William E. Schevill
William E. Schevill | |
---|---|
Brooklyn, New York | |
Died | July 25, 1994 Emerson Hospital, Concord, Massachusetts | (aged 88)
Occupation | Paleontologist, Cetologist |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Harvard College |
Spouse | Barbara Lawrence |
Children | Lee Schevill (daughter), Edward Schevill (son) |
William Edward "Bill" Schevill (July 2, 1906 – July 25, 1994)
Early Education
Born July 2, 1906 in Brooklyn, New York, William E. Schevill grew up in Manhattan, New York, and St Louis, Missouri.
Kronosaurus discovery
In 1931 the (MCZ) sent an expedition to Australia for the dual purpose of procuring specimens - the museum being "weak in Australian animals and...desires[ing] to complete its series" - and to engage in "the study of the animals of the region when alive."
Following his return from the expedition, William E. Schevill was made a librarian of the MCZ from 1935 to 1943,[4] "and Barbour noted in 1937 that he had 'a decided taste for bibliography'." Unsurprisingly, Mr. Schevill became a founding member of the Society for the Bibliography of Natural History in 1936.[3] During this period he earned a master's degree in paleontology from Harvard, and met his future wife, Vassar College student Barbara Lawrence. They married December 23, 1938, and had two children: a daughter named Lee, and a son named Edward.[18][19][20]
Cetology
After he became an Associate in
William E. Schevill's study of whales also at one point harked back to the U.S. Naval operations that first set him down this path. As noted upon his death by the Society for the Bibliography of Natural History, "Bill helped defuse a tense moment between the USA and Soviet Union during the Cold War. The US military suspected that low frequency blips were being used by the Soviets to locate American submarines, whereas Bill showed these were produced by fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) hunting prey."[3]
William E. Schevill technically retired in 1985, though he continued to work unofficially even after, and died of pneumonia Monday July 25, 1994 at Emerson Hospital in Concord, Mass, where he lived; survived by his wife, daughter, and son.[20]
Honors
Schevill is commemorated in the scientific name of a species of Australian lizard, Ctenotus schevilli, the holotype of which he collected in 1932.[23][24]
References
- ^ a b "William E. Schevill".
- ^ Pace, Eric (1994-07-27). "W. E. Schevill Dies - Authority on Sounds Of Whales Was 88". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
- ^ .
- ^ .
- ^ S2CID 29715877.
- ISBN 9781402062421.
- ^ A Guide to Stag Beetles of Australia By George Hangay, Roger de Keyzer (p. 139) - https://books.google.com/books?id=CqxWDgAAQBAJ&dq=Harvard+expedition+to+Australia+in+1931&pg=PA139
- ^ Ralph Ellis archives, 1898-1972 - http://etext.ku.edu/view?docId=ksrlead/ksrl.sc.ellisralpharchives.xml Archived 2019-12-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c About the Exhibits by Elizabeth Hall and Max Hall (Museum of Comparative Zoology "Agazziz Museum" Harvard University. Third Edition, Copyright 1964, 1975, 1985, by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
- ^ Annual report of the director of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College, to the president of Harvard College for 1932-1933. Cambridge, U.S.A.: Printed for the Museum p.54-58 [BHL - https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/41109461#page/58/mode/1up]
- ^ a b Mather, Patricia, with Agnew, N.H. et al. The History of the Queensland Museum, 1862-1986 Retrieved from archive.org
- ^ News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida on January 26, 1989 · Page 9 - https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/215995144/
- ^ Bailey, Joyce R. W. H. Thomas : a man of distinction. Joyce Bailey, [Kangaloon, N.S.W, 2005. - https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/19722517?q&versionId=23188287+220283007
- ^ Meyers, Troy. Kronosaurus Chronicles. Australian Age of Dinosaurs, Issue 3, 2005. Retrieved from australianageofdinosaurs.com[permanent dead link]
- ^ Zoology Museum to Exhibit Largest Sea-Reptile Fossil - https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1956/4/25/zoology-museum-to-exhibit-largest-sea-reptile/
- ^ 1930s: The One That Got Away - https://australianmuseum.net.au/blogpost/museullaneous/1930s-the-one-that-got-away
- ^ The Rarest of the Rare: Stories Behind the Treasures at the Harvard Museum of Natural History (Hardcover) – October 26, 2004
- ISBN 9780203801451.
- ^ "BARBARA LAWRENCE (1909–1997) | Society of Ethnobiology". ethnobiology.org. Retrieved 2015-10-17.
- ^ ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-02-23.
- ^ SCHEVILL, W. E., 1962 Whale music. Oceanus 9 (2): 2–13.
- ^ BACKUS, R. H., BUMPUS, D., LAWRENCE, B., NORRIS, K. S., RAY, C. E., RAY, G. C., TWISS, J. R. and WATKINS, W. A., 1995 William Edward Schevill 1906–1994. Marine mammal science 11 : 416–419
- ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Schevil", p. 235).
- ^ Species Ctenotus schevilli at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
External links
- W. E. Schevill Dies; Authority on Sounds Of Whales Was 88
- Obituary Barbara Lawrence Schevill: 1909-1997
- Romer Hall of Vertebrate Paleontology
- Schevill's early recordings of cetaceans can be found online in the "Watkins Marine Mammal Sound Database" on the website of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the New Bedford Whaling Museum.