Alan Riverstone McCulloch

Alan Riverstone McCulloch (20 June 1885 – 1 September 1925) was a prominent Australian ichthyologist.

McCulloch was born in Sydney, and began his scientific career at the age of 13 as an unpaid assistant in the Australian Museum there. Three years later, he was employed as a "mechanical assistant", and five years after that, as curator of fishes, a post he held until his death.

McCulloch collected and published prolifically; from his first paper in 1906, no year passed without his making a contribution to science, and he wrote over 100 original papers in all, many including his own illustrations. He travelled widely for his collections, including trips to Queensland, Lord Howe Island, New Guinea, the Great Barrier Reef and various Pacific islands. His major research interest was in fish, but he was also given the responsibility of the crustacean collection from 1905 to 1921, and he wrote several significant papers on decapods.

McCulloch's hectic schedule seems to have damaged his health, and he was forced to spend a year off work for his health's sake. He died, however, on Honolulu in 1925. His collection ultimately included over 40,000 specimens, and he was considered "the greatest authority on fish in the southern hemisphere" (David Starr Jordan). A monument to his memory stands on Lord Howe Island.

References

* [http://www.asap.unimelb.edu.au/bsparcs/biogs/P001300b.htm McCulloch, Allan Riverstone (1885 - 1925)] at Bright Sparcs

External links

* [http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an23259919-v Photo of the McCulloch memorial on Lord Howe Island]