We look forward to seeing you Tuesday October 22 at the Columbus Audubon's monthly program. Members and guests quite welcomed! Details below - Darlene Sillick Columbus Audubon, co-program chair Ohio Young Birder Club, co-advisor In 1794 a young poet, labor activist, and weaver arrived in Philadelphia, a refugee from his native Scotland. His first letter home exclaims over the bright colors and abundance of the birds he found in the fields and forests of America. He taught school, wrote poetry, and engaged in the political discussion of the young democracy. In 1803 he met William Bartram and conceived the idea of describing all the birds of the United States. With Bartram's guidance Wilson taught himself to draw and paint birds, to identify them, and began his collection during a walk from Philadelphia to Niagara Falls in the autumn of 1804. Volume 1 of Wilson's American Ornithology was published in 1808 and volume 9 in 1814, the year after his death. He wrote, edited, illustrated, and researched all nine volumes. He also sold subscriptions. It was a monumental achievement in science, art, and literature. This abundantly illustrated program tells us more about how important Wilson's work was to the development of American science and culture. Many of you know Dr Edward (Jed) Burtt, Professor of Zoology at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware. Jed has a distinguished record in ornithology: his research into the microbiology of feathers led to his discovery of feather-degrading bacteria on wild birds, new insights into the evolution of avian color and maintenance behavior, and patents on a composting process for feather-waste from the poultry industry. He serves as co-director of the Ohio Wesleyan Honors Program and was recognized at the 2011 Ohio Professor of the year by the Kresge Foundation for Higher Education and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. For more information on Jed Burtt's background and work, check out his <http://bio.owu.edu/ehburtt.html> OWU Web page. Meanwhile, Jed has written a book on Wilson's life, so who better to tell us about the life and times of Alexander Wilson? We will have a few copies of his book, Alexander Wilson: the Scot who Founded American Ornithology, at the program and Jed will be signing copies so bring yours if you have one. 7:00 - 7:15 pm: CA Short Program: Join Cody M. Kent, student at Ohio Wesleyan University, as he discusses Feather degrading-bacteria on birds: abundance and distribution of an agent of natural selection. Cody is a student who works closely with Jed Burtt; seeing research "in the wild" right here in central Ohio should be a fascinating experience. 7:15 - 7:30 pm: Social time and refreshments and time for the bird quiz with study skins on loan from Dr, Angelika Nelson, The Ohio State University 7:30 - 9:00 pm: Main program, door prizes Columbus Audubon public programs are free and open to the public. All programs are held at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center 505 West Whittier Street in the Scioto-Audubon Metro Park on the Whittier Peninsula. www.columbusaudubon.org for more information. ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]