Robert T. Paine (zoologist)
| Robert Treat Paine | |
|---|---|
| Born |
April 13, 1933 Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Died | June 13, 2016 (aged 83) Seattle, Washington |
| Institutions |
University of Michigan University of Washington Harvard University Scripps Institution of Oceanography |
| Alma mater |
Harvard University University of Michigan |
| Thesis | The Life History and Population Dynamics of Glottidia Pyramidata (Brachiopoda) (1961) |
| Doctoral students |
Paul Dayton Bruce Menge Jane Lubchenco |
| Known for | keystone species concept |
| Notable awards | Sewall Wright Award (1996) National Academy of Sciences International Cosmos Prize (2013) |
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Website www |
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Robert Treat "Bob" Paine III (April 13, 1933 – June 13, 2016) was an American ecologist, who spent most of his career at the University of Washington. Paine coined the keystone species concept to explain the relationship between Pisaster ochraceus, a species of starfish, and Mytilus californianus, a species of mussel. Paine's research, and the subsequent work of his students, has been hugely influential in the field of ecology.
Paine was born on April 13, 1933 and grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was fascinated by biology from a very young age. After graduating from Harvard University in 1954, he served in the U.S. Army where he was the battalion gardener. Paine later entered graduate school at the University of Michigan intending to study paleontology. After he took some courses in zoology and ecology at Michigan, his interests and studies changed after taking a course about freshwater invertebrates taught by ecologist Frederick E. Smith. Upon graduating from the University of Michigan, Paine completed a one-year post-doctoral fellowship at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. In 1962, Paine joined the University of Washington where he spent the rest of his career and became well known for his work.
Paine's doctoral research thesis was on the ecology of living brachipods. As a postdoctoral fellow, he worked on the history and energetics of opisthobranchs (marine gastropods). Much of Paine's work at the University of Washington focused on the organization of marine communities. It was here that much of his research on keystone species occurred.
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