Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections September 2019 - 22

Book Reviews
The Feather Thief

2018, Kirk W. Johnson (Viking, New York, New
York, 308 pages).
This story of obsession takes the
reader from Alfred Russel Wallace
through the millinery trade and
Victorian fly tying, a museum theft
in 2009 and back to Wallace. The
author, while fly fishing, learns of
the theft of bird specimens from
the Natural History Museum at
Tring by Edwin Rist, a young fly
tier and world class flautist, and
sets out on what ends up as a five
year mission to learn the story of
the theft and to discover what happened to the stolen specimens. Along the way Johnson discovers "...a world of fanatical fly tiers and plume peddlers,
cokeheads and big game hunters, ex-detectives and shady
dentists." This is a journey that weaves together the worlds
of fly tiers striving for "authenticity," Wallace's hardships
collecting in South America and the Malay Archipelago, the
millinery trade (with a nod to the women who worked to end
it), the value of collections, and the obsessive need of some
to own whatever is required to enable their passion regardless of the cost to society.
It is difficult to overstate the value of collections. No doubt
many readers can cite collections-based studies that have
had a direct bearing on wildlife conservation and human
health issues. Nevertheless, fly tiers using illegally obtained
feathers fail to see the value of having multiple specimens
from multiple places, decades or centuries. Rist, in an interview, maintained a "...self-serving misreading of the state
of modern scientific research..." saying that after "about a
hundred years" all the scientific data, that can be extracted
has been extracted, obviously unaware of or ignoring the
continual advances being made in DNA analysis. Rist also
admitted that he did not know why the Tring museum, or
any museum, needs "so many" specimens. Some fly tiers
believe museums should sell the "duplicates" to those who
could use them. In Rist's view this "...would have nullified
fifty Indian Crows worth of demand, which is fifty Indian
Crows that would probably still be alive in the wild."
At Rist's sentencing the judge stated that "The loss of their
[Natural History Museum at Tring's] birds is a natural history disaster of world proportions. ...priceless specimens,
both in terms of their financial value but also in terms of
their scientific interest." Because of the nature of the defense
(Asperger's) the judge felt limited in the sentence he could
22 * SPNHC Connection

give, which was twelve months suspended. Rist never spent
a night behind bars.
After the trial the Natural History Museum at Tring thanked
those involved in the recovery of many of the stolen specimens. About one-third of the birds with their labels attached
were recovered. Also recovered were some feathers and partial skins. A few years after the trial, Johnson learns of the
theft and sets out to discover what happened to the rest-no
one else was looking. His search takes him across the U.S.,
to Europe, fly tying conventions, fly tying forums and web
sites and deleted e-mails. He discovers a closed community
of tyers reluctant to talk about the theft. He also learns that
feathers of the species concerned (some endangered and
poorly represented in collections) are being sold online. Ultimately he had modest success in finding the missing birds,
and less success in getting them or feathers returned to the
Natural History Museum at Tring.
As the author points out, the missing feathers are still out
there and have been, and will be available for sale online or
privately: "On eBay, it was as easy as ever to buy and sell
feathers from protected species." Aware that the Natural History Museum at Tring and law enforcement were not looking
for the missing specimens, buyers "...openly traded and sold
back forth..." essentially making the specimens disappear
into the "feather underground." Despite the efforts of some
individuals, it has proved difficult to get law enforcement
officials interested in chasing down these illegal imports and
sales.
Despite the museum's best efforts, the collection was raided.
Although curators and collection managers make good faith
efforts to verify the credentials of visitors, these efforts can
be thwarted by the determined thief, as Rist did by setting up
fake e-mail accounts. Physical security, including a barbedwire topped wall, did not deter Rist from gaining access to
a second story window and breaking in. The initial investigation of cabinets near the window and cabinets of rare or
historically valuable birds did not reveal anything missing,
and the conclusion was that the perpetrator found nothing of
value and departed empty-handed. One month later, when
a visiting researcher was shown the cabinets, the theft was
discovered. Constant vigilance and regular review of security protocols is the only hope of safeguarding a museum's
holdings. Additionally, law enforcement officials and the
public need to be educated that natural history collections
are as valuable to society as art and other cultural artifacts.
The ending feels rather abrupt but perhaps it can only be so
as the mystery of what happened to the missing birds and
feathers is unsolved and is likely to remain that way. This is
an engaging tale of history, mystery, obsession and crime.

Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections September 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections September 2019