orig. Fougère Rabin or Jean Rabin later Jean-Jacques Fougère Audubon
born April 26, 1785, Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue, West Indies
died Jan. 27, 1851, New York, N.Y., U.S.
U.S. ornithologist, artist, and naturalist known for his drawings and paintings of North American birds.
Born to a French merchant in Haiti, he returned with his father to France, where he briefly studied painting with Jacques-Louis David before moving to the U.S. at age 18. From his father's Pennsylvania estate, he made the first American bird-banding experiments. After failing in business ventures, he concentrated on drawing and studying birds, which took him from Florida to Labrador. His extraordinary four-volume Birds of America was published in London in 1827–38. He simultaneously published the extensive accompanying text Ornithological Biography (5 vol., 1831–39). His multivolume Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America (1842–54) was completed by his sons. Though his bird poses are sometimes unrealistic (the result of painting dead birds wired into position) and some details are inaccurate, few argue with the excellence of his illustrations as art, and his studies were fundamental to New World ornithology.