrots in the same locality from immediately after fire to 10.7 years post-fire. [Description of research] Beaters were used at a distance of 10 metres apart to flush birds from the heath vegetation and create count per hectare. Previous studies have recommended that controlled burning occur every 8- 10 years, based on the fact that some surveys have indicated lack of Ground Parrots after a fire age (number of years without fire) of 11- 15 years. [Results] Results of this study indicate that abundance appears to plateau at approximately 0.25 birds/ha after around 5 years. However, some areas where Ground Parrots occur have experienced multiple fires which may further affect population.
[Evaluation] This work is useful for the literature review for my field trip report as a volunteer with Ornithology Australia. [Significance to topic] It provides some insight into the census-taking methodology, which I will be working on and the issues associated with dense vegetation. [Relevance to your study] I will also be focussing on further impacts of climate change in this region since this study was done.
Sample adapted and used with student permission.
For more examples of annotated bibliographies, see the Word and PDF files below.
