Karl Patterson Schmidt | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1890-06-19)June 19, 1890 Lake Forest, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | September 26, 1957(1957-09-26) (aged 67) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Snakebite |
| Alma mater | Lake Forest Academy,Cornell University |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Guggenheim fellowship (1932), elected toNational Academy of Sciences (1956),Ecological Society of America Eminent Ecologist (1957)[1] |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biology,Herpetology,Animal geographies |
| Institutions | American Museum of Natural History,Field Museum of Natural History |
| Notable students | Robert F. Inger |
| Author abbrev. (zoology) | K. P. Schmidt |
Karl Patterson Schmidt (June 19, 1890 – September 26, 1957) was an Americanherpetologist.
Schmidt was the son of George W. Schmidt and Margaret Patterson Schmidt. George W. Schmidt was a German professor, who, at the time of Karl Schmidt's birth, was teaching in Lake Forest, Illinois. His family left the city in 1907 and settled inWisconsin. They worked on a farm nearStanley, Wisconsin,[2] where his mother and his younger brother died in a fire on August 7, 1935. The brother,Franklin J. W. Schmidt, had been prominent in the then-new field of wildlife management.[3] Karl Schmidt married Margaret Wightman in 1919, and they had two sons, John and Robert.[4]
In 1913, Schmidt enteredCornell University to study biology and geology. In 1915, he discovered his preference forherpetology during a four-month training course at the Perdee Oil Company inLouisiana. In 1916, he received the degree ofBachelor of Arts and made his first geological expedition toSanto Domingo. In 1952 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree byEarlham College.[4]
From 1916 to 1922, he worked as scientific assistant inherpetology at theAmerican Museum of Natural History inNew York, under the well-known American herpetologistsMary Cynthia Dickerson andGladwyn K. Noble. He made his first collecting expedition toPuerto Rico in 1919, then became the assistant curator of reptiles and amphibians at theField Museum of Natural History in Chicago in 1922. From 1923 to 1934, he made several collecting expeditions for that museum to Central and South America, which took him toHonduras (1923),Brazil (1926) andGuatemala (1933–1934). In 1937, he became the editor of the herpetology and ichthyology journalCopeia, a post he occupied until 1949. In 1938, he served in theU.S. Army. He became the chief curator of zoology at the Field Museum in 1941, where he remained until his retirement in 1955. From 1942 to 1946, he was the president of theAmerican Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. In 1953, he made his last expedition, which was toIsrael.
On September 26, 1957, Schmidt was accidentally bitten by a juvenileboomslang snake (Dispholidus typus) at his lab at the Field Museum.Marlin Perkins, the director of theLincoln Park Zoo, had sent the snake to Schmidt's lab for identification.[5][6] Schmidt wrongly believed that the snake could not produce a fatal dose because of its age and the fact that boomslangs arerear-fanged. The bite occurred because he held the snake in an unsafe manner, "too far behind the head."[7] Boomslang venom causesdisseminated intravascular coagulation, a condition in which so many small clots form in the blood that the victim loses the ability to clot further and bleeds to death.
Later that evening, Schmidt felt slightly ill. By the next morning, the lethal effects of the venom rapidly became evident. He did not report to work, and at noon, he reported to the museum that he was very ill. Following the bite, he took detailed notes on the symptoms that he experienced, almost until death.[8] Schmidt was asked just a few hours before he died if he wanted medical care, but he refused because it would disrupt the symptoms that he was documenting.[citation needed] He collapsed at his home inHomewood, Illinois, bleeding in his lungs, kidneys, heart, and brain, and was dead on arrival atIngalls Memorial Hospital.[7][9]
Schmidt was one of the most important herpetologists in the 20th century. Though he made only a few important discoveries by himself, he named more than 200 species and was a leading expert oncoral snakes.[8] His donation of over 15,000 titles of herpetological literature formed the foundation for The Karl P. Schmidt Memorial Herpetological Library located at theField Museum.[9]
His writings reveal that he was generally a solid supporter of aW. D. Matthew brand ofdispersalism of species.[8]
Manyspecies andsubspecies of amphibians and reptiles[10][11] are named in his honor, including:
He wrote more than two hundred articles and books, includingLiving Reptiles of the World, which became an international bestseller.
