2025 Speaker and Artist

John Marzluff, Festival Speaker

John Marzluff studies how humans affect birds through habitat fragmentation and increased urbanization, as well as the challenges of conserving birds on islands. He focuses primarily on corvids—that is, ravens, crows, and jays—but he has also worked with falcons and hawks throughout the world. Conversely, he is also interested in all the ways that birds affect people—how, for instance, birds influence art, or language. In addition to his research, he has written several popular science books about crows, including, most recently, Gifts of the Crow: How Perception, Emotion, and Thought Allow Smart Birds to Behave Like Humans. In recognition of his work, he has been awarded the H.R. Painton Awards from the Cooper Ornithological Society, as well as the Washington State Book Award for general non-fiction. 

Linda Feltner, Festival Artist

Linda M. Feltner is an award-winning nature artist and educator.  She combines the creativity of artistic design with strict standards of scientific accuracy into what has become her trademark.  Her areas of expertise include painting and drawing, teaching, guiding birding tours, and maintaining her flourishing freelance business in fine art and interpretive illustration.  Linda has served as President of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators from 2016 through 2018 and is a Signature Member of the Society of Animal Artists and Artists for Conservation.  Linda aims to provide a spark – to awaken curiosity and invite questions, promote an appreciation for the complexity of nature, and foster a desire to protect it.

As an interpretive specialist, Linda’s multi-disciplinary career includes scientific illustration and interpretive media design of educational graphics for the public through indoor and outdoor exhibits, murals, and interactive graphics.  Her combined experience provided artwork for over 120 projects for the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service, and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.  She brings extensive, first-hand knowledge and enthusiasm for the natural and cultural history subjects.