Catesby's Birds of Colonial America

“Glorious. . . . Feduccia places Catesby’s work within the greater context of the evolution of science itself in the colonial period. For that reason alone, this is a book that speaks to human history, natural history, Native American ethnography, geography, and cultural studies. The brilliance of this book is that Feduccia is content to stay out of the spotlight, only stepping in to provide insight, context, and color commentary when necessary.” — Southern Cultures

“Both beautiful in the simple accuracy of its drawings and historically interesting for its pictures and descriptions of species now extinct.” — New Yorker

“Feduccia rescues Catesby from oblivion with a fresh appreciation of his pioneering studies. . . . This glimpse of colonial ornithology will attract historians as well as birders.” — Publishers Weekly

“Catesby’s Birds of Colonial America is a celebration of Catesby’s considerable accomplishments. After all, Catesby gave us the best and most detailed look at the flora and fauna of the New World until the time of Audubon.” — Southern Living

“All involved parties have done a service by making Catesby’s charming art and writing easily available. Highly recommended.” — Library Journal

“American ornithologists can no longer claim unavailability as an excuse for not having read Catesby. The first 'profusely' illustrated tome on America’s birds should be on every ornithologist’s night stand.” — Wilson Bulletin

“Everyone who has an historical interest in ornithology or birdwatching will welcome this book.” — Roger Tory Peterson

“Even before Audubon, there was Mark Catesby. Catesby is a national treasure who recorded the splendors of a newly explored continent. Making him accessible to a broad audience is a gesture of patriotism and scholarship both. To acknowledge Catesby is to honor conservation, the environment, fine art, historical scholarship, and the spirit of a pioneer. Nothing less than this splendid undertaking would have done all of that.” — Roger Caras, president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals