John James Audubon (1785-1851)

John James Audubon, an American artist and ornithologist (one who studies birds), was a leading natural history artist who made drawings of birds directly from nature. He is mainly remembered for his Birds of America series. 

When he was a boy he enjoyed wandering through the woods, collecting things from nature, and watching the birds. He began to draw pictures of birds and animals. He was sent to a nearby school and was tutored in math, geography, drawing, music, and fencing. According to Audubon’s own account, he had little interest in school, preferring instead to fish, hunt, and explore the outdoors. When he was 35 years old, John took an 8 month trip down the Mississippi River to find and paint birds (while his wife and children stayed home). Audubon was the first person to start bird-banding studies in America. He tied lightweight strings to their legs, and he could track their travels as they nested, left the area, and then returned to the nest. 

Audubon had many drawings of birds 500+ drawings and he preferred drawings of birds caught in motion feeding, flying, or hunting. A society called the Audubon society (in his honor) was founded in 1905 to help the conservation of birds in North America. His now very famous book called Birds of America a huge leather bound book originally sold for $1,070 in 1826 ($120,000 in today’s currency). Some people who bought the book would break them apart and sell the individual pages Few of the books remained intact. In 2003 a complete leather bound four-volume set sold for over $8,000,000.