David Allen Sibley (born October 22, 1961, in
Plattsburgh, New York
Plattsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The population of the sur ...
) is an American
ornithologist
Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...
. He is the author and illustrator of ''
The Sibley Guide to Birds'', which rivals
Roger Tory Peterson
Roger Tory Peterson (August 28, 1908 – July 28, 1996) was an American natural history, naturalist, Conservationist (biology), conservationist, citizen scientist ornithology, ornithologist, artist and illustrator, educator, and a founder of th ...
's as the most comprehensive guides for North American ornithological field identification.
Sibley has also authored a follow-up book, ''
The Sibley Guide to Bird Life & Behavior''.
Life and work
The son of
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
ornithologist Fred Sibley, David Sibley began birding in childhood.
Sibley got his start as a birdwatcher in
Cape May Point, New Jersey in 1980, after dropping out of college. A largely self-taught bird illustrator, he was inspired to pursue creating his own illustrated field guide after leading tours in the 1980s and 1990s and finding that existing field guides did not generally illustrate or describe alternate or juvenile plumages of birds. He cites European wildlife artist
Lars Jonsson as a great influence on his own work.
In 2002, he received the
Roger Tory Peterson Award from the
American Birding Association
The American Birding Association (ABA) is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1969, dedicated to recreational birdwatching, birding in Canada and the United States. It has been called "the standard-bearer for serious birding in North America." ...
for lifetime achievement in promoting the cause of birding.
In 2006, he was awarded the
Linnaean Society of New York
The Linnaean Society of New York (LSNY) was established in 1878, in the city of New York, United States of America, by a group of amateurs interested in natural science, especially ornithology. The founding members included H.P. Bailey, Eugene Pi ...
's
Eisenmann Medal
The Eisenmann Medal is awarded by the Linnaean Society of New York (LSNY) in recognition of the recipient's ornithological excellence and encouragement of amateur efforts in ornithology and birding.
The medal commemorates the ornithologist and p ...
.
Sibley is married with two sons and lives in
Concord, Massachusetts
Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. In the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is n ...
.
[
]
References
External links
Sibley Guides: Presenting the Work of David Allen Sibley
Blog- Sibley Guides
Random House Interview
Living on Earth Interview
1961 births
Living people
American ornithologists
American bird artists
People from Cape May Point, New Jersey
People from Plattsburgh, New York
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