Arthur Cleveland Bent (November 25, 1866 – December 30, 1954) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

. He is notable for his encyclopedic 21-volume work, ''Life Histories of North American Birds'', published 1919-1968 and completed posthumously.Familiar Birds: About the work of Arthur Cleveland Bent
/ref> Bent was brought up in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, where he became interested in birds as a child. He was later successful in business and traveled throughout North America, acquiring an extensive knowledge of its avifauna. From 1901 he was contributing papers to ''

The Auk ''Ornithology'', formerly ''The Auk'' and ''The Auk: Ornithological Advances'', is a peer-reviewed scientific journal and the official publication of the American Ornithological Society (AOS). It was established in 1884 and is published quarterly. ...

'', the journal of the

American Ornithologists' Union The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...

Following a request from the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

in 1910, Bent started work on the project that would dominate the rest of his life. Using his own experiences, the published literature, and contributions from hundreds of others, he put together what was at the time by far the most comprehensive repository of knowledge about the biology of the birds of North America. His accounts were published progressively in the ''United States National Museum Bulletin'' (NMB), and later republished by

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

. In 1940 Bent was awarded the

John Burroughs Medal The John Burroughs Medal, named for nature writer John Burroughs (1837–1921), is awarded each year in April by the John Burroughs Association to the author of a book that the association has judged to be distinguished in the field of natural hist ...

for distinguished book-length nature writing. He was awarded the

Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal The Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal is awarded by the U.S. United States National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences "for meritorious work in zoology or paleontology study published in a three- to five-year period." Named after Daniel Gir ...

from the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

in 1949 .

''Life Histories'' – publication history

* 1919 - ''Life Histories of North American Diving Birds'' (NMB 107) * 1921
''Life Histories of North American Gulls and Terns''
(NMB 113) * 1922
''Life Histories of North American Petrels and Pelicans and Their Allies''
(NMB 121) * 1923
''Life Histories of North American Wild Fowl''
(part 1) (NMB 126) * 1925
''Life Histories of North American Wild Fowl''
(part 2) (NMB 130) * 1926
''Life Histories of North American Marsh Birds''
(NMB 135) * 1927 - ''Life Histories of North American Shore Birds'' (part 1) (NMB 142) * 1929 - ''Life Histories of North American Shore Birds'' (part 2) (NMB 146) * 1932 - ''Life Histories of North American Gallinaceous Birds'' (NMB 162) * 1937 - ''Life Histories of North American Birds of Prey'' (part 1) (NMB 167) * 1938 - ''Life Histories of North American Birds of Prey'' (part 2) (NMB 170) * 1939 - ''Life Histories of North American Woodpeckers'' (NMB 174) * 1940 - ''Life Histories of North American Cuckoos, Goatsuckers, Hummingbirds, and Their Allies'' (NMB 176) * 1942 - ''Life Histories of North American Flycatchers, Larks, Swallows, and Their Allies'' (NMB 179) * 1946 - ''Life Histories of North American Jays, Crows, and Titmice'' (NMB 191) * 1948 - ''Life Histories of North American Nuthatches, Wrens, Thrashers, and Their Allies'' (NMB 195) * 1949 - ''Life Histories of North American Thrushes, Kinglets, and Their Allies'' (NMB 196) * 1950 - ''Life Histories of North American Wagtails, Shrikes, Vireos, and Their Allies'' (NMB 197) * 1953 - ''Life Histories of North American Wood Warblers'' (NMB 203) * 1958 - ''Life Histories of North American Blackbirds, Orioles, Tanagers, and Allies'' (NMB 211) * 1968 - ''Life Histories of North American Cardinals, Grosbeaks, Buntings, Towhees, Finches, Sparrows, and Allies'' (3 parts) (Arthur Cleveland Bent and Collaborators, compiled and edited by Oliver L. Austin, Jr.) (NMB 237)
/ref>

References

External links

* * *
Arthur Cleveland Bent Papers, circa 1910-1954
from the

Smithsonian Institution Archives Smithsonian Libraries and Archives is an institutional archives and library system comprising 21 branch libraries serving the various Smithsonian Institution museums and research centers. The Libraries and Archives serve Smithsonian Institution ...

Arthur Cleveland Bent Ornithological Papers, 1880-1942
from the University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries
Familiar Birds
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bent, Arthur Cleveland American ornithologists 1866 births 1954 deaths John Burroughs Medal recipients Harvard College alumni Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Taunton, Massachusetts) People from Massachusetts