Richard Fortey
Richard Fortey | |
|---|---|
Fortey in 2014 | |
| Born | Richard Alan Fortey 15 February 1946 |
| Died | 7 March 2025 (aged 79) |
| Awards | Frink Medal (2000) Fellow of the Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize (2006) Linnean Medal (2006) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Paleontology |
| Institutions | University of Cambridge Natural History Museum |
| Thesis | Stratigraphy, Palaeoecology and Trilobite Faunas of the Valhallfonna Formation NY Friesland, Spitsberge |
| Doctoral advisor | Harry B. Whittington |
Richard Alan Fortey (15 February 1946 – 7 March 2025) was a British palaeontologist, natural historian, writer and television presenter, who served as president of the Geological Society of London for its bicentennial year of 2007. As a paleontologist, he specialised in trilobites and other extinct arthropods, as well as the life and paleogeography of the Paleozoic era, particularly the Ordovician. He wrote popular science books, notably Life: An Unauthorised Biography (1998) and Earth: An Intimate History (2005). Among other honors, he won the Lewis Thomas Prize and the Royal Society's Michael Faraday Award. Steven Brusatte said "Whenever I write, I try to channel the wit, wisdom, and warmth of Richard Fortey.”