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Audubon's Compositional Masterpiece.
The Famous Extinct Carolina Parakeet of the American Southeast.
"Our Parakeets are very rapidly diminishing in number; and in some districts, where twenty-five years ago they were plentiful, scarcely any are now to be seen." - Audubon, Ornithological Biography, page 138.
Long regarded as one of the most striking plates in the first edition of Audubon's monumental Birds of America, this aquatint of the Carolina Parakeet carries particular poignancy as a record of an extinct species. Audubon's name would become synonymous with bird conservation in America, and here we see why - in the late 1820s he was already documenting the parakeets' rapid decline, noting their disappearance from regions where they had been plentiful just decades before. The composition showcases his mastery of group scenes, with seven parakeets arranged in dynamic poses that capture their gregarious nature as they feed on cockleburs, a favorite food source. Their vibrant plumage - green bodies, yellow heads, and orange faces - creates a striking contrast with the earthy tones of the dried foliage and spiny fruits. Through varied postures of feeding, flight, and alert observation, Audubon conveys the species' social behavior and physical beauty.
Natural History of the Carolina Parakeet
The Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis) was one of North America's only native parrots, characterized by its striking green body, yellow head, and orange face. Once abundant across a vast range - from the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast and Florida, and as far west as Nebraska - these social birds gathered in large, noisy flocks throughout dense forests, particularly near rivers and swamps. They were known for their preference for cockleburs (seen in this image) and other seeds and fruits, a dietary habit that brought them into conflict with farmers, while their tendency to return to locations where flock members had been killed made them particularly vulnerable to hunters who sought their colorful feathers. This fatal loyalty, combined with widespread habitat destruction, ultimately led to their extinction, with the last wild sighting recorded in Florida in 1910 and the final known specimen dying in captivity at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1918.
Commentary
Susanne Low (page 44) says of the image:
Painting and plate depict seven birds feeding in a Common Cocklebur. Probably painted in Louisiana in 1825. The Carolina Parakeet was once plentiful, but the last one died in the Cincinnati Zoological Gardens in 1918. Of the seven birds depicted, six have the yellow heads of adults, but the second bird from the bottom has the green head of an immature. Audubon implied in his notes that this bird was a different "variety," by which he may have meant "species."
Roberta Olson, in her impressive catalog Audubon's watercolors, says of the drawing:
The artist's partly erased inscriptions reveal that this watercolor was a real labor of love. JJA's nearly cinematic group, arranged in an elegant reversed S-curve, features seven birds, the top one spreading fourteen tail feathers, which JJA noted was "So uncommon." He recorded that his male specimen measured fourteen inches in length, with a wingspan of twenty-two inches. The parakeets perch on a common cocklebur, the source of their favorite food. With a deft stratigraphy of layers and thousands of parallel strokes, Audubon suggested the textures of their plumage, and, in a tour-de-force of draftsmanship, he indicated every shaft (rachis) and barb, suggesting even the barbules of each feather. His glittering graphite becomes the equivalent of the shimmering iridescence once seen in nature when the bird moved in the light. Because no film footage of the Carolina Parakeet exists, Audubon's brilliant depiction alone preserves the vivacity of the extinct species.
Excerpts from the Ornithological Biography
Audubon's own commentary on the birds, excerpted from his text to accompany the Birds of America.
On their declining numbers:
Our Parakeets are very rapidly diminishing in number; and in some districts, where twenty-five years ago they were plentiful, scarcely any are now to be seen. At that period, they could be procured as far up the tributary waters of the Ohio as the Great Kenhawa, the Scioto, the heads of the Miami, the mouth of the Manimee at its junction with Lake Erie, on the Illinois River, and sometimes as far north-east as Lake Ontario, and along the eastern districts as far as the boundary line between Virginia and Maryland. At the present day, very few are to be found higher than Cincinnati, nor is it until you reach the mouth of the Ohio that Parakeets are met with in considerable numbers. I should think that along the Mississippi there is not now half the number that existed fifteen years ago.
For the feeding behavior shown in the plate:
It alights upon it, plucks the bur from the stem with its bill, takes it from the latter with one foot, in which it turns it over until the joint is properly placed to meet the attacks of the bill, when it bursts it open, takes out the fruit, and allows the shell to drop.
For the coloring of the adults (from the technical description at the end):
Fore part of the head and the cheeks bright scarlet, that colour extending over and behind the eye, the rest of the head and the neck pure bright yellow... The general colour of the other parts is emerald-green, with light blue reflections, lighter beneath.
For distinguishing the young bird shown:
The young bird is known by the comparative shortness of the tail, and the uniform green colour of the head.
For the notable variation in one female:
The upper figure represents a kind of occasional variety, with fourteen tail-feathers. The specimen from which the drawing was taken was shot at Bayou Sara, in Louisiana.
States
Low's first of two variants, with the plate number in Arabic rather than Roman numerals.
John James Audubon's Double Elephant Folio Birds of America: The Havell Edition (1827-1838)
The present hand-colored original Audubon print comes from the Havell double elephant folio edition of Birds of America, the greatest color plate book ever made. This work was Audubon's magnum opus and was published at immense expense over almost a decade, between 1827 and 1838. The Havell Edition of Birds of America included 435 hand-color aquatinted plates, and it is estimated that between 165 and 175 complete sets were produced. Today, a given individual image probably exists in no more than 60 loose examples, though for some plates the number will be much lower. Audubon aquatint engravings from the Havell Edition were printed on J. Whatman wove paper, the best paper in the world at the time - and to this day an exceptional fine art paper. The sheets of paper were approximately 26½ x 39½ inches untrimmed. Importantly, they all feature watermarks that are variations on "J.Whatman" or "J.Whatman / Turkey Mill" with the date of manufacture sometimes appended. In addition to the name of the bird depicted (and sometimes its gender, age, and botanical notes as well) Audubon's name and the name of the engraver also appear printed on Havell Edition plates. On the lower left side is printed "Drawn from nature by John James Audubon F.R.S. and F.L.S." (Fellow of the Royal Society of London and Fellow of the Linnaean Society). The only exception to this is Plate 64, Swamp Sparrow, in which Lucy Audubon is credited. On the lower right side is printed "Engraved by" (in a few cases the words "Engraved and colored by" or "Retouched by" appear) followed by the name W.H. Lizars or Robert Havell, Jr. (Sometime after his father's death in 1832 Robert Havell, Jr. dropped the Jr.)
Robert Havell Jr. was the principal engraver of Audubon's Birds of America, perhaps the most significant natural history publication of all time.
Havell's aquatint engraving of all but the first ten plates of John James Audubon's Birds of America is now recognized as a significant artistic achievement in its own right and an essential component of the success of Birds of America. He and Audubon became close friends and associates during their lengthy collaboration.
In 1839, Havell went to America at the invitation of Audubon, first residing in Brooklyn. He settled in Ossining on the Hudson River and later moved to Tarrytown, New York, living there from 1857 through his remaining years. Although Havell continued to work in aquatint and engraving (primarily city panoramas), he devoted most of his attention to painting the countryside of the Hudson River valley. He travelled frequently in a homemade horse-drawn trailer, sketching and taking notes and translating his sketches into larger oils.
Robert Havell Jr. is considered a member of the Hudson River School of American painters.
John James Audubon (1785-1851), born Jean-Jacques Rabin in Haiti on April 26, 1785, was a Franco-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter, celebrated for his detailed illustrations of North American birds in their natural habitats. His major work, a color-plate book titled The Birds of America, is considered one of the finest ornithological works ever produced.
Audubon's early years were shaped by tumultuous events. Born out of wedlock in the French Caribbean colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) to a Creole mother and a French sea captain, he was smuggled to Nantes, France, during a slave rebellion. There, he was adopted by his father and stepmother and raised as their own. His childhood in France was filled with outdoor adventures and initial forays into drawing.
In 1803, to avoid conscription into Napoleon's army, he was sent to America, where he managed one of his father's estates near Philadelphia. This move further kindled his profound interest in the wildlife of the New World. Despite a few failed business ventures and challenges, Audubon remained committed to his passion for nature and art.
His dream to document all of the birds of America began to take form in the 1810s. Travelling through America's wilderness, Audubon observed, hunted, and painted birds. He developed a particular technique that involved wiring freshly killed birds into a natural pose on a board. This innovative method combined with his keen observation allowed him to create more lifelike illustrations than many of his contemporaries.
Failing to secure American subscribers or a publisher for his extensive collection, Audubon traveled to the United Kingdom in 1826. There, The Birds of America was met with critical acclaim. Between 1827 and 1838, this work was published in sections, comprising 435 hand-colored, life-sized prints made from engraved plates.
Audubon followed this success with a companion work, Ornithological Biography, which provided detailed narratives about each species. His later work included studies of American mammals, and he became one of the founding members of the New-York Historical Society.
Despite facing numerous challenges throughout his life, including financial hardships and criticism from some peers, Audubon's dedication to his work resulted in an invaluable contribution to ornithology and American art. He died on January 27, 1851, in New York City. Today, his legacy continues, notably through the National Audubon Society, which promotes conservation and appreciation of birds and their habitats.
