Endangered and Extinct Birds Come To Life

It also features success stories of birds that have rebounded or have been removed from the Endangered Species List. Due to their sensitivity to light, each original Audubon watercolor can be exhibited for only a brief period every 10 years. After closing in March, this year's flock will migrate off to the safety of the N-YHS's storage for at least ten years; unfortunately, by the time these watercolors reappear, species they have preserved on paper may have disappeared entirely.

The show is the fourth in a five-part annual Audubon series mounted by the New-York Historical Society. Each Aviary features different objects drawn from the Society's permanent Audubon collection, the largest single repository of Audubon objects in the world. This year's exhibition tells the accounts of 42 species of North American birds and explains the current conservation status of each-extinct, endangered, declining, rebounding, threatened, or success. Audubon's legacy as an environmentalist is explored in addition to the birds' fascinating stories.

"Audubon's celebration of the American wilderness and his later realization of the growing threat to birds and their habitats have made him one of the patron saints of the environmental movement," notes Dr. Roberta J.M. Olson, curator of Audubon's Aviary 2008. -- www.nyhistory.org