ANGELIKA T.L. BYORTH: Hope for the environment: Meet UNL's Paul Johnsgard

If calamity should ever befall Paul A. Johnsgard, he could live off his fans like the itinerant Nebraska pioneer photographer Solomon Butcher. Johnsgard is a Foundation Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

I admit, I am but one of Johnsgard's zillion admirers. Any of us would feel honored to have him as a houseguest and a meal companion.

For to talk to Johnsgard face to face is to have one's hope for the future of our environment restored. Not many individuals have given so much of themselves to help us understand and appreciate the riches of our natural world. Or made a real difference by mentoring leaders who took action to save our wildlife and its habitats.

Johnsgard has spent a lifetime following the trails of birds, not with dogs and guns, but “hunting” them with his camera and his soul. In addition, he has carved birds’ likenesses out of wood and with such perfection that you can almost hear them breathe.

No one I've talked to lately can remember if Johnsgard ever formally retired.

Tall and slender, he moves with the speed of a 20 year-old, and his mind is as agile and sharp as a razor. So far he has 49 books to his name, and you can look up a complete list of titles by going to http://pauljohnsgardbooks.tripod.com, and http://mockingbird.creighton.edu/NCW/johnsgar.htm.

He masterfully illustrates his own books, several of which have been translated into Russian, Latvian, Chinese and Japanese.

Among the 16 book publishers that have produced his books, the University of Nebraska Press has published or reprinted the largest number of his titles. The prestigious Smithsonian Institution Press has published 11 of Johnsgard books.

The university should thank its lucky stars that the unassuming Johnsgard has not allowed world fame to lure him away from his humble roots here on the prairie. Or that increasing age has been unable to slow down the prolific author, artist, ornithologist and conservationist.

Johnsgard frequents his UNL office at Manter Hall like a busy and elusive hummingbird, never able to stay very long. For the next project beckons, or yet another fan (like this columnist recently) has invited him to lunch at a local restaurant, to find out more about his projects.

Johnsgard said his many recent activities include writing text for a web site compiled by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development for the purpose of promoting ecotourism and bird habitat conservation. Take a look at this awesome, cooperative endeavor at www.nebraskabirdingtrails.com.

Full of enthusiasm and excitement, Johnsgard said, “I am also going to the Galapagos Islands in June, following Darwin's 1830s journey, in anticipation of celebrating the 200th anniversary of his birth in 2009. The exhibit of Lewis & Clark's natural history that I organized for the Great Plains Center in 2004, which included 70 of my drawings and photographs, is now on tour in Nebraska, and is currently showing in Lexington.”

As we chatted across the table, Johnsgard remarked with a laugh his 49 books now weigh more than 115 pounds. He said he became aware of this being a problem when he was nominated for the UNL Outstanding Research and Creativity Award in 1994.

“I was told to deliver my supporting documents to the Office of the Vice President for Research,” Johnsgard said. “I asked the secretary where to put my books, and she said I should add them to the stack of manila envelopes from other nominees that were sitting in a small area at the corner of her desk.”

On more than one occasion Johnsgard has commented it took him 30 years to become a scientist, and that he spent the following 25 years attempting to become an artist and humanist. Numerous awards, such as the Loren Eiseley Award (1988) and the Mari Sandoz Award (1984) have reflected Johnsgard's ability to integrate science, art and literature in such a way it would appeal to Everyman and Everywoman.

By the time you read this, Johnsgard will be spending time near Kearney, immersed in the great annual spectacle of the crane migration. I urge you to join him, and to become a personal witness to this masterpiece of integrated sound and action, as directed by the cosmic artist. Or at least watch the cranes “live” by going to this new National Geographic Web site: http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/cranecam/.

Professor Johnsgard will be traveling to Washington, D. C. at the end of this month to receive a major national environmental award. The identity of the award will not be announced until that time. But rest assured, it will keep our state on the map, and the UNL in a leadership position, as concerns the conservation of the environment. Stay tuned!