George Schaller

George Schaller

Infobox Scientist
name = George Beals Schaller
box_width =250px



image_width =
caption = Dr. George Schaller at a lecture in the Beijing Zoo on August 10, 2005.
birth_date = 1933Cite web|url=http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/pqrst/schaller_george.html|title=George Schaller|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=Minnesota State University, Mankato|author=Minnesota State University]
birth_place = Berlin, GermanyCite web|url=http://www.biography.com/search/article.do?id=9473538|title=George B(eals) Schaller Biography (1933– )|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=Biography.com, A&E Television Networks.|year=2007|author=Biography.com]
death_date =
death_place =
residence = ConnecticutCite web|url=http://www7.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0610/voices.html?fs=www3.nationalgeographic.com&fs=plasma.nationalgeographic.com|title=Voices: George Schaller|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=National Geographic|year=2006|author=National Geographic]
citizenship =
nationality =
ethnicity =
field = Biologist,
conservationist
work_institutions = Wildlife Conservation Society
alma_mater = University of Wisconsin-Madison
doctoral_advisor =
doctoral_students =
known_for = Mountain gorilla conservation
author_abbrev_bot =
author_abbrev_zoo =
influences =
influenced = Dian Fossey
prizes = National Geographic Lifetime Achievement Award
Guggenheim Fellowship
World Wildlife Fund Gold Medal
International Cosmos Prize
Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement
National Book Award
Indianapolis Prize
religion =
footnotes =

Dr. George Beals Schaller (born 1933) is a mammalogist, naturalist, conservationist and author. Schaller is recognized by many as the world's preeminent field biologist, studying wildlife throughout Africa, Asia and South America.Cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1663317_1663323_1669908,00.html|title=George Schaller - Heroes of the Environment|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=Time Magazine|year=2007|author=Bryan Walsh] Cite web|url=http://www.hindu.com/mag/2006/10/01/stories/2006100100120500.htm|title= Man of Nature: A freewheeling chat with environmentalist George Schaller.|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=The Hindu|year=2006|author=K. Pradeep] Cite web|url=http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF18/1813.html|title=Biologist sees value in unchanged landscape|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska - Fairbanks|year=2006|author=Ned Rozell] Born in Berlin, Schaller grew up in Germany, but moved to Missouri as a teen. He is the vice president of the Science and Exploration Program at the Bronx Zoo-based Wildlife Conservation Society.Cite web|url=http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/best-of-adventure-2007/wildlife/george-schaller.html|title=Lifetime Achievement: Biologist George Schaller|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=National Geographic|year=2007|author=National Geographic] Cite web|url=http://www.hindu.com/nic/landuseplan.htm|title= "A country like India must have a land use plan"|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 20|publisher=The Hindu|year=2006|author=G. Ananthakrishnan]

Early life

Schaller received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Alaska in 1955, and went on to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to obtain his Ph.D. in 1962.Cite web|url=http://www.sanctuaryasia.com/interviews/gbschaller.php|title=Dr. George Schaller Interview|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=Sanctuary Asia|year=2006|author=Sanctuary Asia] From 1962 to 1963, he was a fellow at the Behavioral Sciences department of Stanford University. From 1963 to 1966, Schaller served as research associate for the Johns Hopkins University Pathobiology department, and from 1966 to 1972, served as the Rockefeller University's and New York Zoological Society's research associate in research and animal behavior.Cite web|url=http://www.expo-cosmos.or.jp/jusyou/1996_e.html|title=The Prizewinner, 1996: George Beals Schaller|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=International Cosmos Prize|year=1996|author=International Cosmos Prize] He later served as Director of the New York Zoological Society's International Conservation Program from 1979 to 1988.

Mountain gorilla research

In 1959, when Schaller was only 26, he traveled to Central Africa to study and live with the mountain gorillas ("Gorilla beringei beringei") of the Virunga Volcanoes.Cite web|url=http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/best-of-adventure-2007/wildlife/george-schaller-leopards-lions-pandas.html|title=Biologist George Schaller's 50-Year Battle|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=National Geographic|year=2007|author=Ryan Bradley] Cite web|url=http://school.discoveryeducation.com/ontv/championsofthewild_1006.html|title=Mountain Gorillas|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher= [http://www.ciconline.org/home Cable in the Classroom] |year=2006|author=Cable in the Classroom] Little was known about the life of gorillas in the wild until the publication of "The Mountain Gorilla: Ecology and Behavior" in 1963, that first conveyed to the general public just how profoundly intelligent and gentle gorillas really are, contrary to then-common beliefs. Schaller has more recently recounted his epic two year study in "The Year of the Gorilla", which also provides a broader historical perspective on the efforts to save one of humankind's nearest relatives from the brink of extinction.

The American zoologist, Dian Fossey, with assistance from the National Geographic society and Louis Leakey, followed Schaller's ground-breaking field research on mountain gorillas in the Virungas. Schaller and Fossey were instrumental in dispelling the public perception of gorillas as brutes, by demonstrably establishing the deep compassion and social intelligence evident among gorillas, and how very closely their behavior parallels that of humans.

Conservation career

In 1966, Schaller and his wife traveled to Tanzania to live in the Serengeti, and Schaller conducted one of the first studies of social behavior and movement of Africa's big cats.

In his 1972 work "The Tree Where Man Was Born", author Peter Matthiessen described Schaller as "single-minded, not easy to know". Matthiessen went on to say Schaller was "a stern pragmatist" who "takes a hard-eyed look at almost everything", "lean and intent", and in 1978's "The Snow Leopard" Matthiessen wrote that by that time, some considered Schaller the world's finest field biologist.cite book |author=Matthiessen, Peter |title=The Snow Leopard (Penguin Nature Classics) |publisher=Penguin Books |location=New York |year=1978 |pages=352 pages |isbn=0-14-025508-7 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05]

In the fall of 1973, Schaller went to the remote Himalayan region, convert|250|mi|km inside Dolpo, an area of Nepal occupied by people of the Tibetan culture and ethnicity. Schaller was there to study the Himalayan Bharal, (blue sheep), and possibly glimpse the elusive snow leopard, an animal rarely ever spotted in the wild. Schaller is one of only two Westerners known to have seen a snow leopard in Nepal between 1950 and 1978. Accompanying him on the trip was Matthiessen, and as a result of the trip, Matthiessen wrote "The Snow Leopard", (1978) detailing the accounts of their travels and research, which won the National Book Award. Schaller is referred to throughout the book as "GS".cite book |author=Matthiessen, Peter |title=The Snow Leopard |publisher=Viking Press |location=New York |year=1978 |pages=338 pages |isbn=0-670-65374-8 |oclc= |doi=]

In the late 1970s, Schaller spent time in Brazil studying the jaguar, capybara, alligator, and other animals of the region.

In 1988, Schaller and his wife traveled to China's Chang Tang (Qian Tang) region to study the Giant Panda, and became the first westerners permitted to enter the remote region.cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=Tibet's Hidden Wilderness: Wildlife and Nomads of the Chang Tang Reserve |publisher=Harry N. Abrams |location=New York |year=1997 |pages=168 pages |isbn=0-8109-3893-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05] Schaller sought to refute the notion that the panda population was declining due to natural bamboo die-offs. Instead, Schaller found the panda's popularity was leading to its frequent capture, and was the biggest threat to the population. Schaller also found evidence that pandas were originally carnivores, but underwent an evolutionary change to accommodate a diet of bamboo, which is difficult to digest, reducing competition with other animals for food. Since Schaller's research, the panda population has increased in the wild by 45 percent. During his time in China, Schaller would hand out cards to wildlife hunters that read: "All beings tremble at punishment, to all, life is dear. Comparing others to oneself, one should neither kill nor cause to kill." Schaller has spent more time in China, than he has spent at his home in Connecticut.

In 1994, Schaller and Dr. Alan Rabinowitz were the first scientists to uncover the rare Saola, a forest-dwelling bovine in Laos. Later that year, Schaller rediscovered the Vietnamese Warty pig, once thought extinct. In 1996, he located a herd of Tibetan red deer, also thought extinct.

In 2003, Schaller returned to Chang Tang, and found the wildlife in the area had rebounded since his first trip to the region.Cite web|url=http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/zt/mgryzdzg/t36537.htm|title= American Biologist Praises Tibetan Wildlife Conservation|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=Chinese Embassy|year=2003|author=Chinese Embassy] Cite web|url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7316356|title=A Resurgence of Wildlife in Northern Tibet|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=National Public Radio|year=2007|author=Alex Chadwick] Most significantly, the wild yak population, which was estimated at only 13 individuals, had grown to over 187. "The Tibet Forestry Department has obviously made a dedicated and successful effort in protecting the wildlife." Schaller wrote in a letter to the World Wildlife Fund's Dawa Cering. While in Tibet, Schaller worked on researching the rare Tibetan antelope, or chiru, whose population declined due to trophy hunting for their exotic wool.Cite web|url=http://www.lcaof.org/new.html|title=Current Reports: Observations from a Recent Field Report|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 20|publisher=Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation|author=George B. Schaller, Kang Aili, Cai Xinbin, Liu Yanlin] Working with Tibetan authorities, and the Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation, Schaller helped protect the breeding and calving grounds of the chiru in the Kunlun mountains of Xinjiang Province.

In 2007, Schaller worked with Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and China to develop a new "Peace Park", that would protect convert|20000|mi|km of habitat for the largest wild sheep species, the Marco Polo sheep. In danger due to their impressive spiral horns, which can measure up to ft to m|6 in length, the sheep is sought out as a trophy by international hunters. Schaller's research in the Pamir Mountains will play an important role in the park's creation.

Conservation results

Schaller's work in conservation has resulted in the protection of large stretches of area in the Amazon, Brazil, the Hindu Kush in Pakistan, and forests in Southeast Asia.Cite web|url=http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12617184.500.html|title=On the Trail of the Snow Leopard|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=New Scientist - Reed Business Information Ltd|year=1990|author=Christopher Joyce] Due to Schaller's work, over 20 parks or preserves worldwide have been established, including Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the Shey-Phoksundo National Park in Nepal, and the Chang Tang Nature Reserve, one of the world's most significant wildlife refuges.Cite web|url=http://www.wcs.org/353624/192525|title=WCS Biologist George Schaller Reports Surprising Increase of Wildlife in Tibet|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 19|publisher=Wildlife Conservation Society|year=2007|author=Wildlife Conservation Society] At over convert|200000|mi|km, the Chang Tang Nature Reserve is triple the size of America's largest wildlife refuge, and was called "One of the most ambitious attempts to arrest the shrinkage of natural ecosystems," by "The New York Times".Cite web|url=http://www.calacademy.org/geninfo/newsroom/releases/2000/schaller0100.html|title=A Conversation with Dr. George Schaller|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=California Academy of Sciences|year=2000|author=California Academy of Sciences]

Bigfoot research

Schaller is one of a few prominent scientists who argue that Bigfoot reports are worthy of serious study. A 2003 "Los Angeles Times" story described Schaller as a "Bigfoot skeptic", but he also expressed disapproval for other scientists who do not examine evidence, yet "write [Bigfoot] off as a hoax or myth. I don't think that's fair."cite news | last =Bailey | first =Eric | coauthors = | title =Bigfoot's Big Feat: New Life; A prankster's deeds revealed posthumously appeared to doom the legend. | work = | pages =section A.1 | publisher =The Los Angeles Times | date =April 19, 2003 | url =http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/325851481.html?dids=325851481:325851481&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+19%2C+2003&author=Eric+Bailey&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&edition=&startpage=A.1&desc=The+State%3B+COLUMN+ONE%3B+Bigfoot%27s+Big+Feat%3A+New+Life%3B+A+prankster%27s+deeds+revealed+posthumously+appeared+to+doom+the+legend.+But+Sasquatch+still+looms+large%2C+and+scientists+are+intrigued. | accessdate =2007-10-05 ] Cite web|url=http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_article.asp?id=332|title=Bigfoot's Big Feat: New Life|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=The Los Angeles Times|year=2003|author=Eric Bailey|work=archived by BRFO] In a 2003 "Denver Post" article Schaller said that he is troubled that no Bigfoot remains have ever been uncovered, and no feces samples have been found to allow DNA testing. Schaller notes: "There have been so many sightings over the years, even if you throw out 95 percent of them, there ought to be some explanation for the rest. I think a hard-eyed look is absolutely essential".Cite news|url=http://www.bfro.net/GDB/show_article.asp?id=328|title=Bigfoot Believers: Legitimate scientific study of legend gains backing of top primate experts|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|page=Front Page - Sunday Edition, archived by BRHO|publisher=The Denver Post|date=January 5, 2003|author=Theo Stein] Cite web|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=DP&p_theme=dp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F86B5F3CA2AE03C&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Bigfoot Believers: Legitimate scientific study of legend gains backing of top primate experts|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=The Denver Post|year=2003|author=Theo Stein|work=archive]

Publications

Schaller has written more than fifteen books on African and Asian mammals, including "Serengeti Lion: A Study of PredatorPrey Relations", "The Last Panda", and "Tibet's Hidden Wilderness", based on his own studies, and supported by long-term observations of species in their natural habitats. Schaller has also written hundreds of magazine articles, and dozens of books and scientific articles about tigers, jaguars, cheetahs and leopards, as well as wild sheep and goats, rhinoceri, and flamingos. Over more than five decades, Schaller's field research has helped shape wildlife protection efforts around the world.

Awards

Schaller's conservation honors include National Geographic's Lifetime Achievement Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship,Cite web|url=http://www.uaf.edu/news/a_news/20060712093558.html|title=Noted wildlife expert returns to Alaska|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 20|publisher=University of Alaska|year=2006|author=Doreen Fitzgerald] and the World Wildlife Fund's Gold Medal for: "Contributions to the understanding and conservation of endangered species". Schaller has also been awarded the International Cosmos Prize, the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement,Cite web| url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/tylerprize/tyler1997.html|title=Tyler Prize Laureates|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 20|publisher=University of Southern California College of Letters, Arts & Sciences|year=1997|author=Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement] and he was the first recipient of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Beebe Fellowship. Schaller's literary honors include The National Book Award (for "The Serengeti Lion" in 1973).Cite web|url=http://www.casbs.org/impact/awards/nba/?PHPSESSID=6142455c6093db58|title=The National Book Award|accessyear=2007|accessmonthday=October 5|publisher=Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences|year=1973|author=Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences] In September of 2008, Schaller was awarded the Indianapolis Prize for his work in animal conservation.Cite web|url=http://www.indianapolisprize.org/content.aspx?CID=798|title=Distinguished Field Biologist George B. Schaller Named Winner of the 2008 Indianapolis Prize|accessyear=2008|accessmonthday=September 29|publisher=Indianapolis Zoological Society|year=2008|author=Indianapolis Zoological Society]

ee also

* Biruté Galdikas
* Jane Goodall
* Dawn Prince-Hughes
* Wildlife Conservation International

References

Bibliography


*cite book | last =Schaller | first =George B. | authorlink = | coauthors = | title =The Mountain Gorilla - Ecology and Behavior | publisher =University of Chicago Press | year = 1963| location = | pages =431 pages | url = | doi = | isbn =ASIN: B0000CLSDI
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Year of the Gorilla |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1966|pages= 304 pages|isbn=0-226-73648-2 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=Serengeti: a kingdom of predators |publisher=Knopf |location=New York |year=1972 |pages= |isbn=0-394-47242-X |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Serengeti Lion : A Study of Predator-Prey Relations |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year= 1972|pages= 494 pages|isbn=0-226-73640-7 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Mountain Gorilla: Ecology and Behavior |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1976 |pages=450 pages |isbn=0-226-73635-0 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=Stones of Silence: Journeys in the Himalaya |publisher=Univ of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1988 |pages=304 |isbn=0-226-73646-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Deer and the Tiger (Midway Reprint) |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1967 |pages=384 pages |isbn=0-226-73631-8 |oclc= |doi= 1984 |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Giant Pandas of Wolong |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1985 |pages= 318 pages|isbn=0-226-73643-1 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=The Last Panda |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1994 |pages=312 pages |isbn=0-226-73629-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=Tibet's Hidden Wilderness: Wildlife and Nomads of the Chang Tang Reserve |publisher=Harry N. Abrams |location=New York |year=1997 |pages=168 pages |isbn=0-8109-3893-6 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B.; Vrba, E. S. (Editors) |title=Antelopes, deer, and relatives: fossil record, behavioral ecology, systematics, and conservation |publisher=Yale University Press |location=New Haven, Conn |year=2000 |pages= 356 pages|isbn=0-300-08142-1 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=Wildlife of the Tibetan Steppe |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |year=1998 |pages=383 pages |isbn=0-226-73653-9 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05
*cite book |author=Schaller, George B. |title=A Naturalist and Other Beasts: Tales From a Life in the Field |publisher=Sierra Club Books |location=San Francisco, Calif |year=2007 |pages=272 pages |isbn=1-57805-129-0 |oclc= |doi= |accessdate=2007-10-05

External links

* [http://www.bronxzoo.com/bz-about_the_zoo/252458/252558 BronxZoo.com History of the Wildlife Conservation Society]
* [http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-06/wcs-wbg061803.php WCS press release WCS biologist George Schaller reports surprising increase in Tibet's wildlife]
* [http://www.unmuseum.org/fossey.htm UnMuseum.org Dian Fossey and the Gorillas of the Virunga Volcanoes]
* [http://www.savingwildplaces.com/ Wildlife Conservation Society - Saving Wild Places]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • George Schaller — George Beals Schaller El Dr. George Schaller en una conferencia en el Beijing Zoo el 10 de agosto de 2005. Nacimiento 1933[ …   Wikipedia Español

  • George Schaller — Dieser Artikel wurde aufgrund von formalen und/oder inhaltlichen Mängeln in der Qualitätssicherung Biologie zur Verbesserung eingetragen. Dies geschieht, um die Qualität der Biologie Artikel auf ein akzeptables Niveau zu bringen. Bitte hilf mit,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Schaller (Begriffsklärung) — Schaller bezeichnet einen mittelalterlichen Helmtyp, siehe Schaller Unternehmen Schaller Electronic, ein Hersteller von Zubehör für Saiteninstrumente Schaller ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Andrea Schaller (* 1976), deutsche… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Schaller — may refer to:urname* Barry R. Schaller, American lawyer, judge, academic, and bioethicist * Bernhard Schaller, Swiss physician and medical researcher * Biff Schaller (1889 1939), American baseball player * George Schaller, American biologist *… …   Wikipedia

  • Schaller — Deutsche Schaller im Kunsthistorischen Museum in Wien Bei der Schaller (auch Salade, Celate, Celata, Salet, Salett) handelt es sich um einen spätmittelalterlichen Helmtypus, der in der ersten Hälfte des 15. Jahrhunderts aus dem so genannten… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Mark Schaller — is a psychological scientist who has made many contributions to the study of human psychology, particularly in areas of social cognition, stereotyping, evolutionary psychology, and cultural psychology. He is Professor of Psychology at the… …   Wikipedia

  • Marco Polo sheep — Engraving of a Marco Polo sheep, c. 1883 Conse …   Wikipedia

  • Лев — Самец льва в Луисвиллском зоопарке …   Википедия

  • Lion —  Pour les articles homonymes, voir Lion (homonymie). Cet article possède des homophones, voir Lions, Lyon et Lyons …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Dian Fossey — in November 1985; photograph by Yann Arthus Bertrand Born January …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”