Chandler Robbins

Chandler Robbins
Chandler Robbins, in the field.
Born	(1918-07-17) July 17, 1918 (age 98) Belmont, Massachusetts
Residence	Laurel, Maryland
Nationality	American
Fields	Ornithology
Institutions	Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Alma mater	Harvard University, George Washington University
Known for	North American Breeding Bird Survey, Birds of North America: A Guide to Field Identification

Chandler Seymour Robbins (born July 17, 1918) is an American ornithologist. His contributions to the field include co-authorship of an influential field guide to birds, as well as organizing the North American Breeding Bird Survey.

Robbins was born in Belmont, Massachusetts. He received an A.B. degree from Harvard University in 1940;Ludlow Griscom was one of his advisers there. His M.A. degree is from George Washington University in 1950.

Robbins joined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1945 as a junior biologist at what is now the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland. In his early career, he co-authored journal publications on the effects of the pesticide DDT on breeding bird populations; this work, and that of other researchers, led to Rachel Carson's publication of the book Silent Spring.

In his lengthy career, Robbins made major contributions in the discipline of field ornithology, from innovative measurement techniques to documentation of the effects of forest fragmentation on eastern woodland birds. His research into forest fragmentation informed regulations developed by the state of Maryland to provide environmental protection to Chesapeake Bay. He performed field work in the mid-Atlantic region, in Latin America and on Midway Island. Robbins banded the oldest recorded living bird, Wisdom (albatross) the Laysan Albatross, on Midway Island in 1956. As of 2016, Wisdom is at least 65 years old.

One of the most important accomplishments by Robbins is the methodology of the North American Breeding Bird Survey. The data collection and population estimation scheme employed the strategy of point count samples taken along the roadside by skilled observers; it thereby made the practice of continent-wide bird monitoring efficient for the first time, and placed it on a sound statistical footing. First tested in Maryland and Delaware in 1965, the BBS was rolled out nationwide in the next few years.