The Pelican-- Book Review

By Tina Nappe

“The Feather Detective” by Chris Sweeney. Avid Reader 320 pages $30

The Wall Street Journal review of “The Feather Detective”  begins with Roxie Laybourne identifying  a Lesser Scaup bone in her soup. It then goes on to describe her remarkable knowledge of bird bones and feathers and her dedication to setting up a system for identification of birds that others could use. 

Roxie Laybourne (1910-2003) was the first well known forensic ornithologist. Starting as a taxidermist at the National Museum of Natural History “Smithsonian” in 1944, her skills and her profession gained national exposure in 1960 when Eastern Airlines Flight 375 crashed killing 62 of the 72 passengers. The reason, Laybourne proved, was a flock of starling bird strikes. From then on Laybourne was called upon to identify birds or what was left of them when they were sucked into engines. She also worked with the Fish and Wildlife Service investigating suspected poaching. Through her work she set  up a program of forensic ornithology where she and eventually others could identify a bird from a feather quickly. Today DNA is used.

In 2001 she did an oral history. This history and other documents were the background for an Audubon article in 2020  (https://www.audubon.org/news/the-remarkable-life-roxie-laybourne). The article includes her voice as she describes her work. 
From a Wall Street Journal  (August 2-3, 2025 C9) book review.