Elmer C. Birney papers

Elmer Clea Birney was born on March 26, 1940 in Satanta, Kansas (1). He earned his B.S. in Biology and his M.S. in Zoology from Fort Hays State University in 1963 and 1965, respectively, and his Ph.D. in Zoology at the University of Kansas in 1970. Birney worked as a biology instructor at Kearney State College from 1965-1966, and he began teaching at the University of Minnesota in 1970, where he taught classes in the Department of Ecology and Behavioral Biology (now the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior). He became an assistant professor in 1970, an associate professor in 1974, and a full professor in 1981. Outside of teaching, he also served on many university and college-specific committees, including the General Biology Program committee (1979-2000), Departmental Curriculum committee (1974-1980, 1996-1997), and All-University committee on Collections (1990-1995) (2). He also served as the Director of Graduate Studies for the Ecology program (1981-1984, 1998-2000) and the Zoology program (1985-2000).

Birney played a major role in the Bell Museum of Natural History (1). He held the position of curator of mammals from 1970-2000. Between 1990 and 1992, he took over as the Director of the museum, and worked on restructuring museum operations, while also increasing public awareness of the museum itself. Birney also conducted yearly field research on mammals, beginning in 1962. Most of the research was conducted in the central and western United States, but he also conducted significant research in Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Chile, and Mexico (1). Alongside his research, Birney was involved in many scientific societies, including the American Society of Mammalogists, the Ecological Society of America, the Society of American Naturalists, and the Society of Systematic Zoology. Elmer C. Birney passed away June 11, 2000 (2).

References:

(1) Biographical File, Birney, Elmer C., Information files collection, University Archives.

(2) Obituary: Elmer Clea Birney, 1940-2000.