Location
Herbert Friedmann
Years: 1900–1987 | Role: Ornithologist | County: Brewster
Topics
Description
Friedmann, an ornithologist who worked at the Smithsonian for more than 30 years, had several important roles in Texas. First, during his post-doctoral research at Cornell, in 1924, he documented the array of birds in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, laying down an important baseline for future inventories. Second, his dissertation and decades of further pioneering work focused on parasitism and cowbirds. This early information had great value for protection of such rare Texas songbirds as the black-capped vireo and golden-cheeked warbler. And last, he and Alexander Wetmore made an astounding discovery in the Big Bend in 1932, where they found the remains of at least 3 California condors, including an immature bird, proving that the species did indeed once range into Texas, and even nested in the state.
Location Notes
Because Friedmann helped discover 1,600 to 3,000-year-old remains of nesting California condors at Mule Ears Peaks, the Mule Ears Viewpoint could provide a good spot for a historical marker in his honor.
Files
- Alexander Wetmore and Herbert Friedman, "The California Condor in Texas," The Condor, Volume 35, Issue 1, Article 20, 1933.
- Herbert Friedmann, "Additional Data on Victims of Parasitic Cowbirds," The Auk, Volume 66, Number 2, April 1949.
- Herbert Friedmann, "Further Additions to the List of Birds Victimized by the Cowbird," The Wilson Bulletin, Volume 46, Number 2, June 1934.
- Herbert Friedmann, "Further Information on Host Relations of Parasitic Cowbirds," The Auk, Volume 88, Number 2, April 1971.
- Herbert Friedmann, "Notes on Birds Observed in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas During May 1924," The Auk, Volume 42, Number 4, October 1925.