Quentin Duane Wheeler (born January 31, 1954) is an American

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

taxonomist In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given ...

, author and

newspaper columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the form of a short essay ...

, and is the founding director of the

International Institute for Species Exploration The International Institute for Species Exploration (IISE) is a research institute located in Syracuse, New York. Its mission is to improve taxonomical exploration and the cataloging of new species of flora and fauna. Since 2008, IISE has publi ...

. He was the

fourth Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

President of the

State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) is a public research university in Syracuse, New York focused on the environment and natural resources. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) s ...

, in Syracuse, New York until his retirement. Other positions have included: professor of entomology at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...

and

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in t ...

; Keeper and Head of Entomology at the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more ...

in London; and Director of the Division of Environmental Biology at the

National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...

Education

Wheeler holds bachelor (1976), master's (1977) and Ph.D. (1980) degrees in

entomology Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pu ...

."Quentin Wheeler Chosen as New President of SUNY-ESF,"
SUNY-ESF, November 15, 2013. Accessed: February 22, 2014. His Ph.D. dissertation is titled, ''"Comparative

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines *Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts *Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies, ...

cladistics Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups (" clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived ch ...

, and a revised classification of the genera

Lymexylidae The Lymexylidae (historically often spelled Lymexylonidae), also known as ship-timber beetles, are a family of wood-boring beetles. Lymexylidae belong to the suborder Polyphaga and are the sole member of the superfamily Lymexyloidea. Habitat an ...

(

Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

), including descriptions of two new genera".''

Career

Wheeler was a faculty member for 24 years at

, where he earned the rank of tenured full professor. He was chair of entomology and director of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium at

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teac ...

. Wheeler also previously served as the Keeper and Head of

Entomology Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

at the

in London from 2004–2006, and was director of the Division of

Environmental Biology Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physics, biology, and geography (including ecology, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical geogr ...

at the

from 2001-2004. Quentin-Wheeler-2009

Wheeler joined

in 2006. He was the Virginia M. Ullman Professor of Natural History and the Environment, and founding executive director of the

. Wheeler served as interim dean of the Division of Natural Sciences in 2006, and in 2007 was appointed to the position of vice president and dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, a position he held until 2011. He was President of the

from January 2014 through June 2018.

Research

Wheeler's research career has focused on the role of

species exploration In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate ...

and natural history collections in the exploration and conservation of

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity' ...

; theory and practice of

phylogenetic systematics Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups (" clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived cha ...

and cybertaxonomy; the evolution and classification of insects, especially

beetles Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, Elytron, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, wit ...

; and public

science education Science education is the teaching and learning of science to school children, college students, or adults within the general public. The field of science education includes work in science content, science process (the scientific method), some ...

. He has received a number of academic honors, including fellowships from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Linnean Society of London and Royal Entomological Society. He has had three species of beetles named in his honor, such as ''Tonerus wheeleri'', ''Eleodes wheeleri'', and ''Agathisium wheeleri''. He is the author of approximately 150 scientific articles and six books, including ''What on Earth? – 100 of Our Planet's Most Amazing New Species''. He has named more than 100 new species and writes a periodic column on new species for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' newspaper in London.

Key works

;Articles Among Wheeler's most highly cited articles are: * * * * ;Books Wheeler's most widely held books include:"Quentin Wheeler,"
WorldCat. Accessed: 31 May 2015. * Wheeler, Quentin D., and Meredith Blackwell, eds. 1984. ''Fungus-insect relationships: perspectives in ecology and evolution''. New York: Columbia University Press. * Novacek, Michael J., and Quentin Wheeler, eds. 1992. ''Extinction and phylogeny''. New York: Columbia University Press. * Wheeler, Quentin D., and Rudolf Meier, eds. 2000. ''Species concepts and phylogenetic theory: a debate.'' New York: Columbia University Press. * Wheeler, Quentin D., eds. 2008. ''The New Taxonomy''. Boca Raton: CRC Press. * Knapp, Sandra, and Quentin D. Wheeler, eds. 2009. ''Letters to Linnaeus''. London: Linnean Society of London. * Wheeler, Quentin D., and Sara Pennak. 2013. ''What on Earth? 100 of our planet's most amazing new species''. New York: Plume. * Williams, David, Schmitt, Michael, and Quentin Wheeler, eds. 2016. "The future of phylogenetic systematics: The legacy of Willi Hennig". Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

References

External links

* Wheeler, Quentin. (2010 - )
"New to nature" (column)
''

'', UK * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, Quentin Duane 1954 births American entomologists American non-fiction environmental writers American science writers American taxonomists Arizona State University faculty Cornell University faculty Leaders of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry Living people United States National Science Foundation officials People associated with the Natural History Museum, London Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences alumni Phylogenetics researchers Scientists from New York (state) State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry faculty The Guardian people