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Eskimo Curlew

A vanishing species?

"Last of the Curlews"

Last of the Curlews is a Canadian novel, superbly written by Fred Bodsworth and stunningly illustrated by Terry Shortt. Through it, millions of people have become aware of the plight of an Eskimo Curlew as it spends a year of its life from the top to the bottom of the New World and back. The book was first published in 1954 as a 128-page hart/cover by Dodd Mead in Toronto and New York. It has since sold more than 3,000,000 copies in a number of paperback and other editions. It was a selection of the Readers' Digest Condensed Book Club in 1955 and one of 30 books recently selected by McClelland and Stewart for its Canadian Classics Series. It has been translated into Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish and six other languages.

In Russia, the distinguished ornithologist, Boris Veprintsev and his co-workers recently made the first film and sound recordings of the courtship display of the Eskimo Curlew's Asian counterpart, the Little Curlew. When Veprintsev read Last of the Curlews in German, he wrote Bodsworth and asked on what he had based his description of the courtship rituals of the Eskimo Curlew, because they so closely resembled those of the Little Curlew. Bodsworth replied that he had to admit it was writer's licence. "I figured it should be like the woodcock's mating flight, and then used my imagination." In 1985 Bodsworth visited Veprintsev at the Soviet Academy of Sciences to discuss curlews (and to spend the royalties that some of his other books had earned in Russian translation).

Last of the Curlews was made into a one-hour animated movie for television by Hanna-Barbera Productions (Fig. 20). The film became the flagship of the American Broadcasting Company's series for children called "After School Specials." It was first shown on 4 October 1972, with the stated purpose "to encourage in children a sense of awareness and curiosity about the world they live in." The special was described in a trade brochure as "a lesson not only in the importance of conservation, but in a reverence for life - all life."

The critics acclaimed it. Variety: "...Hanna-Barbera has pulled it off in often touching fashion....'The Last of the Curlews' is a work of tenderness and love." Los Angeles Times: "a subtle, yet determined, presentation of the value and preciousness of wildlife." New York Times: an "elevated attempt to deal with ecological problems." New York Post: "It is a credit to Jameson Brewer who wrote the script [as well as that for "Fantasia"] and the Hanna-Barbera crew for the animation."

Figure 20. Frame from television special, "Last of the Curlews." Hanna-Barbera Productions.

The Teleguide for the program, suggesting a number of activities for students of various levels, was written by Augusta Goldin and the editors of Scholastic Teacher. The ABC Mailing Report showed that "teachers who had given the special as an assignment found the discussions and compositions most gratifying...." One teacher continued, "Such a bold portrayal of wanton destruction took tremendous courage on your part." The movie has been translated into several languages and is now in international syndication.

In 1973 the film won an Emmy for children's broadcasting and the Golden Eagle Award from the Council on International Nontheatrical Events.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that some of the few remaining Eskimo Curlews owe their lives to Fred Bodsworth and Terry Shortt.

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