author
John Gould
1804–1881
A self-made English ornithologist, he turned a fascination with birds into some of the 19th century’s most famous natural history books. His grand illustrated volumes helped shape how readers imagined birdlife from Britain to Australia.
6 Audiobooks
The Birds of Australia, Vol. 1 of 7
by John Gould
The Birds of Australia, Vol. 2 of 7
by John Gould
The Birds of Australia, Vol. 4 of 7
by John Gould
The Birds of Australia, Vol. 3 of 7
by John Gould
The Birds of Australia, Vol. 5 of 7
by John Gould
![The zoology of the voyage of H.M.S. Beagle [vol. 3 of 5] : Birds](https://listenly.io/api/img/6a100521d526f8ed6efc8bb8/cover.jpg)
About the author
Born in Lyme Regis in 1804, he learned taxidermy while his father worked at Windsor Castle and went on to build a remarkable career around birds. He became closely associated with the Zoological Society of London, where access to specimens from around the world helped launch his publishing work.
He is best known for producing large, lavishly illustrated books on birds, including major works on European species and the birds of Australia. The plates were created with the help of several artists, especially his wife, Elizabeth Gould, and later collaborators such as Edward Lear and Henry Constantine Richter.
Today he is remembered as both a naturalist and a publisher with a strong visual imagination. His books were scientific references, but they were also beautiful objects, bringing ornithology to a wide audience and leaving a lasting mark on bird study and natural history illustration.