One of the highlights of my trip to Cuba in 2016 was meeting the great ornithologist Orlando Garrido.

I met him as part of a group of birders who visited  Cuba with the Caribbean Conservation Trust.

The biggest reason for my trip was to meet (and later interview) Orlando for my book about ornithologist James Bond of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. 

In advance of my free Zoom talk next week (Feb. 9 at 7 p.m.) for the Linnaean Society, can you identify the feathers on this rare book by Mary Wickham Bond?

Hint: Her husband, the real James Bond, probably wasn't pleased.

You can learn more about the talk and register here.

My special guest is noted, ornithologist Joseph Wunderle of BirdsCaribbean.

On New Year's Day, I was poking around the Internet to see if there were any new reviews of the book.

To my delight, I came across a new one in the Journal of Caribbean Ornithology, written by Steven C. Latta, Director of Conservation and Field Research for the National Aviary in Pittsburgh.

Since the real James Bond has been synonymous with that region's ornithology since the 1930s, the review has a special meaning to me.

I  just came across an album that blends electronic music with the sounds of endangered birds in the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America.

The album's producers write:

"For the album we chose 10 endangered or threatened bird species and challenged 10 of our favorite producers or musicians from the region. Working with the Xeno Canto birdsong community and the Macaulay Library, we sourced a recording of each bird’s song. Each artist was then asked to create an original piece of music inspired by the bird and its song."

What's more, 100% of the profits from the album will go to organizations working to protect these birds, including a new favorite of mine, Birds Caribbean.

My favorite is "Black Catbird," by the Garifuna Collective. Reminded me of Belize and the wonderful times I had there.

My guess is the real James Bond would have loved the last song, Ferminia, featuring the call of Cuba's Zapata Wren, a bird near and dear to him.

The writeup to the right is from Bond's 1936 edition of Birds of the West Indies. Note the local name for the wren.

You can learn more about the album here.