In Memorium
Elaine Anderson (1936 - 2002)
Elaine Anderson passed away in Denver on March 26, 2002. She was born, January
8, 1936 in Salida, CO, and grew up in Denver as the sole offspring of her
parents, who preceded her in death. Elaine attended local Denver schools and
went to the University of Colorado at Boulder where she completed her
undergraduate degree in 1960. She did a masters thesis on the fauna from
Little Box Elder Cave in Wyoming under the supervision of Dr. Peter Robinson at
UCB in 1965. Her thesis was published in 1968 as Fauna of the Little Box Elder
Cave, Converse, Co., Wyoming: The Carnivores in
University of Colorado Studies,
Series. Earth Science
6:1-59.
Elaine then went to Helsinki as the first Fulbright Scholar to go to Finland.
She studied with Bjorn Kurten who was one of the foremost authorities on
Pleistocene mammals in the World at the time. Her Ph.D. was on the "Quaternary
Evolution of the Genus
Martes
" (
Acta Zoologica Fennica
130 - 1970). This study was a thorough biometric and zoogeographic analysis
of this Holarctic genus. Elaine continued to publish extensively on Quaternary
carnivores, especially mustelids, throughout her life.
Elaine returned to the United States and worked as a scientific consultant on
the Pleistocene Hall at the Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian
Institution. Although more than 35 years old, this exhibit is still one of the
most popular at the Natural History Museum. The hall formed the backdrop of a
well-known painting by Jay Maternus on the Pleistocene mammals of Alaska that
was later published by the National Geographic Society. She worked briefly for
the Idaho State University Museum (now Idaho Museum of Natural History) and the
Maryland Academy of Sciences before returning to Denver to care for her mother.
Following her mother's death she stayed in Denver and continued to live in the
house that she was raised in on Magnolia Street where she hosted many traveling
paleontologists, mammalogists and naturalists as they passed through Denver.
Elaine was more than a vertebrate paleontologist. She was quite familiar with
the modern fauna of Colorado as well as with its beautiful wildflowers.
However, Elaine is best known for her work on
Pleistocene Mammals of North
America
(Columbia University Press) that she co-authored with Bjorn Kurten in
1980. This book is not only authoritative but its organization by Land Mammal
Ages, localities and taxa made it extremely useful and it has become a standard
reference for anyone interested in the North American Pleistocene fauna. The
book also had several indices to sites, taxa (both scientific and vernacular
names), and authors. This book still serves as the "bible" for Pleistocene
mammals of North America. Our copies, like many of our colleagues, are
threadbare because of continual use. Elaine was busy revising this publication
when she passed away.
Elaine was associated with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (formerly
Denver Museum of Natural History) since her childhood visits. She formally
became involved as a professional in 1984 and was elected a Research Associate
in 1994. As a Research Associate she became intimately involved with the
Porcupine Cave Project at the very beginning when it was being studied by Tony
Barnosky and Don Rasmussen. Following this initial phase of the project,
Elaine and several others continued the project as a joint effort between the
Western Interior Paleontological Society (WIPS) and DMNS. She thoroughly
enjoyed her time at the cave in the summer but also was the leader of the
Sunday picking group at DMNS throughout the rest of the year. Many people
became hooked on paleontology as a result of participating in this project.
Elaine was also instrumental in getting other professionals involved with the
project. Her work with Porcupine Cave will be a legacy for many generations of
future Quaternary paleontologists.
Elaine has instilled an interest in vertebrate paleontology in many generations
of young students, including the two authors. Elaine was an adjunct professor
in biology at Colorado State University. She also taught a college credit
course on osteology at DMNS. This course was popular with students at all of
the surrounding universities as well as with volunteers at the museum. As part
of this course Elaine was working on a new textbook on comparative osteology
with Greg McDonald. She was also updating her 1980 book,
Pleistocene
Mammals of North America
. Anytime a person with Elaine's dedication dies
prematurely, they will leave work unfinished because they refused to live idle.
Elaine supervised two Ph.D. students, Dr. Jan Saysette and Dr. Collen Ramos,
and one masters student, Mary Wisz, to completion. Mary went on to Cambridge
and is now finishing a doctorate. At the time of her death she was supervising
Sue Ware in a Ph.D. and Heidi Schutz in a masters program. Elaine also taught
courses on bears and wolves at the Yellowstone Institute in Yellowstone
National Park and at Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, each summer. Her fondness
for mustelids directed her into the conservation cauldron of the black footed
ferret recovery effort. During the early 1980s when many questions about
ferret range, potential sites for translocation, were being aired, Elaine (and
coauthors) used more than 300 specimens from 48 museums to address the
biogeography and variability of ferrets. This document is still cited
frequently today. Elaine was also involved in the annual "Wolf Symposium" and
strove to bring together wolf biologists and paleontologists to discuss
conservation ideas.
Elaine helped archaeologists with identification of faunal remains well before
zooarchaeology was fashionable. She had a love for modern animals and was a
volunteer at the Denver Zoo where she did a lot of work with education
collections, assisted veterinarians, and cooperated with the Conservation
Department. She was always a champion for cooperative efforts between the Zoo
and the Museum. Elaine was Associate Editor for Mammalian Species (American
Society of Mammalogists) from 1995 until her death. She was elected as an
Honorary Member to the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in 2000. She was also
a member of the American Quaternary Association. She also served as Adjunct
Professor, Biology Department, Colorado State University; Adjunct Professor,
EPO, University of Colorado, Boulder; and Research Associate, Earth Sciences,
Denver Museum of Nature & Science. She also was a Director of The Wolverine
Foundation, Inc. from its inception in 1996 until her death.
Most importantly, Elaine Anderson was a kind and generous person. She will be
sorely missed as a colleague, mentor, and mostly as a dear friend.
Russell Wm. Graham
Chief Curator
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
H. Gregory McDonald
Paleontologist
National Park Service
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