James Bond (ornithologist) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
James Bond
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| Born | January 4, 1900 |
| Died | February 14, 1989 (aged 89) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Education | Harrow School, Trinity College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Ornithologist |
| Known for | Birds of the West Indies; Namesake of Ian Fleming's fictional British spy |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Fanning Wickham Bond née Porcher |
| Awards | Leidy Award of the Academy of Natural Sciences |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, Philadelphia |
| Author abbrev. (zoology) | Bond |
James Bond (born January 4, 1900 – died February 14, 1989) was an American ornithologist. An ornithologist is a scientist who studies birds. James Bond was a top expert on the birds of the Caribbean. He wrote a very important book called Birds of the West Indies. It was first published in 1936.
He worked as a curator at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. His name became famous for another reason. The writer Ian Fleming used his name for the fictional British spy. The real James Bond liked that his name was used this way. You can find references to him in the spy movies and books.
Contents
Who Was James Bond?
James Bond was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 4, 1900. His father was Francis Edward Bond. His mother was Margaret Reeves. When he was 11, his father went on a trip to the Orinoco Delta. This trip made young James interested in nature.
He went to school in the United States. Then, in 1914, he moved to the United Kingdom with his father. He studied at Harrow and later at Trinity College, Cambridge. He earned his degree in 1922.
His Early Life and Love for Birds
After college, he returned to the United States. He worked at a bank in Philadelphia for three years. But he loved nature more than banking. So, he quit his job.
He then went on an adventure to the Amazon. He went with Rodolphe Meyer de Schauensee. They collected bird specimens for the Academy of Natural Sciences. This was a big step toward his dream job.
Exploring the Caribbean
James Bond became an ornithologist at the Academy of Natural Sciences. He became the curator of ornithology there. He was the best expert on Caribbean birds. His book, Birds of the West Indies, became the main guide for the region. He published it in 1936.
From the 1920s to the 1960s, he went on many bird-watching trips. He explored the West Indies many times. He won several awards for his work. These included the Musgrave Medal in 1952 and the Brewster Medal in 1954. He also received the Leidy Award in 1975.
James Bond passed away in Philadelphia when he was 89. His wife, Mary Fanning Wickham Bond, was an author. She wrote books about her husband.
The Spy with His Name
Ian Fleming was a writer who loved bird watching. He lived in Jamaica. He knew James Bond's book very well. In 1953, Fleming was writing his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale. He needed a name for his spy hero. He wanted a name that sounded "ordinary."
How the Name Was Chosen
Fleming decided to use the name James Bond. He wrote to the real Bond's wife. He said the name was "brief, unromantic, Anglo-Saxon and yet very masculine." He felt it was perfect for his spy.
The real James Bond did not know about this at first. He only found out in the early 1960s. That's when Ian Fleming's spy books became very popular. In 1964, James Bond and his wife visited Fleming in Jamaica. Fleming even gave Bond a signed copy of his book, You Only Live Twice. He wrote, "To the real James Bond, from the thief of his identity."
James Bond's wife, Mary, wrote a book about how the spy got his name. It was called "How 007 Got His Name."
James Bond in the Movies
The fictional James Bond has honored the real one in movies. In the 2002 film Die Another Day, the spy James Bond (played by Pierce Brosnan) looks at the book Birds of the West Indies. He even says he is an ornithologist in the movie.
The book also appeared in a photo for the 2015 film Spectre. However, it was not in the final movie.
In a 2013 TV show, "A Caribbean Mystery," Miss Marple meets Ian Fleming. Fleming is looking for a name for his new spy. He hears James Bond give a talk about birds. That's when he gets the idea for the name. The actor who played the ornithologist James Bond in this show was Charlie Higson. He wrote the Young Bond novels.
His Important Discoveries
One of James Bond's first projects was with his uncle, Carroll Sargent Tyson Jr. His uncle wanted to create a book about the birds of Maine. James Bond collected bird specimens for his uncle to paint. This led to a book called The Birds of Mt. Desert Island (1941).
Bond's most famous work was Birds of the West Indies. It was first published in 1936. He updated it 11 times during his life. He also wrote almost 150 other scientific papers. These papers described 63 new types of birds.
James Bond also studied small animals called hutias. He noticed that they lived only in certain areas. He thought a "marine boundary" might limit where they could live. Later, in 1973, a scientist named David Lack called this idea "Bond's Line." It is a natural border between Tobago and the Lesser Antilles. It also separates birds from North and South America. In 2015, a new type of hutia was named after him: Plagiodontia aedium bondi. This was to honor his work on this boundary.
See also
In Spanish: James Bond (ornitólogo) para niños
