MORING, John (R.) 1946-2002

PERSONAL: Born 1946; died 2002. Education: Humboldt State University, B.S., 1968, M.S., 1970; University of Washington, Ph.D., 1973.

CAREER: Nyanza Fish Company, Vancouver, British Columbia, and Seattle, WA, biological consultant and fish culture manager, 1973-74; Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Corvallis, fisheries research biologist and project leader, 1974-79; University of Maine, Orono, assistant leader, 1979-83, acting leader of Maine Cooperative Fishery Research Unit, 1983-85; University of Maine, Orono, assistant professor of zoology, 1979-91, Main Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit, assistant leader for fisheries, 1985-2002, cooperating professor of marine studies, 1987-96; professor of zoology, 1991-2002.

AWARDS, HONORS: Quality Performance Award for Research Productivity, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 1991; fellow, American Institute of Fishery Research Biologists, 1995; Dwight Webster Award of Excellence, Northeastern Division, American Fisheries Society, 1997.

WRITINGS:

Men with Sand: Great Explorers of the North American West, TwoDot (Helena, MT), 1998.

Early American Naturalists: Exploring the American West, 1804-1900, Cooper Square Press (New York, NY), 2002.

(With others) Life between the Tides: Marine Plants and Animals of the Northeast, Tilbury House (Gardiner, ME), 2003.

Contributor to North American Journal of Fisheries Management, Bulletin of Marine Science, Hydrobiologia, and American Fisheries Society Symposium.

SIDELIGHTS: John Moring was a professor of zoology, whose research interests included fish population ecology, Atlantic salmon, and fisheries management.

In Early American Naturalists: Exploring the American West, 1804-1900 Moring examines the lives and expeditions of naturalists in the United States during the nineteenth century. These naturalists, who included Lewis and Clark, John Muir, Florence Merriam Bailey, and John Audubon, were sent across the land to find and document plants and animals. Their work was not easy. Most had limited tools, and many of their specimens were either ruined by the weather, eaten by animals, or lost. They had to live in the wild where the insects, animals, and weather could be harsh. Often those exploring the western territories ran into Indians and were occasionally killed by them. Seattle Times contributor David B. Williams wrote that "Moring's work is an engaging, enjoyable study that conveys the sense of passion and wonder that these early naturalists felt." A Publishers Weekly contributor concluded "These biographical sketches make for an absorbing and accessible—if somewhat narrowly focused—survey that should please those with a bent for natural history."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Choice, January, 2003, K. B. Sterling, review of Early American Naturalists: Exploring the American West, 1804-1900, p. 846.

Library Journal, October 15, 2002, Patricia Ann Owens, review of Early American Naturalists,
p. 92.

Publishers Weekly, August 12, 2002, review of Early American Naturalists, p. 291.

Seattle Times, September 29, 2002, David B. Williams, "Perils, Petals Awaited Early Naturalists."*