Product Description

Experiences of an Ornithologist Along the Highways and Byways of Bolivia, South America is the extraordinary, fascinating account by intrepid ornithologist, Melbourne Armstrong Carriker, Jr., of his three ornithological expeditions in Bolivia in the 1930s. He and his assistants collected a total of 8,705 bird specimens, including some new species, and many new species of bird lice. His lively, colorful, descriptive, often humorous, piquant accounts make highly entertaining reading. He worked from the steaming jungles to the high mountains, often subjected to tropical diseases, poisonous plants and animals, poor diets, extreme physical exertion, and stress. Incredibly, he survived without major accidents. The disappointments, hardships, occasional adversarial situations, as well as pleasurable experiences, are described vividly, sometimes poignantly.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1662404 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 480 pages

About the Author
Melbourne Armstrong Carriker, Jr. was born in Illinois in 1879. His early childhood was spent in Nebraska where he developed strong interests in ornithology. He entered the University there, but completed only two years, considering he had learned enough to become a professional naturalist. There followed ornithological expeditions to Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Colombia. In Colombia he married, developed a coffee plantation, and continued collecting birds and bird lice. In 1927 he and his family of five children emigrated to the States. Between 1929 and 1938 he was ornithologist, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, leading expeditions in Peru and Bolivia. Thereafter he returned to Colombia, and for the rest of his life continued collecting birds for museums.

Customer Reviews

A riveting tale of survival, disobedience, hardships, will-power, the unexpected, and the courage to explore
Experiences Of An Ornithologist Along The Highways And Byways Of Bolivia: Collecting Birds In An Isolated, Magnificent Land In The Nineteen Thirties is the outstanding autobiographical story of ornithologist Melbourne Armstrong Carriker, Jr. and his three expeditions in Bolivia back in the 1930's. Vividly detailed with an informed grasp of the South American terrain and with the poignant authorship of first hand observation, Experiences Of An Ornithologist Along The Highways And Byways Of Bolivia remarkably depicts a riveting tale of survival, disobedience, hardships, will-power, the unexpected, and the courage to explore. Experiences Of An Ornithologist Along The Highways And Byways Of Bolivia is very strongly recommended reading as an epic true-life tale of one man's extraordinary personal and professional accomplishments.