November 17, 1936–August 22, 2024
With sadness, we report that Ted Davis passed away on August 22; he was 87 years old. Ted’s involvement in and influence on Bird Observer spanned decades. From 1990 to 1997, he was president of Bird Observer of Eastern Massachusetts, Inc. He was the journal’s cover art editor from 1989 to 2023, selecting the cover species illustrations and writing the corresponding natural history narratives for nearly 200 issues. Ted had a sharp eye and enthusiasm for avian behavior and loved to share his observations in Bird Observer. He contributed more than 60 personal field notes on avian foraging behavior in species as varied as herons and egrets, shorebirds, gulls, Downy Woodpeckers, and White-breasted Nuthatches. He also wrote extensive biographical sketches of prominent Massachusetts ornithologists. Ted’s final contribution to Bird Observer was a carefully annotated and chronological history of the journal covering the 50-year period 1973–2023.
Ted’s involvement in the Nuttall Ornithological Club (NOC) was equally impressive. He was elected to NOC membership in 1978, became a councilor in 1983, and subsequently served as secretary, vice-president, and president. But well beyond that, Ted became Nuttall’s “historian in residence” and wrote a history of the club (1987) that he added to throughout his years of membership, bringing the history up to date in time for the club’s 150th celebration in September 2023. Ted revitalized the NOC’s memoir series by conceiving of and coediting several volumes of Contributions to North American Ornithology. Clearly one of Nuttall’s most distinguished members for his body of work in ornithology, Ted was made an Honorary Member of the club in 2024.
Ted’s research focus was on Australian bird ecology, and he coedited several volumes of Contributions to Australasian Ornithology. A prolific author, Ted wrote many papers in various ornithological journals and was author or coauthor of three species accounts for the Birds of North America monograph series. Ted authored a biography of Ludlow Griscom (1994) and coauthored a biography of Alexander Wilson (2023). He was president of the Association of Field Ornithologists, the Wilson Ornithological Society, a fellow in the American Ornithological Society, and an active member of the Waterbird Society.
Although Ted was undoubtedly Bird Observer’s most prolific contributor, he will be remembered most for his quick wit and sense of humor. And he will be missed.
STORM-PETRELS BY WILLIAM E. DAVIS, JR.