Birdathon at the Cal Academy of Sciences
By Carol and Steve Lombardi
Our Birdathon visit to the California Academy of Sciences bird collection last Thursday coincided with their monthly Nightlife program, so our descent to the basement was accompanied by booming dance music. Jack Dumbacher, Curator of Collections for the Academy (official title: Chairman and Curator, Department of Ornithology and Mammalogy) was our enthusiastic guide. After a short PowerPoint introduction detailing the sources, types, and uses of the collection, he asked what we’d like see.
“Galapagos Finches!”
“Parrots!”
“Ivory-billed Woodpeckers!”
Jack obliged with a comprehensive tour of the huge and venerable trove — started in 1852 and now numbering thousands of specimens — safely stored in the Academy’s reinforced state-of-the-art steel cabinets.
Much more than a simple inventory, Jack’s presentation touched on the history of multiple specimens, from the few survivors of the Academy’s pre-1906 collection to his personal, painful discovery of a poisonous bird species in New Guinea. We got our first (and likely only) glimpse of male and female Ivory-billed Woodpeckers and up-close looks at the brilliant plumages of various Birds of Paradise. He talked us through the several drawers showing beak adaptations of Galapagos Finches, then let us marvel at the colors (and lethal beaks) in the parrot specimens.
Even though we couldn’t add these fabulous birds to our life lists, it was a fascinating evening thanks to Jack, who serves on the Golden Gate Bird Alliance board, and to the GGBA Birdathon.
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Want to join the Birdathon fun? There are still spaces available on a number of field trips, throughout April, including one that Carol and Steve Lombardi will co-lead to Mines Road and Del Valle Park on Sunday April 13. For information, see our Birdathon Field Trips page. We are now halfway towards our Birdathon goal of raising $50,000 to support GGBA’ conservation and environmental education activities — help us raise the other half!