Paul Errington

Paul Lester Errington (born June 14, 1902 near Bruce , South Dakota , † November 5, 1962 in Ames , Iowa ) was an American zoologist, professor at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. Shimon Fritz Bodenheimer called him “one of the greatest pioneers in vertebrate ecology”.

As a schoolboy, Errington devoted himself to fur fishing in the vicinity of his parents' farm. During his studies at the University of Wisconsin , he was a boxer feared by his fellow students, despite the handicap of recovered polio. In 1932 he did his doctorate there under Professor Aldo Leopold , who is considered one of the founders of the nature conservation movement.

He began his professional career as a trapper in Brookings and Haakon Counties, South Dakota, and later in Big Bog Counties on Red Lake and in Beltrami Counties and Koochiching Counties, Minnesota.

Errington received the direction of the Iowa State newly created South Dakota State Agricultural College , a later university. He made his first major study trip as a guest of HL Stoddard to the muskrat swamps and river basins of South Georgia and North Florida . In 1932 he became a teacher at the University of Ames. In 1934 he began his special studies on population dynamics in vertebrates, especially the muskrat, at the University's Agricultural Experiment Station. The focus of his research was on questions of wild animals, over- and underpopulations, enemies, diseases and parasites, the effects of the environment during the increasing cultivation of the lands, etc. With the support of various organizations and personalities, he initially traveled through repeatedly Iowa, later to other states in the USA and Canada, he visited four fifths of the muskrat populated area of North America.

From 1958 to 1959 he went on a study trip to Finland, Great Britain, Sweden, Norway and Denmark, for which he specially learned the Swedish language. During this time in Northern Europe he undertook field biological studies, literature studies and guest lectures at Lund University . Errington is said to have had a tremendous labor force. Often four hours of sleep was enough for him, and he is said to have spent around 35,000 hours in a period of around 25 years with field biological work alone. In his publications he covered over 35 mammals and birds, but his main interest was always the muskrat. The result of his studies are over 200 publications of technical and popular science content.

Paul Errington was naturally a member of many scientific and social organizations, 17 of which are listed in an obituary. He has twice received high honors from the Wildlife Conservation Society . In 1962, at the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference in Denver / Colorado, he received the Wildlife Society's highest award , the Aldo Leopold Medal, and in the same year an annual $ 500 award from Iowa State University.

Errington had been married to Carolyn Storm since 1934. The marriage has two sons, Peter and Frederick.

Works (selection)

The Great Horned Owl and its Prey in North Central United States (1940)
Predation and Vertebrate Populations (1946)
Of Men and Marshes (1957)
Muskrat and Marsh Management (1961)
Muskrat Populations (1963)
Of Predation and Life (1967)
The Red Gods Call (1973)
A Question of Values (1987)
Of Wilderness and Wolves (2015)

Web links

[3] Matthew Sivils: Paul L. Errington: His Life and Work (English). 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2017.

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Max Hoffmann : His life's work was the muskrat. In memoriam Paul Lester Errington . Writings for fur and mammal studies "Das Pelzgewerbe", special print: Born 1965/3, Hermelin-Verlag Dr. Paul Schöps, Berlin and others
↑ Shimon Fritz Bodenheimer: Animal Ecology Today . 1958. Secondary source Max Hoffmann.
^ [1] Michael J. Lannoo: The Iowa Lakeside Laboratory: A Century of Discovering the Nature of Nature . University of Iowa Press, November 15, 2012, p. 6. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
↑ [2] www.add.lib.iastate.edu, Iowa State University: History of Iowa State: People of Distinction. Paul Lester Errington . Retrieved March 20, 2017.

personal data
SURNAME	Errington, Paul
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Errington, Paul Lester (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American zoologist, professor at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa
DATE OF BIRTH	June 14, 1902
PLACE OF BIRTH	near Bruce , South Dakota
DATE OF DEATH	5th November 1962
Place of death	Ames , Iowa

[Hoffmann-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Max Hoffmann : His life's work was the muskrat. In memoriam Paul Lester Errington . Writings for fur and mammal studies "Das Pelzgewerbe", special print: Born 1965/3, Hermelin-Verlag Dr. Paul Schöps, Berlin and others

[2] Shimon Fritz Bodenheimer: Animal Ecology Today . 1958. Secondary source Max Hoffmann.

[3] [1] Michael J. Lannoo: The Iowa Lakeside Laboratory: A Century of Discovering the Nature of Nature . University of Iowa Press, November 15, 2012, p. 6. Retrieved March 20, 2017.

[4] [2] www.add.lib.iastate.edu, Iowa State University: History of Iowa State: People of Distinction. Paul Lester Errington . Retrieved March 20, 2017.