Kristofer Helgen

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Kristofer Michael Helgen (born March 14, 1980 in Fridley , Minnesota ) is an American zoologist . His research focus is mammalogy .

Life

Helgen grew up in Minnesota. Fascinated by nature from childhood, he had the desire to become a zoologist from a very early age. A degree in zoology at Harvard University and in particular at the Museum of Comparative Zoology , where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 2001 , he graduated with Magna cum laude . During his student days, Helgen dealt extensively with Harvard's mammal collections and did research in many large museums. He also traveled to southern Africa and Australia, where he studied the mammalian fauna. During this time well-known biologists such as Donald R. Griffin , Tim Flannery and Don Ellis Wilson were his mentors .

In 2001 Helgen undertook his first of several expeditions to New Guinea, where he discovered several new mammalian taxa in the following years. He moved to Adelaide , Australia, where he studied first with the Fulbright program and then with a PhD scholarship at the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Museum . Under the mentorship of Tim Flannery and Russell Victor Baudinette (1945–2004), his doctoral thesis focused on the systematics and biogeography of the mammalian fauna in the Melanesian region . During his time in Australia, Helgen developed a great interest in the Australian fauna and took part in expeditions to Borneo , Timor , Vanuatu and New Guinea. He also studied the museum collections in 30 countries. In 2006 he married the Australian biologist Lauren Elizabeth Johnston, who has been Helgen's closest collaborator in his research ever since. After his Ph.D. Kristofer Helgen and his wife moved to Washington, DC , where he accepted a postdoctoral fellowship at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History under the direction of Don Ellis Wilson .

As a postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Institution, Helgen researched the problems in the systematics of various groups of mammals and did fieldwork in Ecuador , Borneo, New Guinea and other regions. In 2008 he became a curator and from 2009 until the end of 2016 he was head of the mammal department of the National Museum of Natural History, which he left after a conflict with the institute's management. After leaving, he went back to Australia and became Professor of Biology at the University of Adelaide .

His work focuses on the mammals of all continents, especially on their systematics, their biogeography and ecomorphology (habitat design) as well as on species protection . He has worked in more than 60 countries and more than 80 museums, published more than 100 scientific papers on the biology of mammals and documented over 100 new mammalian taxa , including the Andean Makibear ( Bassaricyon neblina ), the mosaic- tailed rat Melomys paveli , the New Guinea water rats Leptomys paulus and Leptomys arfakensis that Flughundart Dyacopterus rickarti , the two extinct species of flying fox Pteropus allenorum and Pteropus coxi that Mäusetaxa Mirzamys louiseae and Mirzamys norahae , the nose Beutler Microperoryctes aplini , the water rat Hydromys ziegleri , the bat Pteralopex flanneryi and Gibbon Hoolock tianxing .

Helgen holds honorary and partner positions in various institutions, including George Mason University , the American Museum of Natural History , the Bernice P. Bishop Museum and the National Geographic Society . He is a member of various editorial boards and advisory boards. He is also an active member of the American Society of Mammalogists , where he served on many boards and boards.

Helgen lives with his wife in Arlington , Virginia. His wife is a research assistant and museum specialist in the entomology department of the National Museum of Natural History. In April 2020 Kristofer Holger was appointed chief scientist at the Australian Museum .

literature

  • Matthew C. Perry: Washington Biologists' Field Club Member Biography

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Sarah Kaplan: The Smithsonian loses one of its top scientists after a bitter conflict with administrators In: The Washington Post of January 13, 2017, accessed on January 14, 2017.
  2. ^ Matt Smith: Internationally renowned zoologist Kristofer Helgen moving to South Australia in a 'coup' for Adelaide Uni. The Advertiser, February 4, 2017; accessed on August 20, 2017.
  3. ↑ Linda Morris: Ain't nothing but mammals for new Australian Museum chief scientist In: The Sydney Morning Herald, April 24, 2020, accessed April 25, 2020

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Helgen, Kristofer
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Helgen, Kristofer Michael (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American zoologist
DATE OF BIRTH March 14, 1980
PLACE OF BIRTH Fridley , Minnesota