Location
Emilie Payne
Topics
Description
Emilie Payne served as a warden for Audubon’s Texas coastal sanctuaries for 20 years, patrolling Corpus Christi Bay and protecting Chester Island. She is remembered as “The Pelican Lady” for her key work restoring the brown pelican, which had plummeted to near-extinction levels in the early 1970s due to DDT poisoning. Ms Payne guarded nesting sites from human disturbance, including fishermen, off-leash dogs, and low-flying pilots. With biologist David Blankinship, she also developed a system for banding birds to track migration patterns and growth rates.
Please note that the Disturbances audio excerpt posted here is generously shared by Dr. Jen Brown from the Gulf Podcast and Oral History Project, affiliated with the NOAA Voices Oral History Archives.
Location Notes
Emilie Payne is celebrated for her work protecting and restoring a brown pelican rookery on Sundown Island, now known as Chester Island. It would be good to place a sign near one of the jumping-off points for visiting the Island. Since a sign is proposed for Chester Smith at the Port O'Connor boat ramp, perhaps a separate place, at the Little Jetties Initial Access, would be a good site for a sign honoring Ms Payne.