With ornithologist Juliana Soto-Patiño (PhD Student Ecology, Evolution and Conservation at the University of Illinois) we investigate  the emergence and consolidation of the field of biogeography of neotropical birds during the first decades of the 20th century. In particular, we investigate the pioneering work of Frank Chapman (head of ornithology at the American Museum of Natural History) on the geographic distribution of birds in

Colombia

 (1917) and

Ecuador

 (1926).  We focus on Chapman's published materials and his epistolary exchange with one of his key collectors, W. M. Richardson. After collecting in Colombia for two periods (1910-11; 1912), Richardson was the first collector hired by the AMNH to tour Ecuador collecting birds and mammals (1912-13). His work, which included collecting specimens and providing detailed descriptions of the areas he visited, was key in Chapman's understanding of the origin and distribution of bird life across the Andes. 

By "situating" (Kohler) scientific knowledge on neotropical birds, our work does not center on the current relevance of Chapman's theories but on the conditions that made their production possible.