Roger Tory Peterson

The 1960 Field Guide to the Birds of Texas grew from a unique partnership between the birder and artist, Roger Tory Peterson, and the Texas Game and Fish Commission. With leadership from Executive Secretary Howard Dudgen (1906-1986), the Commission underwrote the book’s printing and distribution at a time when commercial publishers were reluctant to take on a single-state guidebook. Using the state’s Special Game and Fish Fund, supported by hunting and fishing license fees, to subsidize the Guide showed a major pivot for the Commission – a shift from managing principally game species to an interest in all wildlife. With the Commission’s backing, and Peterson’s beautiful artistry, accessible field marks, and willingness to print his first and only single-state bird guide, this collaboration played a major role in promoting and expanding nature tourism and conservation in the state.