Anwar Abdul-Qawi was told he wasn’t cut out for science. Now the Philly zoologist’s photos are on display at the Academy of Natural Sciences.
“Conversations With Birds” is the first time his photography will be shown publicly.
Anwar Abdul-Qawi’s birding journey started on a morbid note. He frequently found dead sparrows, finches, and other birds on the sidewalks of Philadelphia. The small bodies spotted city blocks, their beady eyes having mistaken skyscraper windows for flight paths. A big animal lover, Abdul-Qawi picked them up, sometimes several at a time, and brought them to his office at Drexel University’s Academy of Natural Sciences, where those in the best condition landed in the collection of 205,000 bird specimens.
“In many, many, many years, when I’m long gone, my great-great-grandkids can come here and [see] my name — I have a bird specimen in the academy’s collection forever,” said Abdul-Qawi. For now, the 28-year-old will gain a more visible spotlight: His photography is featured in the academy’s current exhibit, “Conversations With Birds,” running through May 21.
Wildlife photography became a bigger passion for Abdul-Qawi during the pandemic, growing in tandem with his birding interests. With the academy shut down, he could no longer deliver dead specimens. Instead, he pursued live birds, biking through their natural habitats. He discovered prime birding spots like John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge and began capturing great egrets, cedar waxwings, catbirds, and more. He started photographing pigeons, squirrels, and other common critters on his cell phone.
Soon, he craved better close-up photos. He couldn’t afford a professional camera. “I took the time to learn about stocks, because I was bored … I made some really fast money and bought a cheap camera from Target,” he said.
Abdul-Qawi remembers his first shot of a great blue heron near the Schuylkill. “I was like, ‘Does anyone else know these birds exist here?’ I just felt like I was in this different world. But I’m right here, still in the city,” he said.
Growing up in West Philadelphia, Abdul-Qawi knew early on that he wanted to work with animals and travel the world. He remembers interviewing for high schools and explaining his dream job as a zoologist to a principal. The interviewers “all started laughing at me. I was very confused, like, ‘What’s so funny?’ ” he recalled. “They were all like, you know, zoology is a really hard field to get into, it’s a lot of studying and a lot of work. But you have really nice long legs — you should play basketball for us.”
Abdul-Qawi was devastated. But a couple of days later, he heard about the new Science Leadership Academy in Center City. Applying was daunting; he worried that he would again be met with derision. When the interviewer heard his ambitions, Abdul-Qawi got an unexpected follow-up: “ ‘Oh, that’s great. Now how can that dream support us or support other people?’ ” Finding a purpose for his passion inspired Abdul-Qawi anew. He enrolled that fall.
A shy teen, Abdul-Qawi built his public-speaking skills in the Philadelphia Zoo’s junior ambassador program, where he became comfortable chatting up visitors and sharing his animal knowledge. Simultaneously, he landed his first high-school internship at the Academy of Natural Sciences.
He returned to the academy as a college intern while studying at Delaware Valley University. After graduating, he worked part-time as an educator and animal keeper, and in 2022 he was promoted to animal programs manager. The academy has been Abdul-Qawi’s decade-long training ground. Coming full circle, he also supervises a high-school intern from his alma mater.
Photography has only enhanced Abdul-Qawi’s zoology work. Initially, he didn’t have the best bird-identifying skills, so he would take a photo and then ask the ornithology department. To improve, he watched YouTube videos detailing what makes a great wildlife image. He continued upgrading his gear, eventually adding a special eight-pound Canon lens (typically used with a tripod, but he’s found that the set-up time can cost him the shot). Over time, he’s gotten more confident in his birding by getting familiar with local birds up close.
The academy exhibit is the first time his work will be displayed publicly. The photographs accompany taxidermy birds, nest-cam footage of a peregrine falcon and bald eagle, and ornithologist demonstrations showing how they freeze, strip, and preserve bird specimens. The show also highlights the volunteer efforts for Lights Out Philly, an initiative pushing for office buildings to turn off their lights to prevent birds from crashing.
This week, Abdul-Qawi will join academy scientists studying fish in Equatorial Guinea and parts of central Africa in his first-ever international trip. “My dream is finally coming true — I’m doing photography, I’m traveling, I’m seeing animals,” he said. “I’m so happy.”
“Conversations With Birds” runs through May 21 at Drexel University’s Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Phila., (215) 299-1000.