Kathleen Deery de Phelps, better known as Kathy Phelps, (Sydney, 22 November 1908 –

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

, Venezuela, 21 August 2001) was an Australian born Venezuelan explorer, collector and conservationist.

Biography

She was born in Sydney to Arthur Deery and Agnes Thorne. She did higher studies in the United States. In 1940 she came to Venezuela and became a Venezuelan citizen in 1941 with her marriage to ornithologist and businessman

William H. Phelps Jr. William Henry Phelps Jr. (December 25, 1902 – August 13, 1988) was a Venezuelan ornithologist and businessman. Early life He was born in San Antonio de Maturín, a town located in Monagas, Venezuela. Along with his father, William Henry Ph ...

She participated with her husband in several expeditions to investigate the fauna and flora of Venezuela. Together with Carmen de Phister, she founded the Association of Girl Scouts of Venezuela (AGSV) on 26 June 1958. She was president of the

Venezuelan Red Cross Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of V ...

. She wrote several books based on her experiences. She also presided over the Phelps Collection, which is considered the largest collection of birds in Latin America, with more than 80,000 birds in feathers, 1,000 preserved in alcohol and 1,500 skeletons. She received an honorary doctorate from Yacambú University in Barquisimeto. She married Robert Bottome, and had two children by him, Robert Bottome Deery and

Peter Bottome Peter Bottome Deery (28 December 1937 – 14 February 2016) was a Venezuelan businessman. He was shareholder and the General Director of Venezuelan corporation Empresas 1BC. Biography His parents were Robert Bottome and Kathleen Deery. Later, ...

Deery. She married

on 4 February 1941.

Honors

Memberships

*Member and president of Girl Scouts Guides of Venezuela. *Member for nine years of Our Cabaña, World Center for Girl Guides and Girl Scouts of Cuernavaca, Mexico. *Founding member of the Little Theater in San Román. *Founder of the International Scholarships (American Field Scholarships) in Venezuela. *Member of Society of Woman GeographersMembers: Society of Woman Geographers: P
/ref> *Member of the New York Botanical Garden Association. *First female member of the Explorers Club of New York. *Honorary member of the Venezuelan Society of Natural Sciences, Caracas. *Member of the Committee for the Preservation of the

Los Roques Archipelago The Los Roques Archipelago (Spanish: ''Archipiélago de Los Roques'') is a federal dependency of Venezuela consisting of approximately 350 islands, cays, and islets in a total area of 40.61 square kilometers. The archipelago is located dire ...

. *Member of the Parque del Este Committee ( Comité Parque del Este), in Caracas, for 12 years. *Life member of the Parks Committee. *President of the William H. Phelps Collection/Foundation. *President of the Foundation of the Society of Natural Sciences. *Member of the Foundation for the Development of Physical, Mathematical and Natural Sciences ( FUDECO). *Member of FUDENA. *Member of the :es:Ministerio del Ambiente y de los Recursos Naturales Renovables (MARNR). *Member of the board of the National Institute of Parks (IMPARQUES). *Member of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

of London. *Honorary vice president of the International Council for the Preservation of Birds (now

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

)-Cambridge, England. *Honorary member of the Ornithological Society of France - Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO). Ligue pour la protection des oiseaux *Member of the committee for the conservation of Lake of Valencia.

Publications

*Memories of Misia Kathy. First expedition Phelps to Cerro Jimé (1986) *Memories of Misia Kathy (1987). *Memories of Misia Kathy. History of an unknown yavi (1988). *Venezuelan birds. One hundred of the best known (Four editions: 1954, 1955, 1963, 1999).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deery de Phelps, Kathleen Australian conservationists People from Sydney 20th-century Australian women 1908 births 2001 deaths Australian women writers Australian writers Members of the Society of Woman Geographers Australian emigrants Immigrants to Venezuela