Encyclopedia, Difference between revisions of "Richard Leakey" - New World
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| + | '''Richard Erskine Frere Leakey''' (born 19 December, 1944 in Nairobi, [[Kenya]]), is a [[paleontology|paleontologist]], [[archaeology|archaeologist]] and an activist, famous for his discovery of Turkana Boy and his fight to preserve wildlife of African continent. | ||
| − | + | ==Life== | |
| − | + | '''Richard Leakey''' is the second of the three sons of the archaeologists [[Louis Leakey]] and [[Mary Leakey]]. A high school dropout, Leakey discovered his love of paleontology when he led an expedition to a fossil site he had discovered while flying. Frustrated by the lack of recognition he received for his accomplishments due to his lack of scientific credentials, Leakey left for England to catch up on his high school education. However, after six months, Leakey returned home to continue his safaris and work at the National Museum of Kenya. He never completed his degree. | |
| − | Leakey | ||
| − | + | Leakey married in 1966 to an archeologist Margaret Cooper, and started to work on excavations. With the lack of a formal education, he benefited from the fame of his well-known parents. He received funds from the National Geographic Society to start excavations. His first major involvement in fossil-hunting began in 1967 at the Lower Omo Valley in [[Ethiopia]]. In 1968 he became director of the National Museum of Kenya, a position formerly held by his father. He continued with excavations near Lake Turkana in Kenya. In 1969 the discovery of a cranium of [[Australopithecus boisei]] caused great excitement. A [[Homo habilis]] skull (ER 1470) and a [[Homo erectus]] skull (ER 3733), discovered in 1972 and 1975, respectively, were among the most significant finds of Leakey's earlier expeditions. In 1978 an intact cranium of Homo erectus (KNM-ER 3883) was discovered. | |
| − | Leakey | + | In 1969 he divorced Margaret and remarried to Maeve Epps, a paleontologist who became famous for her discovery of Kenyanthropus platyops in 1974. He has two daughters from this marriage. |
| + | |||
| + | In 1969 Leakey had been diagnosed with a terminal kidney disease and the illness caused him to slow down with his work. He focused mostly on running Kenya’s museum system. In 1979 Leakey’s condition worsened and he had to receive a kidney transplant from his brother Philip in order to live. After long recovery Leakey continued with his work, both on excavations and in the museum. In 1984 he found what turned to be the greatest find of his career – a fossil of Turkana boy. The next year he found his second big find – the first skull of the new species - ''Australopithecus aethiopicus''. | ||
| − | + | In the later years of his life Leakey became more interested in politics than in paleontology. In 1989 he was appointed the head of the [[Kenyan Wildlife Service]] (KWS) by President [[Daniel Arap Moi]] in response to the international outcry over the poaching of elephants and the impact it was having on the wildlife of [[Kenya]]. With characteristically bold steps Leakey created special, well-armed anti-poaching units that were authorized to shoot poachers on sight. The poaching menace was dramatically reduced. Impressed by Leakey's transformation of the KWS, the [[World Bank]] approved grants worth $140 million. Richard Leakey, President Arap Moi and the KWS made the international news headlines when a stockpile of 12 tons of [[ivory]] was burned in 1989. | |
| − | In | + | In 1993 Richard Leakey lost both his legs when his propeller-driven plane crashed. Sabotage was suspected, but never proved. In a few months Richard Leakey was walking again on artificial limbs. Around this time the Kenyan government announced that a secret probe had found evidence of corruption and mismanagement in the KWS. An annoyed Leakey resigned publicly in a press conference in January 1994. He wrote about his experiences at the KWS in his book ''Wildlife Wars: My Battle to Save Kenya's Elephants''. |
| − | + | In May 1995 Leakey joined a group of Kenyan intellectuals in launching a new [[political party]] - the Safina Party. Their main agenda was to battle corruption in Kenyan government. "If KANU and Mr. Moi will do something about the deterioration of public life, corruption and mismanagement, I'd be happy to fight alongside them. If they won't, I want somebody else to do it," announced Richard Leakey. The Safina party was routinely harassed and even its application to become an official political party was not approved until 1997. Leakey’s relationship with president Moi seriously deteriorated | |
| − | Richard Leakey | + | In 1999, Moi had to appoint Richard Leakey as Cabinet Secretary and overall head of the civil service at the insistence of international donor institutions as a pre-condition for the resumption of donor funds. Leakey's second stint in the civil service lasted until 2001 when he was forced to resign again. He was accused of his arrogant and autocratic style of leadership and racism. After that he left politics, but continued to fight against corruption through public speeches and lectures. Similar with that, although not active anymore in fieldwork, he continues to give lectures and write books about the danger of environmental degradation and the need for wildlife preservation. |
| − | + | ==Work== | |
| − | + | [[Turkana Boy]] - discovered by Kamoya Kimeu, a member of Leakeys' team in 1984 - was the nearly complete skeleton of a 12-year-old (or possibly 9-year-old) Homo erectus who died 1.6 million years ago. It was one of the first well-preserved skeletons of that origin ever found. Leakey and [[Roger Lewin]] describe the experience of this find in their book ''Origins Reconsidered'' (1992). Shortly after the discovery of Turkana Boy, Leakey and his team made the discovery of a skull of a new species, Australopithecus aethiopicus (WT 17000). Both discoveries were important in establishing the theory of African origins of human beings. | |
| − | + | Richard Leakey is also a well known activist and politician. His confrontational approach to the issue of human-wildlife conflict in national parks did not win him friends. His view was that parks were self-contained ecosystems that had to be fenced in and the humans kept out. Leakey's bold and incorruptible nature also offended many local politicians. Although his fight against corruption in Kenyan government caused him being threatened and beaten numerous times, he never stopped the fight. | |
| − | |||
| − | + | ==Legacy== | |
| − | + | Building upon legacy of his parents, Richard Leakey contributed toward understanding of the origins of humans. His discovery of one of the most complete skeletons ever found - the Turkana boy - as well as of a new species of Australopithecus aethiopicus, were important finds that established human origins in Africa. | |
| + | As an activist, Leakey fought for more than thirty years for wildlife preservation, addressing the danger of environmental deterioration. In the political arena, he fought against corruption in his native Kenya. | ||
| + | His wife Meave continues to be a successful paleoanthropologist, discovering some new species - ''Australopithecus anamensis'', and ''Kenyanthropus platyops''. Their daughter Louise continues in her parents’ steps, completing a Ph.D. in paleontology in 2001. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==References== | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Morell Virginia. 1996. ''Ancestral passions: The Leakey family and the quest for humankind's beginnings''. Touchstone. ISBN 0684824701 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Poynter, Margaret. 2001. ''The Leakeys: Uncovering the Origins of Humankind''. Enslow Publishers. ISBN 0766018733 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Willis, Delta. 1992. ''The Leakey Family: Leaders in the Search for Human Origins''. Facts on File. ISBN 081602605X | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Bibliography== | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard. 1984. ''One Life: An Autobiography''. Salem House Publishers. ISBN 0881620556 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard. 1993. ''Man-ape, ape-man: The quest for human's place in nature and Dubois' “missing link”.'' Netherlands Foundation for Kenya Wildlife Service. ISBN 9026312857 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard. 1996. ''The Origin of Humankind''. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0465053130 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey, Richard & King Preston. 1987. ''An African Winter''. Puffin. ISBN 0140523650 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard. 2003. ''Great Civilizations''. Fog City Press. ISBN 1877019291 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1991. ''Origins : The Emergence and Evolution of Our Species and Its Possible Future.'' Penguin Press. ISBN 0140153365 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1992. ''Origins Reconsidered: In Search of What Makes Us Human''. Anchor. ISBN 0385467923 | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1995. [http://www.well.com/user/davidu/sixthextinction.html ''The Sixth Extinction'']. Mass Extinction Underway | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Leakey Richard & Morell Virginia. 2002. ''Wildlife Wars: My Fight to Save Africa's Natural Treasures.'' St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0312303343 | ||
== External links == | == External links == | ||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| + | * [http://www.leakeyfoundation.org Leakey Foundation] – Official website of Leakey Foundation | ||
| + | |||
| + | * [http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/rleakey.html Richard Leakey] - Biography | ||
| + | |||
| + | * [http://www.leakey.com Leakey.com] – 100 years of Leakeys’ work in East Africa | ||
| + | |||
| + | * [http://www.kfrp.com Koobi Fora Research Project] – Project in Turkana Basin in Northern Kenya | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Johanson, Donald C. 1999. [http://www.time.com/time/time100/scientist/profile/leakey02.html The Leakey Family]. ''Time'', March 29 | ||
{{credit1|Richard_Leakey|54598083|}} | {{credit1|Richard_Leakey|54598083|}} | ||
Revision as of 18:52, 14 July 2006
Richard Erskine Frere Leakey (born 19 December, 1944 in Nairobi, Kenya), is a paleontologist, archaeologist and an activist, famous for his discovery of Turkana Boy and his fight to preserve wildlife of African continent.
Life
Richard Leakey is the second of the three sons of the archaeologists Louis Leakey and Mary Leakey. A high school dropout, Leakey discovered his love of paleontology when he led an expedition to a fossil site he had discovered while flying. Frustrated by the lack of recognition he received for his accomplishments due to his lack of scientific credentials, Leakey left for England to catch up on his high school education. However, after six months, Leakey returned home to continue his safaris and work at the National Museum of Kenya. He never completed his degree.
Leakey married in 1966 to an archeologist Margaret Cooper, and started to work on excavations. With the lack of a formal education, he benefited from the fame of his well-known parents. He received funds from the National Geographic Society to start excavations. His first major involvement in fossil-hunting began in 1967 at the Lower Omo Valley in Ethiopia. In 1968 he became director of the National Museum of Kenya, a position formerly held by his father. He continued with excavations near Lake Turkana in Kenya. In 1969 the discovery of a cranium of Australopithecus boisei caused great excitement. A Homo habilis skull (ER 1470) and a Homo erectus skull (ER 3733), discovered in 1972 and 1975, respectively, were among the most significant finds of Leakey's earlier expeditions. In 1978 an intact cranium of Homo erectus (KNM-ER 3883) was discovered.
In 1969 he divorced Margaret and remarried to Maeve Epps, a paleontologist who became famous for her discovery of Kenyanthropus platyops in 1974. He has two daughters from this marriage.
In 1969 Leakey had been diagnosed with a terminal kidney disease and the illness caused him to slow down with his work. He focused mostly on running Kenya’s museum system. In 1979 Leakey’s condition worsened and he had to receive a kidney transplant from his brother Philip in order to live. After long recovery Leakey continued with his work, both on excavations and in the museum. In 1984 he found what turned to be the greatest find of his career – a fossil of Turkana boy. The next year he found his second big find – the first skull of the new species - Australopithecus aethiopicus.
In the later years of his life Leakey became more interested in politics than in paleontology. In 1989 he was appointed the head of the Kenyan Wildlife Service (KWS) by President Daniel Arap Moi in response to the international outcry over the poaching of elephants and the impact it was having on the wildlife of Kenya. With characteristically bold steps Leakey created special, well-armed anti-poaching units that were authorized to shoot poachers on sight. The poaching menace was dramatically reduced. Impressed by Leakey's transformation of the KWS, the World Bank approved grants worth $140 million. Richard Leakey, President Arap Moi and the KWS made the international news headlines when a stockpile of 12 tons of ivory was burned in 1989. In 1993 Richard Leakey lost both his legs when his propeller-driven plane crashed. Sabotage was suspected, but never proved. In a few months Richard Leakey was walking again on artificial limbs. Around this time the Kenyan government announced that a secret probe had found evidence of corruption and mismanagement in the KWS. An annoyed Leakey resigned publicly in a press conference in January 1994. He wrote about his experiences at the KWS in his book Wildlife Wars: My Battle to Save Kenya's Elephants.
In May 1995 Leakey joined a group of Kenyan intellectuals in launching a new political party - the Safina Party. Their main agenda was to battle corruption in Kenyan government. "If KANU and Mr. Moi will do something about the deterioration of public life, corruption and mismanagement, I'd be happy to fight alongside them. If they won't, I want somebody else to do it," announced Richard Leakey. The Safina party was routinely harassed and even its application to become an official political party was not approved until 1997. Leakey’s relationship with president Moi seriously deteriorated
In 1999, Moi had to appoint Richard Leakey as Cabinet Secretary and overall head of the civil service at the insistence of international donor institutions as a pre-condition for the resumption of donor funds. Leakey's second stint in the civil service lasted until 2001 when he was forced to resign again. He was accused of his arrogant and autocratic style of leadership and racism. After that he left politics, but continued to fight against corruption through public speeches and lectures. Similar with that, although not active anymore in fieldwork, he continues to give lectures and write books about the danger of environmental degradation and the need for wildlife preservation.
Work
Turkana Boy - discovered by Kamoya Kimeu, a member of Leakeys' team in 1984 - was the nearly complete skeleton of a 12-year-old (or possibly 9-year-old) Homo erectus who died 1.6 million years ago. It was one of the first well-preserved skeletons of that origin ever found. Leakey and Roger Lewin describe the experience of this find in their book Origins Reconsidered (1992). Shortly after the discovery of Turkana Boy, Leakey and his team made the discovery of a skull of a new species, Australopithecus aethiopicus (WT 17000). Both discoveries were important in establishing the theory of African origins of human beings.
Richard Leakey is also a well known activist and politician. His confrontational approach to the issue of human-wildlife conflict in national parks did not win him friends. His view was that parks were self-contained ecosystems that had to be fenced in and the humans kept out. Leakey's bold and incorruptible nature also offended many local politicians. Although his fight against corruption in Kenyan government caused him being threatened and beaten numerous times, he never stopped the fight.
Legacy
Building upon legacy of his parents, Richard Leakey contributed toward understanding of the origins of humans. His discovery of one of the most complete skeletons ever found - the Turkana boy - as well as of a new species of Australopithecus aethiopicus, were important finds that established human origins in Africa.
As an activist, Leakey fought for more than thirty years for wildlife preservation, addressing the danger of environmental deterioration. In the political arena, he fought against corruption in his native Kenya.
His wife Meave continues to be a successful paleoanthropologist, discovering some new species - Australopithecus anamensis, and Kenyanthropus platyops. Their daughter Louise continues in her parents’ steps, completing a Ph.D. in paleontology in 2001.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Morell Virginia. 1996. Ancestral passions: The Leakey family and the quest for humankind's beginnings. Touchstone. ISBN 0684824701
- Poynter, Margaret. 2001. The Leakeys: Uncovering the Origins of Humankind. Enslow Publishers. ISBN 0766018733
- Willis, Delta. 1992. The Leakey Family: Leaders in the Search for Human Origins. Facts on File. ISBN 081602605X
Bibliography
- Leakey Richard. 1984. One Life: An Autobiography. Salem House Publishers. ISBN 0881620556
- Leakey Richard. 1993. Man-ape, ape-man: The quest for human's place in nature and Dubois' “missing link”. Netherlands Foundation for Kenya Wildlife Service. ISBN 9026312857
- Leakey Richard. 1996. The Origin of Humankind. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0465053130
- Leakey, Richard & King Preston. 1987. An African Winter. Puffin. ISBN 0140523650
- Leakey Richard. 2003. Great Civilizations. Fog City Press. ISBN 1877019291
- Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1991. Origins : The Emergence and Evolution of Our Species and Its Possible Future. Penguin Press. ISBN 0140153365
- Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1992. Origins Reconsidered: In Search of What Makes Us Human. Anchor. ISBN 0385467923
- Leakey Richard & Lewin Roger. 1995. The Sixth Extinction. Mass Extinction Underway
- Leakey Richard & Morell Virginia. 2002. Wildlife Wars: My Fight to Save Africa's Natural Treasures. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0312303343
External links
- Leakey Foundation – Official website of Leakey Foundation
- Richard Leakey - Biography
- Leakey.com – 100 years of Leakeys’ work in East Africa
- Koobi Fora Research Project – Project in Turkana Basin in Northern Kenya
- Johanson, Donald C. 1999. The Leakey Family. Time, March 29
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