Edward Howe Forbush (April 24, 1858 – March 7, 1929) was a noted Massachusetts

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

and a prolific writer, best known for his book ''Birds of New England''.

Biography

Born in

Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a coastal U.S. city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county and a part of Metropolitan Boston as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in 2020 was 101,636, making ...

, in 1858, he was a precocious naturalist. His family moved to

West Roxbury West Roxbury is a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts bordered by Roslindale and Jamaica Plain to the northeast, the town of Brookline to the north, the cities and towns of Newton and Needham to the northwest and the town of Dedham to th ...

, when he was seven. As an older child, he conducted field studies of area wildlife and also studied

taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body via mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proc ...

. Once again, his family moved to

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

, where he became a member of the Worcester Natural History Society, and began to publish the results of his studies. At the age of sixteen he was appointed Curator of Ornithology of the Society's museum.E.B. White, "Mr. Forbush's Friends," p. 42. Edward Howe Forbush

When he was nineteen, he mounted an expedition to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

— this would be the first of many trips he took around the United States to study birds. In 1893, Forbush was appointed Ornithologist to the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture. His primary studies at this time were "economic ornithology" — that is, determining whether a given species of bird was beneficial or detrimental to agriculture. In 1908 he became the Massachusetts State Ornithologist. He was a founder of the

Massachusetts Audubon Society The Massachusetts Audubon Society, commonly known as Mass Audubon, founded in 1896 by Harriet Hemenway and Minna B. Hall and headquartered in Lincoln, Massachusetts, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to "protecting the nature of Massachusett ...

. He was also first president of the Northeastern Bird-Banding Association (now the

Association of Field Ornithologists The Association of Field Ornithologists (AFO) is an American ornithological society, with a strong focus on field studies and banding, priding itself as serving as a bridge between professional and amateur ornithologists. It was founded in 1922 ...

). His work "Birds of Massachusetts (and Other New England States)" is a three-volume set of books published 1925–1929 by the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture. Title notwithstanding, it was and remains a valuable reference regarding not just New England birds but also in regard to ornithology of the Northeast and farther afield. He was also known for his studies of the

Heath Hen The heath hen (''Tympanuchus cupido cupido'') is an extinct subspecies of the greater prairie chicken (''Tympanuchus cupido''), a large North American bird in the grouse family. It became extinct in 1932. Heath hens lived in the scrubby heat ...

and his attempts to save the species. He died in

Westborough Westborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,567 at the 2020 Census, in over 7,000 households. Incorporated in 1717, the town is governed under the New England open town meeting system, headed ...

in 1929. His wife donated a glass case containing artistically arranged ornithological specimens to the Westborough Public Library, with a plaque reading: "Presented by Etta L. Forbush in memory of her husband Edward Howe Forbush. All specimens collected prepared and mounted by Mr. Forbush at the age of eighteen." In 1931, The Forbush Bird Club of Worcester, Mass., was established in his memory.

Selected publications

''Useful Birds and their Protection''
(1907)
''Rats and Rat Riddance''
(1915)
''A History of the Game birds, Wild Fowl and Shore Birds of Massachusetts and Adjacent States''
(1916)
''The Domestic Cat''
(1916)
''Birds of Massachusetts and Other New England States''
(1925)

Notes

References

*Forbush, Edward Howe, 1925–1929, ''The Birds of Massachusetts (and Other New England States)''. 3 vol. Massachusetts Department of Agriculture *May, Dr. John B., "Edward Howe Forbush" in ''Bulletin of the Northeastern Bird Banding Association'', Vol.4, no. 2, April 1928 *May, Dr. John B., "Edward Howe Forbush: 1858-1929" in ''Bulletin of the Northeastern Bird Banding Association'', Vol. 5, no. 2, April 1929 *White, E.B. "Mr. Forbush's Friends," in ''The New Yorker,'' February 26, 1966, pp. 42–66.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forbush, Edward Howe 1858 births 1929 deaths American nature writers American ornithologists People from West Roxbury, Boston Writers from Quincy, Massachusetts Writers from Worcester, Massachusetts