John James Audubon was an American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was born in what is now Haiti in 1785 to a French sea captain and plantation owner. As a young man, he took interest in birds, nature, drawing, and music. In 1803, he moved to the United States to avoid military conscription. He continued drawing and studying birds and published his work The Birds of America between 1827 to 1838, which contained illustrations of all known bird species in North America at the time. Audubon spent his later life traveling, drawing more birds, and advocating for conservation before passing away in 1851 at the age of 65.