Dr. Ruth L. Elder - July 22, 1954 – Nov. 4, 2014

Dr. Ruth L. (Jessie) Elder passed away earlier this month at the age of 60.  Dr. Elder is best known in the vertebrate paleontology community for her work on the Triassic vertebrate fauna from the Dockum Group near Otis Chalk, Texas. The purported rhynchosaurian Otischalkia elderae is named in her honor.

Dr. Elder's obituary can be viewed here.

Passing of William J. Breed

Museum of Northern Arizona geologist and Distinguished Fellow William J. Breed passed away in Flagstaff Arizona on January 22, 2013 after a long and accomplished career predominantly studying the geology and paleontology of the southwestern U.S.  He is also well known for his work with Edwin (Ned) Colbert and Jim Jensen in Antarctica in 1969 when they discovered fossil evidencesupporting the idea of Continental Drift. Among many honors Breed was also a Fellow of the Geological Society of America.

http://azdailysun.com/news/local/obituaries/william-breed-renowned-mna-geologist-dies-in-flagstaff/article_41857e06-1387-53d0-bf6f-f3c469222f65.html

Dr. Farish Jenkins 1940-2012

Many of you are already aware, but Professor Farish Jenkins of Harvard University passed away earlier this month at the age of 72. A vertebrate paleontologist, Dr. Jenkins was well known for his Triassic work in Greenland and even more so for his work in the Triassic and Jurassic of the Colorado Plateau, especially regarding early mammals.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/01/us/farish-jenkins-fossils-expert-dies-at-72.html