While John James Audubon may be the name most commonly associated with early ornithology in the United States, there were other naturalists who were hard at work before him documenting the birdlife to be found in the newly founded country – and foremost among them was Alexander Wilson. Far less well know than Audubon these days, Wilson’s nine volume work Ornithology can be said to have in many ways established the very foundation for the study of birds in the U.S.

Now, thanks to the publication of Edward H. Burtt, Jr.’s and William E. Davis, Jr.’s Alexander Wilson: The Scot Who Founded American Ornithology by Harvard University Press, many who may only have known Wilson’s name as an eponym for a warbler, a snipe, and a phalarope will have the opportunity to discover the events in the life of this important naturalist and as a result come to accord him his rightful place in the history of the natural history of America.

Look for a complete review of this book to be published in The Well-read Naturalist in the near future.