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Alwyne Cooper Wheeler | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1929-10-05)5 October 1929 |
| Died | 19 June 2005(2005-06-19) (aged 75) |
| Nationality | English |
| Citizenship | British |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Zoologist,Ichthyologist |
| Institutions | Natural History Museum |
| Author abbrev. (zoology) | Wheeler |
Alwyne (Wyn) Wheeler (5 October 1929 – 19 June 2005) was a British ichthyologist who was a curator at theNatural History Museum in London. He was educated at St Egbert's College,Chingford, and Chingford County High School to Higher School Certificate level, and was unusual in that his subsequent scientific career was achieved despite his never having obtained a university degree.
He joined theLondon Natural History Society at the age of 13 and served his National Service as aradiographer and medical photographer in theRoyal Army Medical Corps in both theUnited Kingdom andJamaica, where he joined theNatural History Society of Jamaica. On leaving the army he applied to theNatural History Museum for a post as an Assistant in the Department of Zoology, starting on 1 June 1950 as an assistant in the Fish Section. Wheeler spent his whole career in the Natural History Museum, retiring in 1989.
Wheeler specialized in two main fields, or that of thetaxonomy of European fish, and of the studies of historical collections of taxonomic importance. He produced over a hundred different scientific publications and his most important work wasThe fishes of the British Isles and north-west Europe which was published in 1969 and became the standard, modern Britishichthyology text. Other important publications includedFishes of the World (1975),Key to the Fishes of Northern Europe (1978), andThe World Encyclopedia of Fishes (1985).
He was also a central figure in the monitoring of the clean up of theRiver Thames and the return of life to the river, and the findings were documented inThe Tidal Thames; The History of a River and its Fishes (1979). Wyn Wheeler was a founding member of the Fisheries Society of the British Isles (FSBI).
As well as scientific publications Wheeler wrote columns in the more popularangling press giving biological information to anglers. He also adjudicated many rod caught records and in 1997 he announced that many of the largest specimens ofCrucian carpCarassius carassius were invalid as they referred towild goldfishCarassius auratus.[1]
Wheeler's other expertise was developed in the identification of fish bone fromarchaeological sites, co-authoring a manual in 1989 on the identification of fish remains in archaeological sites.
As an editor of, and as to mentor the magazine to develop, Wheeler was associated with theJournal of the Society for the Bibliography of Natural History (now called Archives of Natural History). His term serving as the honorary editor was between 1967 and 1974, 1978 and 1986. He was again formally elected as honorary editor in 1989 while being an editor pro term from 1988 to 1989. Wheeler finally retired in 1999 after the publication of volume 26 (part 1).[citation needed]
Wheeler retired from the Natural History Museum in 1989. After retirement he worked atEpping Forest Conservation Centre and continued his association with the Museum in his capacity as an official Scientific Associate.
His writings were published sometimes under the pen nameAllan Cooper, mostly when publishing non-technical, popular articles and books. In 1992 he publishedA list of the common and scientific names of fishes of the British Isles, which was being revised when Wheeler contractedAlzheimer's disease and was completed byNigel Merrett, his successor at the Museum, andDeclan Quigley, being published in 2004.
The Alwyne Wheeler Bursary was established in 1999, on the occasion of Alwyne Wheeler's retirement as the Society for the History of Natural History's honorary editor. Thebursary was established to facilitate original contributions to the study of the history of natural history by young scholars (under the age of 30).[2] The name of theAfrican goby genusWheelerigobius honours Wheeler's contribution to ichthyology.[3]
The FSBI established the "Wyn Wheeler Research Grant"[4] in December 2005 following his passing in that June, to recognize his role as a founding member of theFSBI,[5] as well as his post-retirement research activity. The Grant provides retired members of the FSBI with financial support for continued activity in fish biology.
