Gerald Robert "Gerry" Allen (born March 26, 1942 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

) is an American-born

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...

. His career began in 1963, when he spent a semester at the

University of Hawaii A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

, where he also received a PhD in marine zoology in 1971. In 1972, Allen wrote his doctoral thesis on the systematics and biology of the anemone fish. In 1974, he was made curator at the

Western Australian Museum The Western Australian Museum is a statutory body, statutory authority within the Culture and the Arts Portfolio, established under the ''Museum Act 1969''. The museum has six main sites. The state museum, WA Museum Boola Bardip, is located i ...

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till 1997, where Allen moved to Conservation International, working as a science team leader undertaking coral reef fish surveys in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

, and the

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until 2003. Allen has written 33 books and about 400 scientific papers. In 2003, he received the K. Radway Allen Award from the Australian Society for Fish Biology for his scientific achievements in fish biology."K. Radway Allen Award"
Australian Society for Fish Biology, official website. Accessed 3 March 2017. He has mapped and analysed the distributions of all

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

coral reef fishes. Allen continues to publish scientific papers and is involved in the nonprofit organisation

Conservation International Conservation International (CI) is an American nonprofit environmental organization headquartered in Crystal City, Virginia, in Arlington County, Virginia. CI's work focuses on science, policy and partnership with businesses, governments and co ...

, especially for the preservation of biodiversity in the area of Vogelkop Peninsula.

Taxon named in his honor

*The fish genus '' Allenichthys'' Pietsch 1984 is named after him.

The following species

* The rainbowfish '' Chilatherina alleni'' is "named in honour of Gerald R. Allen, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to ichthyology and his deep commitment to the study and preservation of the aquatic fauna of New Guinea." - Adrian R. Tappin *The sandburrower '' Creedia alleni'' J. S. Nelson 1983 in honor of Allen for his many contributions to ichthyology at the Western Australia Museum in

, who brought this species to Nelson’s attention knowing he would describe it. *The little rainbow wrasse '' Dotalabrus alleni'' Russell 1988 was named in honor of Allen who collected the type series and drew Russell’s attention to the species that had not been previously described. *The Wrasse '' Labropsis alleni'' Randall 1981 was named in honor of Allen who collected six of the fourteen type specimens. *The sole '' Leptachirus alleni'' Randall 2007 is named after Allen who collected the type specimens. *The eel, '' Ophichthus alleni'', J. E. McCosker, 2010 *The skate '' Pavoraja alleni'' McEachran & Fechhelm, 1982 is named after him. *The perchlet '' Plectranthias alleni'' Randall 1980 was named after Allen who provided the type specimens to Randall knowing that the species was undescribed and Randall would describe it. *The goby ''

Schismatogobius alleni ''Schismatogobius'' is a genus of fish in the subfamily Gobionellinae. They are native to southern and eastern Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands. Adults dwell in freshwater habitat such as streams and rivers, where they live along the sand ...

'' Keith,

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...

& Larson, 2017 in honor of Allen for his extensive work on the freshwater fish fauna of

. *The goby '' Stenogobius alleni'' Watson, 1991 is named in honor of Allen because of his contributions to the freshwater ichthyology of Papua New Guinea. *Allen's shrimpgoby '' Tomiyamichthys alleni'' Iwata, Ohnishi & Hirata, 2000 is named after him.

Taxon described by him

*See :Taxa named by Gerald R. Allen

References

External links

List of Gerald R. Allen books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Gerald R. Australian ichthyologists 1942 births Living people Scientists from Los Angeles University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni American emigrants to Australia Academics from Los Angeles