SRATE
Member Spotlight
SRATE Members Co-Author
Swan Book Named as an Award Finalist
Swans of the
World Habitats: Setting the Standard for Swan Conservation,
published by The Regal Swan®
Foundation, Inc., was
recently named a finalist in the category of Animals and
Pets in the 2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards, the world’s largest
book awards program for independent publishers and
self-published authors.The new 2020 edition was co-authored by Sheila A. Bolin, former FSU graduate and SRATE member, and Dr. Fanchon F. Funk, FSU Professor Emerita and past SRATE President (1981-1982) and board member, along with Angie H. Perretti. The full-color publication targets veterinarians, swan keepers, and swan owners by covering the history of swans, including medical care and habitat conservation, and featuring photography by Shirley A. Bolin and Rebecca Webb Wilson, with illustrations by Jennifer Winford. The book was printed by Alpha Press Inc. The compendium features the Regal Swan® Foundation’s all volunteer staff and showcases some of the team’s many veterinary medical travels, including those to the UK and Russia.
Dedicated to humane veterinary
medical care for swans through education, research, and swan
development, The Regal Swan® Foundation, Inc. is under the
leadership of Bolin, who serves as the CEO. Dr. Funk serves
as vice-president of Research and Education. The
international organization is based in Orlando and is
recognized worldwide as a leader in swan conservation. The Regal Swan® Foundation, Inc. was the first to identify a bacterium causing swans to turn pink. The Regal Swan® Foundation has worked diligently with Her Majesty’s Swan Marker, Mr. David Barber and Her Majesty’s Swan Warden, Dr. Christopher Perrins to help swans afflicted with this life-threatening ailment. Traveling to Windsor in the UK, the team has helped rescue injured or sick swans along the river Thames with Wendy Hermon, Treatment and Rescue Centre Co-ordinator for Swan Support. This swan-rescue organization, based in Datchet, cares for Her Majesty’s wild swan flock, located along the Thames. The Regal Swan® Foundation’s team also has served as the veterinary medical team in Abbotsbury, UK during the bi-annual Swan Upping. Home to more than 900+ wild swans, Abbotsbury is the only managed colony of nesting Mute Swans in the world. In addition to the book’s being awarded as a finalist in this year’s Indie awards, Bolin was also named one of the world’s top 31 conservationists by the prestigious Indianapolis Prize for 2020. Both Funk and Bolin are recipients of the SRATE Roy L. Lauter Distinguished Service Award.
Other awards received by Bolin and The Regal Swan® Foundation, Inc. include: The John Muir Conservation Award (2014); Telly Award for a segment on ABC’s Richard Wiese’s Born to Explore, (2013); and “Scientist of The Month” (2010), awarded to Bolin by the world’s oldest conservation organization, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), based in Gland, Switzerland. The program has also won a prestigious Jefferson Award and a U.S. Presidential “Point of Light” award.
Photos By: Shirley A. Bolin. Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission. The Regal Swan® Foundation, Inc.