When feathers were prized for fashion and birds were killed for food and trade, early conservationists fought to protect them. Author James H. McCommons will tell their story in a presentation at Newport’s Hatfield Marine Science Center this Friday, Nov. 13.
Co-presented by Seven Capes Bird Alliance, the talk is part of the center’s Lunch and Learn series.
McCommons will draw from his latest book, “The Feather Wars: And the Great Crusade to Save America’s Birds” to explore the Oregon chapter of that fight. He will discuss the establishment of the Three Arch Rocks and Malheur national wildlife refuges and the pioneering wildlife photography of William Finley and Herman Bohlman. Though the book’s events unfolded more than a century ago, the talk will consider what they still have to teach about the power of community action to protect wildlife.
McCommons is a professor emeritus at Northern Michigan University, where he taught journalism and nature writing. He has written for Audubon magazine, The Oregonian and the Los Angeles Times. His previous books include “Camera Hunter: George Shiras III and the Birth of Wildlife Photography” and “Waiting on a Train: The Embattled Future of Passenger Rail.”
Friday’s presentation runs from 1 to 2:30 pm in the Guin Library seminar room at the Hatfield Marine Science Center, located at 2030 SE Marine Science Drive. Advance registration is requested. For more information and registration, go to sevencapes.org.