Varavudh Suteethorn, or Warawut Suteethorn ( Thai:วราวุธ สุธีธร; born 10 October 1948) is a Thai

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

and

palaeontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of foss ...

. He is the current director of the Palaeontological Research and Education Centre, Mahasarakham University. He is best known for his work on

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, wi ...

palaeontology in northeastern Thailand, having contributed to the discovery of many

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

and dig sites in the

Khorat Plateau The Khorat Plateau ( th, ที่ราบสูงโคราช) is a plateau in the northeastern Thai region of Isan. The plateau forms a natural region, named after the short form of Nakhon Ratchasima, a historical barrier controlling acc ...

, as a part of a long-standing collaboration between Thai and French scientists.

Biography

Varavudh Suteethorn was born in the Nakhon Pathom Province of central Thailand on 10 October 1948. He obtained a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

from the

Chiang Mai University Chiang Mai University ( CMU; th, มหาวิทยาลัยเชียงใหม่) is a public research university in northern Thailand founded in 1964. It has a strong emphasis on engineering, science, agriculture, and medicine ...

in 1967, and started working at the Geological Survey Division of the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) in 1974 as he began his career in geology. While working for the DMR, Suteethorn gained expertise on Thailand's northeastern

Isan Northeast Thailand or Isan ( Isan/ th, อีสาน, ; lo, ອີສານ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pali ''īsānna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 provi ...

region, located in the

. His geological mapping of those areas led to the discovery of various new

sites, which have since yielded the majority of Thailand's palaeontological discoveries.

Vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, wi ...

palaeontology came into prominence in Thailand in 1980, when Thai geologists from the DMR cooperated with French scientists to begin expeditions in the Khorat Plateau. Suteethorn, one of the first members of the dinosaur expedition team, learned how to preparare and conserve fossils in France and Canada and in 1986 was granted a Certificate of Vertebrate Palaeontology by the University of Paris VI, France. The same year, the spinosaurid

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is ...

species '' Siamosaurus suteethorni'' was named in honour of his palaeontological efforts in Thailand, by the French palaeontologist Éric Buffetaut and his Thai colleague Rucha Ingavat.Buffetaut, E.; and Ingevat, R. (1986). Unusual theropod dinosaur teeth from the Upper Jurassic of Phu Wiang, northeastern Thailand. Rev. Paleobiol. 5: 217-220. Suteethorn has been head of the Thai dinosaur research team since 1992 and continues to find new dig sites, which are subject to cataloguing and routine checks from his team, although excavation has not begun in many of them.'''' In 2006 Suteethorn was given the

Society of Vertebrate Paleontology The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) is a professional organization that was founded in the United States in 1940 to advance the science of vertebrate paleontology around the world. Mission and Activities SVP has about 2,300 members inter ...

's Skinner Award. In 2018, he received the Explorer Award from the

National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...

, during their annual Explorer's Festival. He is currently lecturer and director of the Palaeontological Research and Education Centre of Mahasarakham University.

Taxa named by Suteethorn alone or with co-authors

Suteethorn has helped name and describe (often in cooperation with Buffetaut) many fossil vertebrates from the Khorat Plateau, including extinct dinosaurs, fish, crocodylomorphs,

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fu ...

s, and turtles. His team from the Mahasarakham University discovered various fossil mammals in a Chaiyaphum cave, including teeth from

panda The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes us ...

hyena Hyenas, or hyaenas (from Ancient Greek , ), are feliform carnivoran mammals of the family Hyaenidae . With only four extant species (each in its own genus), it is the fifth-smallest family in the Carnivora and one of the smallest in the clas ...

s, and the extinct

orangutan Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China. Classified in the ...

'' Khoratpithecus piriyai.''

Dinosaurs

*'' Siamotyrannus isanensis'', in 1996 interpreted as the earliest known tyrannosaurid, before being reclassified in 2012 as a

metriacanthosaurid Metriacanthosauridae is an extinct family of allosauroid theropod dinosaurs that lived from the Middle Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous. When broken down into its Greek roots, it means "moderately-spined lizards". The family is split into two ...

. *'' Phuwiangosaurus sirindhornae'' * A possible new ''

Psittacosaurus ''Psittacosaurus'' ( ; "parrot lizard") is a genus of extinct ceratopsian dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of what is now Asia, existing between 126 and 101 million years ago. It is notable for being the most species-rich non-avian dinosaur ge ...

'' species, ''P. sattayaraki''. *'' Isanosaurus attavipachi'', the earliest known

sauropod Sauropoda (), whose members are known as sauropods (; from '' sauro-'' + '' -pod'', ' lizard-footed'), is a clade of saurischian ('lizard-hipped') dinosaurs. Sauropods had very long necks, long tails, small heads (relative to the rest of their ...

dinosaur. *'' Kinnareemimus khonkaenensis'''' *'' Siamodon nimngami''

Fish

*'' Lepidotes buddhabutrensis'' *'' Acrorhizodus khoratensis'' * Two species of '' Isanodus'', ''I. nongbualamphuensis'' and ''I. paladeji.'' * Two species of '' Isanichthys'', ''I. palustris'' and ''I. lertboosi'' *'' Lonchidion khoratensis'' * ''Siamamia naga'' *'' Ferganoceratodus martini'' *'' Mukdahanodus trisivakulii'' *'' Acrodus kalasinensis'' *'' Thaiichthys''

Crocodylomorphs

*'' Khoratosuchus jintasakuli'' *'' Theriosuchus grandinaris'' *'' Chalawan thailandicus''

Primates

*'' Siamopithecus eocaenus'' *'' Khoratpithecus piriyai''

Turtles

* A new species of '' Cuora'', ''C. chiangmuanensis'' *'' Phunoichelys thirakhupti''

Coral

*'' Caninophyllum somtaiense''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suteethorn, Varavudh Varavudh Suteethorn Varavudh Suteethorn 1948 births Living people Mahasarakham University Varavudh Suteethorn Taxa named by Varavudh Suteethorn University of Paris alumni