[TN-Bird] Re: Jeff Wilson passing
- From: Mac McWhirter <npmcwhirter@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: TN-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 12 Feb 2013 06:13:42 -0600
Dear fellow Tennessee birders,
Mike Todd has written a wonderfully eloquent tribute to his friend and
fellow birder Jeff Wilson this morning. Jeff's contributions to the
enjoyment of birding in Tennessee and neighboring states over many decades
is almost beyond measure. Even folks who never met him personally owe him a
huge debt of gratitude for many unique insights into and observations of
our natural world.
It is impossible to imagine a more dedicated or persistent observer. If
it was rainy and muddy, he was out there. If there was a circuit to run in
a particular birding season, it was never too long. If it took sitting for
days to identify a certain bird, he patiently sat there alone and scoped
all day in places that, as we all know, are sometimes unimaginably remote
and unappealing locales! And, most important, if an inexperienced birder
was clueless about the behavior or subtle field marks of a tough species,
he spent the time to teach and make them better observers. He piqued
interest and skills in us all.
His example of keen observation, persistence and sharing the knowledge
gained will live on through many birders for a long time.
Mac McWhirter
Shelby County, TN
On Tue, Feb 12, 2013 at 12:04 AM, Michael Todd <birder1@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>wrote:
> Friends,
>
> Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Jeff Wilson passed away over the
> weekend. Evidently he passed in his sleep and his family found him today
> when they returned from out of town.
>
> Many of us here were lucky enough to call Jeff a friend, and a better
> friend I could never ask for. The amount that Jeff has contributed to the
> knowledge, distritbution, and identification of TN avifauna is beyond
> words. Most of the top listers in the state owe a disproportionate number
> of their birds directly to Jeff ( I know I do). It would be hard to add up
> the number of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd state records Jeff had found, not only in
> TN, but the surrounding states as well. Jeff's attentiont to detail, was
> incredible. Such as his, at the time, near magical ability to differentiate
> Meadowlarks in flight.. His passion for shorebirds has been seen by many on
> here, but to spend a hot, stinky day at the Pits in Memphis looking at
> shorebirds was a slice of heaven for many of us here.
>
> Time spent with Jeff was always a lot of fun, whether it be birding, or
> just swapping stories. I've known Jeff since I was about 12, which is 31
> years now. A number of those years I was out of birding, but ironically,
> stumbling across TNBirds back in 2000 and reading some of Jeff's posts and
> great birds at the time is part of what got me back into this great hobby.
> I'm very proud to say I've spent more days than I can count running the
> backroads of Memphis, Reelfoot, KY Lake and farther afield with Jeff. In
> the process I learned more from him than all the many books in my library
> combined!
>
> With Jeff's passing, I've lost the 2 people now I considered mentors; Don
> Manning a few years ago for the first part of my birding career, and now
> Jeff for the 2nd part. But, the memories I have will last a lifetime!
>
> Jeff, Don, and others we've lost are probably ticking off Great Auks and
> Labrador Ducks as we speak, or comparing field marks of Ivory-billed and
> Imperial Woodpeckers!
>
> As Jeff always said, "Bird to the Horizon!"
>
> Mike Todd
> McKenzie, TN
> birder1@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> www.pbase.com
>
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