Donald Ryder Dickey

Donald Ryder Dickey (born March 31, 1887 Dubuque , † April 15, 1932 in Pasadena ) was an American ornithologist , specialist in zoology of the American Pacific coast and nature photographer.

Life

Dickey was the son of Ernest May Dickey and Anna Roberts Ryder. The father worked as the head of the Diamond Joe Steamship Line . Dickey's ancestors came from Scotland . The paternal grandfather immigrated to Illinois from Glasgow around 1850 . Donald spent his school days at the Thacher School , founded in 1889 , 137 kilometers northwest of Los Angeles . During his training, he suffered life-threatening heart disease, which eventually led to his sudden death in 1932. For health reasons he moved to California in 1910 to a more pleasant climate. Doctors had doubts whether he would ever recover. It was three years before he was able to do regular work again. During the First World War he was a captain and instructor at the Small Arms Firing School at Camp Perry . On 15 June 1921 he married Florence Van fencing with which he a child, Donald Ryder Jr. had.

Dickey as a scientist

At the age of sixteen, Dickey visited Kings River Cañon with the Sierra Club in 1902 . The polymath John Muir (1838–1914), the ornithologist Clinton Hart Merriam (1855–1942), the geographer Henry Gannett (1846–1914), the historian (subject California) Theodore Henry Hittell (1830–1917) also took part in this trip. and the landscape painter William Keith (1838-1911). In 1906, Dickey began studying at the University of California . He then went to Yale University , where he graduated in 1910 with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) with exceptional performance. During his studies he was a member of the student associations Psi Upsilon , Elihu and Phi Beta Kappa . In 1925 he was awarded an honorary Master of Arts degree from Occidental College . During the period of his serious illness, his interest in vertebrate zoology matured. So he began to collect birds and mammals intensively, which brought him into possession of an extensive collection. After he had recovered physically, he met other well-known field researchers such as John Burroughs (1837-1921), Edward William Nelson (1855-1934) and many others know. Within ten years he built up an excellent library and collected over 50,000 vertebrates. At the time, his collection was considered one of the largest in the country. During this time he turned his main focus on ecology and field research. Much time spent on photography of wildlife. So he traveled far and wide taking excellent pictures and films of birds and big game. In particular , he explored Laysan , Baja California, and many other places on the Pacific coast. In 1924 he took part as a photographer in the fifth Tanager expedition , which was commissioned to investigate the islands of Nihoa and Necker Island . Most of the reports on his activities have appeared in such journals as The Auk , The IBIS , Journal of Mammalogy , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, and other journals. In the 1926 article Wild Life of America: Photographs by Donald R. Dickey in The World's Work magazine, impressive images of wild animals appeared. Dickey's pictures were often reprinted and helped to illustrate works such as The Birds Of California by William Leon Dawson (1873–1928) or Life Histories of North American Birds by Arthur Cleveland Bent (1866–1954). At his death he left behind many manuscripts that contained systematic evidence for his field research. Some only appeared after his death. Some were created in close collaboration with his long-time assistant Adriaan Joseph van Rossem (1858–1949).

Social commitment and honors

Dickey was a member of the American Ornithologists' Union , which together with Van Rossem posthumously awarded him the William Brewster Medal in 1941 for their work The birds of El Salvador .

He was also a member of other organizations such as the Cosmos Club in Washington DC and The Yale Club of New York City . From 1926 he was a research assistant for vertebrates at the California Institute of Technology . From 1920 to 1928 he was a curator at the Southwest Museum of Los Angeles . He was also President of the Board of the Pasadena Hospital Association (now Huntington Hospital ) from 1924 to 1925 .

He was particularly interested in the Cooper Ornithological Society , to which he appeared as a patron from 1926 until his death. Here he was committed to the success of the club magazine The Condor .

Dedication names

Robert Thomas Moore (1882-1958) dedicated Dickey to the blue raven ( Cyanocorax dickeyi ) in 1935 . Moore wrote:

" In naming this corvid , it is a special honor for me to name it in memory of Donald R. Dickey, who worked as an assistant in the Vertebrate Zoology of the California Institute of Technology before his death. His tireless interest in the birds and mammals of northwest Mexico and his generous financial support for the "California Institute" in this field especially justify this honor. The author has waited some time for an opportunity to rediscover the memory of the deceased and is now happy to take the opportunity to pay due tribute to a great intellect, lively companion, and valued friend. "

In 1932 Henry Boardman Conover (1892-1950) described a subspecies of the crested quail called Colinus leucopogon dickeyi , which was also known in English under the common name Dickey's Quail . In his dedication he wrote:

“ I named the species after the late Donald R. Dickey, whose interest in Central America is well known. "

His assistant Van Rossem honored his mentor with three subspecies. In 1926 he named a subspecies of the red heron ( Egretta rufescens dickeyi in the first description of Dichromanassa rufescens dickeyi ), in 1934 a subspecies of the multicolored finch ( Passerina versicolor dickeyae ) and in 1938 a subspecies of the black-headed trupial ( Icterus graduacauda dickeyae ). The English common names Dickey's Egret and Dickey's Oriole found their way into literature. The biologist Joseph Grinnell (1877–1939) also paid tribute to Dickey with two dedication names. In 1928 he described a subspecies of the winter night swallow ( Phalaenoptilus nuttallii dickeyi ) and in 1930 together with Jean Myron Linsdale (1902–1969) a subspecies of the island gray fox ( Urocyon littoralis dickeyi ). The subspecies of the turquoise brow motmot ( Eumomota superciliosa dickeyi ) described by Ludlow Griscom (1890-1959) is a synonym of the subspecies Eumomota superciliosa apiaster . Loye Holmes Miller (1874–1970) described a sea geese fossil in 1924 under the name Branta dickeyi . Edward William Nelson Dickey paid tribute to the coyote subspecies Canis latrans dickeyi . He also described in 1931 together with Edward Alphonso Goldman (1873-1946) the raccoon subspecies Procyon lotor dickeyi . The subspecies Microdipodops megacephalus dickeyi (Goldman, 1927) is a synonym for the pale kangaroo mouse ( Microdipodops pallidus ). In 1932, William Henry Burt (1903–1987) finally described the Dickey deer mouse ( Peromyscus dickeyi ). Their common English name is Dickey's deer mouse .

Taxa described by Dickey

species

• Stirton's deer mouse ( Peromyscus stirtoni ) Dickey, 1928
• Thomas water mouse ( Rheomys thomasi ) Dickey, 1928

Subspecies

• Rust-crested hammer ( Aimophila ruficeps obscura ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1923
• Rock Mountain Grouse ( Dendragapus obscurus howardi ) Dickey & van Rossem, 1923
• Rattle rail ( Rallus longirostris yumanensis ) Dickey, 1923
• Red-shouldered blackbird ( Agelaius phoeniceus nyaritensis ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1925
• Ocher-bellied pipratyrann ( Mionectes oleagineus obscurus ) (Dickey & Van Rossem, 1925)
• Brown back clarino ( Myadestes occidentalis oberholseri ) Dickey & van Rossem, 1925
• Fan Warbler ( Euthlypis lachrymosa schistacea ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1926
• Blue-ringed dove ( Leptotila verreauxi bangsi ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1926
• Belt pigeon ( Patagioenas fasciata letonai ) (Dickey & Van Rossem, 1926)
• Rust-wood bunting ( Aimophila rufescens pectoralis ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1927
• Acorn woodpecker ( Melanerpes formicivorus lineatus ) (Dickey & Van Rossem, 1927)
• Floating bucket ( Chironectes minimus argyrodytes ) Dickey, 1928
• Winter night swallow ( Phalaenoptilus nuttallii hueyi ) Dickey, 1928
• White breasted swift ( Aeronautes saxatalis nigrior ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1928
• Black-throated nightjar ( Caprimulgus vociferus vermiculatus ) (Dickey & Van Rossem, 1928)
• Song quail ( Dactylortyx thoracicus salvadoranus ) Dickey & van Rossem, 1928
• Larval Wood Warbler ( Myioborus miniatus connectens ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1928
• Cayenneralle ( Aramides cajanea vanrossemi ) Dickey, 1929
• Western Fleckenskunk ( Spilogale gracilis amphialus ) Dickey, 1929
• Yellow-rumped Attila Tyrant ( Attila spadiceus salvadorensis ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1929
• Green-throated nymph ( Lampornis viridipallens nubivagus ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1929
• Toucanet ( Aulacorhynchus prasinus volcanius ) Dickey & Van Rossem, 1930
• Crested quail ( Colinus cristatus panamensis ) Dickey & van Rossem, 1930

Works

• The Nesting of the Spotted Owl , The Condor, Vol 16, No 5, 1914, pp. 193-202.
• After Moose with Rifle and Camera , Outing, Vol 65, 1914, pp. 148-155.
• The Cannibal Gulls of Los Coronadoe , Country Life in America, Vol 27, 1915, pp 35-39.
• The Hummers of a Foothill Valley , Country Life in America, Vol 28, 1915, pp 35-39.
• The Shadow Boxing of Pipilo , Condor, Vol 18, No. 3, 1916, pp. 93-99.
• The Caribou of the Nipisiguit Barrens , Recreation, Vol 55, 1916, pp. 204-296
• The Caribou of the Nipisiguit Barrens. Part II , Recreation, Vol 55, 1916, pp. 251-253.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A Winter Record of the Kern Red-wing , Condor, Vol 24, No 1, 1922, p. 26.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: An Inland Occurrence of the Common Tern , Condor, Vol 24, No 1, 1922, p. 29.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Early Nesting of the Tri-colored Blackbird and Mallard , Condor, Vol 24, No 1, 1922, p. 31.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Validity of the Catalina Island Quail , Condor, Vol 24, No 1, 1922, p. 34.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Slight Extension of the Breeding Range of the Western Lark Sparrow , Condor, Vol 24, No 2, 1922, p. 62.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Breeding of the San Diego Titmouse on the Mohave Desert , Condor, Vol 24, No 2, 1922, p. 63
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Second Occurrence of the Yakutat Song Sparrow in California , Condor, Vol 24, No 2, 1922, p. 65.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Wintering of the Nuttall Sparrow in Los Angeles County , Condor, Vol 24, No 2, 1922, pp 65-66.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Kern County Notes , Condor, Vol 24, No 2, 1922, pp. 67-68.
• A Bat New for California , Journal of Mammalogy, Vol 3, May, 1922, p. 116.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Occurrence of the Desert Horned Larkin-Southern California . Condor, Vol 24, No 3, 1922, p. 94.
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Iceland Gull (Larus leucopterus) in California , The Auk, Vol. 39, No. 3, 1922, p. 411
• A Second Capture of the Broad-tailed Hummingbird in California , Condor, Vol 24, No 4, 1922, pp 135-136.
• The Arizona Crested Flycatcher as a Bird of California , Condor, Vol 24, No 4, 1922, p. 134.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Gray Flycatcher in the White Mountains of California , Condor, Vol 24, No 4, 1922, pp 137-138.
• Swamp Sparrow Recorded from California , Condor, Vol 24, No 4, 1922, p. 136.
• A Third Record of the Gray-headed Junco in California . Condor, Vol 24, No 4, 1922, p. 138.
• The Mimetic Aspect of the Mocker's Song , Condor, Vol 24, No 5, 1922, pp 153-157.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Distribution of Moluthrus ater in California with Description of a New Race , Condor, Vol 24, No 6, 1922, pp. 206-210.
• Description of a New Clapper Rail from the Colorado River Valley , The Auk, Vol 40, No 1, 1923, pp. 90-94.
• An Extension of the Range of the Muskrat in California , Journal of Mammalogy, Vol 4, 1923, pp. 55-56.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Fulvous Tree-Ducks of Buena Vista Lake , Condor, Vol 25, No 2, 1923, pp 37-50.
• Evidence of Interrelation between Fox and Caribou , Journal of Mammalogy, Vol 4, 1923, pp. 121-122.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Additional Notes from the Coastal Islands of Southern California , Condor, Vol 25, No 4, 1923, pp. 126–129.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Description of a new Grouse from Southern California , Condor, Vol 25, No 5,1923, pp. 168-169.
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Race of the Least Bittern from the Pacific Coast , Bulletin, Southern California Academy of Sciences, Vol 22, 1924, pp. 11-12.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A Correction , Condor, Vol 25, No 1, 1924, p. 36.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Status of the Florida Gallinule of Western North America Condor, Vol 25, No 3, 1924, p. 93
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Notes on Certain Horned Larks in California , Condor, Vol 26, No 3, 1924, p. 110
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A Revisionary Study of the Western Gull , Condor, Vol 27, No 4, 1925, pp. 162-164
• Bird Life among Lava Rock and Coral Sand. Photographs Taken on a Scientific Expedition to Little-known Islands of Hawaii , National Geographic Magazine, Vol 48, 1925, pp. 87-102
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The A New Red-winged Blackbird from Western Mexico , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 38, 1926, pp. 131-132
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Four New Birds from Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 38, 1925, pp 133-135
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Two New Pigeons from Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 39, 1926, pp 109-110
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A Southern Race of the Fan-tailed Warbler , Condor, Vol 28, No. 6, 1926, pp. 270-271
• Wild Life of America: Photographs by Donald R. Dickey , The World's Work, Vol. 52, 1926, pp. 558-566
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Seven New Birds from Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 40, 1927, pp. 1-7
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Spotted Rock Wrens of Central America , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 40, 1927, pp 25-27
• Five New Mammals of the Genus Peromyscus from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 41, 1928, pp. 1-6
• Five New Mammals of the Rodent Genera Sciurus, Orthogeomys, Heteromys, and Rheomys, from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 41, 1928, pp. 7-14.
• A New Marsupial from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol. 41, 1928, pp. 15-16.
• A New Poor-will from the Colorado River Valley , Condor, Vol 30, No. 2, 1928, pp. 152-153.
• A Third California Record of the Rusty Blackbird , Condor, Vol 30, No. 2, 1928, p. 162
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Race of the White-throated Swift from Central America , Condor, Vol 30, No. 3, 1928, p. 193.
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Further Descriptions of New Birds from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 41, 1928, pp. 129-132.
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Central American Flycatcher , The Auk, Vol 45, No. 3, 1928, pp. 359-360. [Is only mentioned as author in new edition]
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Three New Jays from El Salvador , The Auk, Vol 45, No. 3, 1928, pp. 361-363. [Is only mentioned as author in new edition]
• A Race of Virginia Rail from the Pacific Coast Condor, Vol. 30, No. 5, 1928, p. 322
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Subspecies of Myioborus and a New Species of Chlorospingus from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 41, 1928, pp 189-190.
• with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Chipping Sparrow from Central America , Condor, Vol 30, No. 6, 1928, p. 359
• A New Wood Rail from El Salvador , Condor, Vol 31, No. 1, 1929, pp. 33–34, (with picture by Allan Cyril Brooks )
• The Spotted Skunk of the Channel Islands of Southern California , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol. 42, 1929, pp. 157-160.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Race of Troglodytes rufociliatus from El Salvador , Ibis, 1929, pp. 264–266.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Races of Lampornis virldipallens ( Bourcier and Mulsant ) , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol. 42, 1929, pp. 209-212
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A new Atilla from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 42, 1929, pp. 217-218.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A New Race of the Hairy Woodpecker from El Salvador , Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, Vol 42, 1929, pp. 219-220.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: A. New Bluebird from El Salvador , Condor, Vol 32, No. 1, 1930, pp. 69-70.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: The Identity of Ortyx leucopogon Lesson , Condor, Vol 32, No1, 1930, pp. 72–73.
• together with Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem: Geographic Variation in Aulacorhynchus prasinus (Gould) , Ibis, 1930, pp. 48-66.
• A New Clapper Rail from Sonora , Transactions of the San Diego Society of Natural History, Vol. 6, 1930, pp. 235-236.
• by Adriaan Joseph Van Rossem full editor: The birds of El Salvador , Field Museum of Natural History, Volume 23, Publication 406, 1938

literature

• Casey Albert Wood: Obituaries: Donald Ryder Dickey , The Auk, Vol 49, No 4, pp. 517-518
• Harry Harris: An appreciation of Donald Ryder Dickey , The Condor. Vol 36, No 2, 1934, pp. 59-66
• Bailey Millard: The Martin Johnson of America: How He "Catches Wild Animals" , The Worlds Work, Vol. 52, September, 1926, pp. 567-570.

Web links

• University Of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Donald Ryder Dickey (1887-1932) (English) information
• UCLA The UCLA Donald R. Dickey Bird and Mammal Collection Information on Dickey's collection
• Social archive Biographical History Information also on the mother

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The Worlds Work, Vol. 52, September 1926 How He 'Catches' Wild Animals Original article
2. ↑ The Auk, Vol 49, No. 1, 1942 Fifty-ninth Stated Meeting of the American Ornithologists' Union (English; PDF; 526 kB) Original article
3. ↑ The Auk, Volume 52, Number 3, 1935 A new jay of the genus cyanocorax from Sinaloa, Mexico (English; PDF; 323 kB) Original article
4. ^ The Condor, Volume 34, Number 4, 1932 A New Race of Bob-white from Costa Rica (English; PDF; 148 kB) Original article
5. ^ Proceedings of the New England Zoological Club, Vol 11, 1929 A review of Eumomota superciliosa (English; PDF; 212 kB) Original article
6. ^ The Condor, Volume 26, Number 5, 1924 Branta Dickeyi from the McKittrick Pleistocene (English; PDF; 199 kB) Original article
7. ↑ The Auk, Vol 49, No 4 Obituaries: Donald Ryder Dickey (English; PDF; 333 kB) Original article
8. ^ The Condor. Vol 36, No 2, 1934 An appreciation of Donald Ryder Dickey (English; PDF; 617 kB) Original article