Mr. Johnson was the first person to get me interested in birding being my mentor when I got my Boy Scout Birdwatching merit badge back in 1969 or 1970...Him and his assistant Parkie Joe gave me free-reign of the Bird Sanctuary whenever I visited , they taught me so much that I still retain to this day...I'm glad he is remembered by the lecture series conducted at Jamaica Bay named for him...he was quite a man...
One particular everlasting memory of Mr Johnson was when he and I were standing at the old entrance to the facility and we saw a Wood Ibis flying overhead which was evidently blown north by a recent storm...If my memory serves me well, at the time it was the only sighting of this species in New York State...and because of him I was able to see it and identify it...
RIP Herb Johnson..!
40 Years Ago...
Bully for the West End Temple! Sunday night Herbert Johnson, curator of the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, just north of Broad Channel will speak at the temple about the wildlife sanctuary. It's a community attraction that too few people know about and the temple is taking steps to correct that situation.
