Jay Mathers Savage

Jay Mathers Savage (born August 26, 1928 ) is an American herpetologist . His main field of research includes tropical biology , biogeography and the evolution of reptiles and amphibians, especially the Central American herpetofauna .

biography

Jay Mathers Savage received a Bachelor of Arts in 1950 , a Master of Arts in 1954 and a Ph. D. in 1955 from Stanford University . He worked for many years at the University of Southern California's Faculty of Biology before moving to the University of Miami in Coral Gables , Florida . His research focuses on the evolutionary and historical causality of the distribution of vertebrates (especially amphibians and reptiles), their ecological role in the tropical rainforests, and their biogeography. In 1963, Savage founded the Organization for Tropical Studies , a nonprofit made up of 50 universities and research organizations from the United States and Costa Rica that supports environmental education, research, and the wise use of natural resources in the tropics . From 1974 to 1980, Savage served as president of this organization. From 1982 to 2000 he was a member of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature . He was also President of the Southern California Academy of Sciences, the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, and the Society of Systematic Biologists, and Chairman of the National Academy of Sciences Committee.

Jay Mathers Savage is currently Professor Emeritus of Biology at the University of Miami , Assistant Professor of Biology at San Diego State University, and a research fellow at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the American Museum of Natural History .

Savage's publications include 195 scientific papers and three books, including Evolution (1963), which was translated into five languages ​​(including German in 1973).

Savage wrote the first scientific descriptions of over 60 amphibians and reptile taxa, including several species of the genus Eleutherodactylus . In 1963 he discovered the now extinct golden toad ( Bufo periglenes ) in the Monteverde Mountain Cloud Forest of Costa Rica , which he described in 1966. For example, he recently co-wrote the description of the Panamanian fringe-toed tree frog Ecnomiohyla rabborum .

Honors

In 1998 Jay Mathers Savage became an honorary member of the Academia Nacional de Ciencias de Costa Rica . In 2000 he received the Fitch Award from the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists for services in the field of herpetology. In 2001 he was awarded the Archie F. Carr, Jr. Medal by the Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Florida for outstanding contributions to the knowledge and understanding of natural heritage.

Works (selection)

• 1954: A Revision of the Toads of the Bufo Debilis Complex
• 1955: The Lizard Family Xantusiidae: An Evolutionary Study
• 1959: An Illustrated Key to the Lizards, Snakes & Turtles of the Western United States and Canada
• 1960: A Revision of the Ecuadorian Snakes of the Colubrid Genus Atractus
• 1963: Evolution (German 1973)
• 1970: On the Trail of the Golden Frog: With Warszewicz and Gabb in Central America
• 1973: The Geographic Distribution of Frogs: Patterns and Predictions
• 1974: The Isthmian Link and the Evolution of Neotropical Mammals
• 1982: The Enigma of the Central American Herpetofauna: Dispersals Or Vicariance?
• 1986: Introduction to the herpetofauna of Costa Rica. Handlist with preliminary keys to the herpetofauna of Costa Rica
• 1988: Ecological Development in the Humid Tropics: Guidelines for Planners
• 2002: Frogs of the Eleutherodactylus biporcatus group (Leptodactylidae) of Central America and Northern South America, including rediscovered, resurrected, and new taxa
• 2002: The Amphibians and Reptiles of Costa Rica: A Herpetofauna Between Two Continents, Between Two Seas
• 2003: An Illustrated Key to Lizards, Snakes and Turtles of the West

Web links

• Jay Mathers Savage website
• Curriculum Vitae ( RTF ; 3 kB)