[7] In his lengthy career, Robbins made major contributions in the discipline of field ornithology, from innovative measurement techniques to documentation of the effects of forest fragmentation on eastern woodland birds.

[6] His research into forest fragmentation informed regulations developed by the state of Maryland to provide environmental protection to Chesapeake Bay.

The data collection and population estimation scheme employed the strategy of point count samples taken along the roadside by skilled observers; it thereby made the practice of continent-wide bird monitoring efficient for the first time, and placed it on a sound statistical footing.

[12] Robbins was selected as one of three Americans to negotiate a treaty with the Soviet Union protecting migratory birds, signed in 1976 and ratified in 1978.

[9] In the popular press, Robbins wrote Birds of North America: A Guide to Field Identification with Bertel Bruun and Herbert S. Zim (illustrated by Arthur B.

The so-called "Golden Guide" (the authors' names did not appear on the front cover) introduced innovative two-page spreads that integrated text, illustrations, range maps and silhouettes.

Tracking the advances in optics available to birders, the book presented a wider range of plumages, in more color and detail, than previous guidebooks.

[9] The work and its integration of design and purpose were cited by Edward Tufte for its "sense of craft, detail, and credibility that comes from gathering and displaying good evidence all together.

From his position as a public servant, Chandler Robbins matched the rising need for information on bird distribution and population trends with a newly developed cohort of citizen scientists.

[30] The Foundation for Ecodevelopment and Conservation (FUNDAECO) of Guatemala named the Chandler Robbins Biological Station, located in its Cerro San Gil reserve, in his honor.

[2] After 60 years of public service, Robbins retired from the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in 2005, taking the title Scientist Emeritus.