NEOORN

patrocinado por

Museum of Natural Science,
Louisiana State Univerisity

Remembering Paul Coopmans:

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Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans
Dear All,

I am so sorry to inform you that Paul Coopmans died today after a months long battle with cancer. His wife and mother said that Paul died peacefully and without pain. For those of us lucky enough to have known and worked with Paul, this is a monumental loss. And it is a great loss for his young wife and son. To me, Paul was the finest all around birder in Ecuador. His knowledge of every facet of Ecuadorian ornithology was amazing. I (and others) collaborated with him over the past 10 years to publish an audio series containing vocalizations of the birds of Ecuador. His attention to detail and knowledge were unparalleled. He saved me from many embarrassing mistakes, and if Paul Coopmans said a recording was correct..IT WAS. Paul also collaborated with Bob Ridgely and Paul Greenfield on the masterful two volume THE BIRDS OF ECUADOR. His name is justifiably referenced throughout the book. Paul's birding knowledge was not limited to Ecuador as he led trips to Panama, Peru and other areas. He shared with me recordings from as far away as Uganda. Paul was also keenly involved with conservation in Ecuador. Paul will always be with me through the over 300 hours of bird vocalizations he recorded and I have digitized. It is a marvelous collection.

Paul was a true friend and gentleman and his passing is a great loss to Ecuador and ornithology. Paul's wife is able to access his e-mail and can be reached at <coopmans at ECNET.EC>

I am just so sorry to deliver this sad news.

John

John V. Moore Nature Recordings

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Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans

I am absolutely shocked to hear this news. Paul was not only a great friend, but he was a truly great birder. I can remember many times when he would hear a great bird off in the distance and others would simply not believe him, only to be chagrined when he taped that bird in. After Ted Parker died, I felt that Paul was the closest to replacing Ted's talents in Ecuador.  He simply had an incredible memory for bird calls but he studied hard.listening to tapes over and over again. He was also a very fun loving person and we had great times traveling around and hitting the bars and dance clubs. I only wish that I had been able to spend time with him these past few years.


John Sterling
26 Palm Ave
Woodland, CA

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Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans

We lost a GREAT one today, and an incredibly nice one.

I am certainly glad I could count this man amongst my friends.

I'm stunned and saddened.

Here's to Paul. There are a lot of birds in heaven singing today, and Paul is identifying them all.

Cheers to you, Paul. May you fly high.

Peace
Dave Lauten and Kathy Castelein
Bandon OR

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From: Johan Ingels
Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans

Dear all !

The passing away of our fellow-countryman Paul, a Belgian, is indeed a very sad event for Neotropical ornithology... Although we were not really close friends, we stayed in contact by e-mail messages in our mothertongue (Dutch). We once met here at my home in Belgium, a few weeks before he left for Ecuador... We had a long talk and he was very enthousiastic about the new challenge which was waiting for him in the wonderful Andes of Ecuador... 

And now... He will no longer answer questions on NEOORN... We shall miss him...

Johan Ingels.

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From: "Robbins, Mark Blair"
Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Memorial gifts for Paul Coopmans

John,

Great idea, count me in with contributing. Paul was not only one of
the most knowledgeable field people (his recognition of bird
vocalizations was truly phenomenal), but he had a wonderful sense of
humor. I think Paul added a couple of laugh lines to my face from the
days in Quito when we spent drinking beers and talking about birds.

With much respect and sadness,

Mark Robbins

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From: Martin Riesing
Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans Memorial Website

This is really sad for all those interested in tropical ornithology and esp. bird sound. We should show our solidarity in these days with his family.

Another conribution could be to contribute links for the memorial site.

I have found one with a picture:

http://www.canopytower.com/feb98.html

Martin Riesing

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From: "Huw Lloyd"

Subject: Tribute to Paul Coopmans

To all of Paul's family and friends

Paul was a true professional, a mastermind of bird vocalisations, and a good friend. He pushed the boundaries of bird tours further than anyone else and set new standards that no-one could match - physically or mentally. I will never forget our times in Peru, drinking beer whilst discussing notes and comparing bird vocalisations of Ecuadorian and Peruvian birds, and just having great fun!

His passing is a monumental loss. My deepest sympathies go out to Paul's wife, his son and members of Paul's family and closest friends. We're gonna miss you Paul - fly high amigo... fly high..

Huw Lloyd
Associate Lecturer
Department of Environmental and
Geographical Sciences,
Manchester Metropolitan University

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From: "Krabbe, Niels Kaare"
Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Paul Coopmans

5 Jan 2007 (also sent to pmfranklyn/bellsouth.net to be read at his funeral)

A decade and a half ago, I first met Paul in Ecuador. It was a bit hard for me at first, to have a newcomer overtaking a veteran at full speed, but I just had to accept it, and soon Paul became a good friend. He was great fun to be with, always full of bright, witty stories and biting remarks, and over the years we had many good times together, both in the field and at home. We put in some good partying too! His talent at learning and distinguishing bird sounds were legendary, perhaps unsurpassed, and his acute hearing soon gave him a reputation for having ears in every part of his body. Being in the field with him was not always easy, as he would constantly discuss bird sounds uttered so distantly that they were barely audible. In 1991 he told me about a tyrant-flycatcher song he did not know. Tyrant-flycatchers are a huge assembly of similar-looking species, so I did not think much of it right away. I soon became aware of his skills, however, so, when he a few years later told me that he now knew the songs of all other tyrant-flycatchers, and that he was sure this one must pertain to an undescribed species, I immediately went and got the necessary permits. Paul and I went to the field together to collect individuals of it after tape-recording them, and sure enough, it turned out to be a species entirely new to science (Coopmans and Krabbe 2000). On the same trip we also tape-recorded and collected individuals of two different sympatric antbirds that had been treated as one species (Hylophylax naevia) in the literature. Others had found out that there were at least two different species involved, but I believe we collected the first specimens of known song types on that trip. A publication resolving the number of species in this problematic complex remains unpublished, but some day, reportedly soon, the Islers and Whitney will get down to it. If a new taxon needs to be named, perhaps that might be an appropriate opportunity to honour Paul.

Although sometimes suspected by others first, Paul independently discovered that several other forms that had been treated as subspecies in the literature were better ranked as full species. These include Cercomacra "nigrescens" fuscicauda (unpublished), Scytalopus unicolor unicolor (Coopmans et al. 2001), Xiphocolaptes "promeropirhynchus" solivagus/macarenae (unpublished), and perhaps Zimmerius chrysops albigularis, Arremonops conirostris inexpectatus and Grallaricula ferrugineipectus leymebambae. Paul also convinced me that two different Grallaria songs on the same slope had to pertain to different species rather than being different dialects of the same species (Krabbe and Coopmans 2000).

Paul was full of secrets - his standard remark at the end of nearly every conversation about birds was "but don't tell anyone" - so I am sure he knew about many other possible new species and interesting cases. An off hand remark on NEOORN (28 Aug 2006) that Synallaxis unirufa meridana (distinguished morphologically by having slightly longer tail and more conspicuous black bases to the throat feathers than nominate unirufa) sings like Synallaxis castanea is just one example. It is a strange feeling not to be able to send cuts to Paul for identification anymore.

The publications of Ecuadorian bird sounds with John Moore have suffered a great setback by losing the final security net against mistakes. Paul put a lot of effort into getting rid of dubious recordings, yet including all known vocalisation of a species. He was ruthless when rejecting cuts, but he was always right. Paul deposited his large collection of bird sounds in the Macaulay Library (LNS, Cornell), to make them available to students of bird sounds. They include a large number of unique or poorly known vocalisations. Some of his cuts were made on bird tours he guided, as evidenced by background sounds of Paul's distinctive whisper "shut up Mary, this is a new bird to science". He will be missed greatly

Niels Krabbe

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From: Mort Isler
Subject: Re: [NEOORN-L] Memorial gifts for Paul Coopmans

Paul's passing reminds us sharply of the time we first met him in person. We were staying at the Explorer's Inn in southern Peru in 1987, when the manager asked us if we could show around a small group from Belgium who were arriving. Paul was the leader, and it was one of his early trips to the Neotropics, we believe. We will never forget his excitement and enthusiasm for every species we met on the trails. Of course, he then developed into one of the best "ears" in the Neotropics and helped us out with a number of recordings, suggestions, etc. over the years, although we never came face to face again. We will miss him, too.

Mort and Phyllis Isler

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From: David Ascanio
Subject: [NEOORN-L] Memorial gifts for Paul Coopmans

Dear John and all,

Just arriving from a tour and hearing this sad new. I still remember the first mail I received from him telling about this situation. He was always convinced he was going to win this battle.

Paul was the person who introduced me in the bioacoustics more than 20 years ago and I still have in my library the cassette he gave me after the tour was finished. That was my first trolling cassette!

I cane write much more of the many times we discussed issues about the songs of the Birds of Venezuela but being a father, the main concern that comes to my mind is his son. Loosing a parent can be very challenging for a child. In fact, it is probably impossible to replace that loss.

For the above, I appreciate John's idea of putting together a memorial gift. We should all bear I mind that life in Ecuador (As in many SA countries) can be challenging and unpredictable. I would love to visualize his son saying in 20 years that he was able to get the economical stability in part for the many contributions he received when his father left. We should try to provide to his son and wife what he gave to the Neotropical ornithology: appreciation, understanding and inspiration.

John, please go ahead and let us know how we can contribute to the fund. You can certainly count with me.

Saludos a todos,

David

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From: "Bill Bouton"

Subject: Paul

I met Paul when he was just a "kid". I was, at the time, unfortunately "trapped" on a big floating hotel (called "the Flotel") on the Napo in Ecuador.  We were mostly unable to disembark because of high water levels, and didn't get into the forest as expected. To make matters worse, we shared the boat with a partying high school graduating class from some school in Quito. Sleep was nearly impossible, and we could seldom get away from them. We were even in their presence during the infrequent times we were able to get off the boat and onto a trail.

For me, the saving grace of this trip was spending the time with Paul. Having just completed a stint as a guide in the Galapagos, Paul was in training to be a guide in the rainforest.

When I met him, he had a cheap pair of binoculars, one barrel of which was so full of condensation that it was unusable. He was fascinated with my Sony recorder and shotgun mike. I can't remember, but possibly it was the first time he has seen such a setup.

The next year he came to bird with me at my home in Michigan. One day, as we were leaving the house for a day on the field, I backed out of my garage, neither of us realizing that Paul had left a rear car door open.  It was nearly torn off the car. We managed to wire it shut and eventually drove it hundreds of miles to Whitefish Point for a long weekend of birding.

Several years later in Quito, Paul met our small group of four to take us birding into the Chongon Hills, a memorable day spent with the young birder genius who had developed so far, so quickly, from the enthusiastic, wide-eyed novice I had first met on the Napo.

Though I've not seen Paul in years, and have emailed infrequently, I've thought of him often.  This is very sad news to me. My very first neotropical birding experience was a three week-long VENT "Grand Peru" tour with Ted Parker. Not long after that trip, Ted died. Now with Paul's passing another huge loss for the world of birding and ornithology!

Bill Bouton

San Luis Obispo, CA