Charles Bendire

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Charles Emil Bendire (April 27, 1836 – February 4, 1897) was a United States Army officer and a bird expert. He was born Karl Emil Bender in König im Odenwald, Germany, the eldest of six children. Homeschooled until age 12, he then studied near Paris for five years before moving to New York in 1853. After his brother Wilhelm died at sea, Karl changed his name to Charles Bendire when he joined the U.S. Army in 1854 at age 18.

He served in the First Dragoons, then in the 4th Cavalry and the 1st Cavalry, rising from private to major. He fought in the Civil War and in the Indian Wars, earning praise for his gallant services at the Battle of Trevilian Station. He retired in 1886 because of a disability.

While stationed across the United States, Bendire grew to love birds. He shared his observations with other naturalists and began publishing his own articles in 1877. He built a private collection of about 8,000 eggs, which became the core of the Smithsonian’s egg collection. He described bird migrations and discovered several new species, including Bendire's thrasher (Toxostoma bendirei). There is also a famous tale of him grabbing a large zone-tailed hawk egg under Apache fire, injuring a tooth in the process. He described the Lost River sucker (Deltistes luxatus) while stationed at Fort Klamath.

Charles Bendire died of Bright's disease at age 60 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.