Re: LA: Louisiana name-Audubon

J. Michael, Celia or Ben Storey wrote:
> 
> >Iris books I have all say Thomas Walter includinig Brian Mathew 's
> >book  1981 version the Iris.  page 107. ''the Louisiana Iris"
> >edited by Marie Caillet and J. Mertzweilleer page 22.  A.I.S.
> >book "The World of Iris" page 33.
> 
> Thanks!
> But I do remember reading in the first chapter of "The Louisiana Iris" (the
> one you cite) that Audubon is credited with first assigning the name.
> Apparently he painted one of the plants behind some lovely bird and
> identified the plant as Louisiana iris.

Well this sent me diving for my Audubon Society Baby ElephantFolio of
Audubon's Birds of America. - Roger Tory Petersen and Virginia Marie
Petersen

Plate 342 "Northern Parula Warbler [Blue Yellow-back Warbler]" has what
appears to be a Louisiana iris in it. The description of the plate says:

"When Audubon was living in Louisiana, his assistant Joseph Mason shot a
parula warbler that Audubin painted under the name "Blue Yellow-back
Warbler." Young Mason drew in the copper iris that Audubin called the
"Louisiana Flag," a flower he had not encountered elsewhere."

The introduction to the folio says further that:

"Joseph Mason, who as a remarkable boy of thirteen had been one of
Audubon's pupils in Cincinnati when he was giving art lessons to raise
funds, showed such promise as a botanical artist that Audubon took him
on his 1820 trip down the Mississippi. Mason was his assistant for about
two years, and most of the leaves and flowers in those plates painted in
Louisiana during 1821 and 1822 are his work. He was incredibly skillful
for a youngster of that age. At least 57 backgrounds are credited to
this young genius. He seems to have dissapeared into limbo after leaving
Audubon's employ, but he in immortalized in Audubon's bird prints."

John                     | "There be dragons here"
                         |  Annotation used by ancient cartographers
                         |  to indicate the edge of the known world.

John Jones, jijones@ix.netcom.com
Fremont CA, USDA zone 8/9 (coastal, bay) 
Max high 95F/35C, Min Low 28F/-2C average 10 days each
Heavy clay base for my raised beds.
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