 This stunning art exhibit is a collaboration between the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail and the Museum of Arts & Sciences’ Cici and Hyatt Brown Museum of Art in Daytona. “Audubon’s Birds of Florida” presents nearly eighty original prints, paintings and related artifacts focused on a selection of birds John James Audubon (1785-1851) saw or wrote about from Florida in “Ornithological Biography”, as well as many birds he painted while in Florida or shortly thereafter. A masterpiece of printmaking, these exquisite, life-size illustrations are part of Audubon’s ground-breaking 435-count compendium The Birds of America, the culmination of the artist’s ambition to paint every bird species in North America. As part of this twelve-year venture, Audubon organized a special expedition to Florida (1831-1832) to document its unique birds and their habitats.
Audubon’s Florida quest began in St. Augustine in November 1831, where he was based for three months. From there, his crew traveled along the east coast of Florida, following rivers, lakes, and marshes in canoe, schooner and skiff, exploring the St. Johns and Halifax Rivers. He spent time at Bulow Plantation and Spring Garden Plantation, now called DeLeon Springs. Suffering through swarms of mosquitos and wading through alligator-infested wetlands, the artist recorded bird species and their natural surroundings, which would make their way into the backgrounds of his realistically rendered subjects. In late April of 1832, Audubon boarded the U.S. Cutter Marion and headed to the Florida Keys, where he was enraptured by the variety, beauty and vast quantity of bird life. At the end of May, the artist returned to Charleston to complete the drawings for many of the acclaimed works on display in this exhibition.
 Purple Heron Plate 431, from Birds of America. This species is now known as the Reddish Egret.
The exhibition is an experiential companion to the beautifully illustrated catalog, Audubon’s Birds of Florida, written by guest curator Clay Henderson, environmental lawyer, historian and President Emeritus of the Florida Audubon Society. With a specific investigation into relevant conservation issues, this project brings an expanded interpretation of the complex legacy of J. J. Audubon, a brilliant yet flawed man of his time, who greatly advanced the world’s understanding of ornithological science and the interdependence of wildlife with the natural environment.
John James Audubon’s Florida expedition took him through 21 locations that are now part of the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail (full list below). The Trail allows today’s birders to follow in Audubon's footsteps and encounter many of the iconic species he once painted and described.
Anastasia State Park
Bahia Honda State Park
Big Talbot Island State Park
Bulow Creek State Park
De Leon Springs State Park
Dry Tortugas National Park
Everglades National Park
Fort Caroline National Memorial and Theodore Roosevelt Area
Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park
Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve
Huguenot Memorial Park
John D. Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park
Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden
Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge
North Peninsula State Park
Port Orange Causeway Park
River to Sea Preserve
St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park
Tomoka State Park
Vilano Boat Ramp
Washington Oaks Gardens State Park
 Roseate Spoonbill Plate 321, from Birds of America.
 Looking for places to bird, or want to share your love of birding with someone just getting started? Try the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail’s free guidebooks! With over 500 locations around the state, each guide covers a different part of Florida: South, West, East and Panhandle. Get the full set or the one that best suits your needs. Order yours here by following these simple steps:
- Under Category, select “Birdwatching” from the drop-down menu and then click “search”
- Check the box next to the guide(s) you wish to order
- Click “Submit Selection(s)”
- Click “Check Out”
- Complete the Customer Shipping Information
- Click “Place Order”
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