H . B. W H I T T I N G T O ND epartm ent o f Geology, Sedgw ick M useum , Cambridge CB2 3EQ England

L e if S t^ r m e r w a s b o r n in K r is t ia n ia ( th e C ity o f O s lo s in c e 1924), N o rw a y , a n d b e g a n h is s tu d ie s in th e U n iv e r- s i ty o f O s lo in 1923. H is f a th e r , F . C . S t^ r m e r , w as P ro fe s s o r o f M a th e m a t ic s in th e U n iv e rs ity a n d w as a lso i n te r n a t io n a l ly k n o w n f o r h is r e s e a rc h o n th e N o r th e rn L ig h ts . T h e y o u n g S t^ r m e r w as in sp ire d b y h is f a th e r ’s e m in e n t c o lle a g u e s , p a r t ic u la r ly th e g e o lo g is t W . C . B r0 g g e r a n d th e z o o lo g is t G . O . S a rs . S t^ r m e r ’s in te re s t in th e lo w e r P a le o z o ic ro c k s a n d fo ss ils o f th e O s lo d is ­t r ic t w as re v e a le d in a p a p e r p u b l is h e d w h e n h e w a s 15 y e a rs o ld o n L o w e r O rd o v ic ia n tr ilo b i te s , a n d c o n t in u e d w ith a life - lo n g se rie s o f p a p e rs o n C a m b r ia n a n d O r d o ­v ic ia n t r i lo b i te s a n d g r a p to l i te s . H e g a in e d in te r n a t io n a l r e c o g n i t io n f o r h is 1930 s tu d y o n S c a n d in a v ia n t r in u c le id t r i lo b i te s ( fo r w h ic h h e rece iv ed h is d o c to r a te ) . H e n o t

o n ly d e s c r ib e d a n d b e a u t i fu l ly i l lu s t r a te d o ld a n d n e w sp e c ie s , b u t in v e s tig a te d th e e x o sk e le - t a l s t r u c tu r e s , i l lu s t r a te d v a r ia t io n in n u m b e r s o f p its in th e f r in g e w ith h is to g ra m s , a n d d isc u sse d e v o lu t io n a n d m o d e o f life. H is z o o lo g ic a l t r a in in g h a d in c lu d e d ta k in g p a r t in a n o c e a n o g ra p h ic e x p e d i t io n to W e s t G re e n la n d in 1924, a n d s u b s e q u e n tly h e s tre s se d th e im p o r ta n c e o f su c h t r a in in g w h e n in te r p re t in g fo ss ils . I n o r d e r to u n d e r s ta n d th e e n v iro n ­m e n t in w h ic h th e fo ss ils o c c u r re d , a n d th e ir re la t io n s h ip s in tim e , h e s tu d ie d th e s t r a t ig r a p h y o f th e O s lo d is t r ic t , p u b l is h in g a n a c c o u n t o f i t in 1945, w h ic h w as re v ise d in 1956 in p r e p a r a t io n f o r th e 1960 In te rn a t io n a l C o n g re s s in N o rd e rn , a n d a g a in in 1966. B e tw een1936 a n d 1946, S t^ r m e r w as a n a s s is ta n t , a n d la te r C u r a to r , in th e P a le o n to lo g is k M u s e u m , U n iv e r s i ty o f O s lo , a n d d u r in g th a t p e r io d h e re d e s c r ib e d m a n y e a r ly , im p o r ta n t , b u t p o o r ly k n o w n ty p e sp e c im e n s o f tr i lo b ite s . In 1946 h e b e c a m e P ro fe s s o r o f H is to r ic a l G e o lo g y a t th e U n iv e rs i ty o f O s lo , a n d D ir e c to r o f th e P a le o n to lo g is k I n s t i tu t t in 1948. S t6 r m e r w as a d r iv in g fo rc e in b r in g in g to g e th e r th e v a r io u s g e o lo g ic a l in s t i tu te s in to a n ew b u ild in g in 1958, h is w ise a n d p a t ie n t a d m in is t r a t io n w o rk in g to w a rd th e b es t f o r a ll. H e re l in q u is h e d a d m in is t r a t iv e d u t ie s se v e ra l y e a rs b e fo re h is r e t i re m e n t in 1975, in o rd e r to c o m p le te p a r t i c u la r re s e a rc h p ro je c ts . S t^ r m e r e n jo y e d te a c h in g , a n d he a lso b r o u g h t th e r e su lts o f h is r e s e a rc h e s to a w id e r p u b lic in p o p u la r a r t ic le s in N o rw e g ia n a n d E n g lish . In 1964, he p u b lish e d a te x tb o o k o n h is to r ic a l g e o lo g y in N o rw e g ia n . T h e fa m o u s c o lo re d w a ll c h a r t o f th e e v o lu t io n o f a n im a l life w h ic h he a n d A . H e in tz p ro d u c e d is a n o th e r e x a m p le o f h is w id e in te re s ts . A m a s te r ly rev iew o f th e s t r a t ig r a p h y a n d te c to n ic s o f th e C a le d o n ia n g e o sy n c lin e in 1967 sh o w e d h is b r o a d g ra s p o f th e s e t tin g o f th e O s lo re g io n . E a r ly in h is p ro fe s s o r s h ip (1 9 5 3 ), h e in i t ia te d a d e ta i le d s tu d y o f M id d le O rd o v ic ia n ro c k s o f th e O s lo re g io n w ith a d e s c r ip t io n o f th e s t r a t ig r a p h y o f th is c o m p le x re g io n a n d a d isc u s s io n o f c o r r e la t io n a n d c la s s if ic a tio n . T h is se rie s h a s b e e n c o n t in u e d b y h is s tu d e n ts , c o lle a g u e s , a n d v is itin g s c ie n tis ts d e s c r ib in g th e g r a p to l i t ic a n d sh e lly f a u n a s , a n d a t th e t im e o f h is d e a th , h e w as w o rk in g o n th e Chasmops g ro u p o f t r i lo b ite s f ro m th e s e ro c k s .

A n im p o r ta n t in f lu e n c e o n S t^ r m e r ’s life a n d w o rk w as h is f irs t v is it to th e U n ite d S ta te s in 1 9 3 1 -1 9 3 2 . H e w o rk e d a t H a rv a rd U n iv e rs i ty w ith P . E . R a y m o n d , a n d th e r e u se d a se ria l

Memorial to Leif St0rmer1905-1979

2 T in : GEOLOGICA L SOCIETY OP AMERICA

sectioning technique (which he had seen being developed by E. A. Stensio in Sweden to study fossil fish) to investigate the limbs of an enrolled trilobite. He also examined in detail the famous Utica Shale trilobites with appendages which Raymond had worked on, and the Walcott collections from the Burgess Shale in the U.S. National Museum. In this way, he gathered a unique insight into the anatomy of early arthropods, which resulted in his studies of trilobite morphology (1939, 1942, 1951). This work encompassed the appendages, devel­opment, classification, and relationships of trilobites; it was based on meticulous studies of old and new material, his own observations, wide reading, and zoological knowledge- he was never a mere reviewer, a “paper paleontologist.” It established him as the leading authority on trilobites. The broader aspects of his work were brought together during the same period, in his classic study of fossil and Recent arthropods ( 1944), in which he proposed an amended Phylum Arachnomorpha, to include his new group Trilobitomorpha and the Chelicerata. This work amplified the theme he had already announced (1933), that his studies of gill structures led him to consider that the trilobites were more closely related to Limulus and its allies (that is to the Arachnida), rather than to the Crustacea, as was most generally accepted at the time. Further, Trilobitomorpha, embracing trilobites and the varied arthropods of the Burgess Shale, were a natural group having a common type of appendage. These points of view, and his wide knowledge, are seen in summary form in his contributions to the Traité de Zoologie (1949) and to Part O of the Treatise o f Invertebrate Paleontology (1959).

St0rmer’s genial personality and sense of humor, as well as his scholarship, enabled him to make many friends among the paleontologists and biologists he met in the United States A. S. Romer, G. H. Parker, and H. B. Bigelow at Harvard University; Carl O. Dunbar at Yale University; R. Ruedemann at the New York State Museum; and C. E. Resser at the U.S. National Museum. He and his wife enjoyed renewing friendships during several post-war visits for study in the eastern United States. St^rmer remained in Norway during the occupation in the Second World War, continuing his research in the Paleontologisk Museum and at his cottage in the mountains between Bergen and Oslo. He played an important role as treasurer in the Resistance, and in the later stages of the war, he had to go underground to avoid arrest.

A friend and inspiring teacher of St^rmer was Professor J. Kiaer, who made his wonderful discoveries of early vertebrates and arthropods at Ringerike, north of Oslo. Kiasr had excavated the eurypterids from the rock but had done no further work on them because he had been fully occupied with studies of the vertebrates. He offered St^rmer the eurypterid material for description, and he helped him to gain the scholarship that made his 1931 visit to the United States possible. S t^rm er took with him some of the best eurypterid specimens, to compare with American material. So began another strand that ran throughout his extraor­dinarily varied geological studies—the understanding of the paleobiology of eurypterids and scorpions. In 1931, R. Ruedemann was the leading authority on these fossils, and his enthusiasm, wit, and knowledge were a great encouragement. In 1934 came St^rmer’s publication on the Ringerike fossils, and in the next 25 years, many shorter papers on British, German, Scandinavian (including Spitsbergen), Soviet Union, and American mer- ostomes and arachnids, sandwiched in between his trilobite and stratigraphical studies. He was happy to work with others who shared these interests, such as Nestor Novojilov and Nils-Martin Hanken, and he gained particular stimulation from his long friendship with the late Erik N. Kjellesvig-Waering. His eminence led to his being chosen to write the section on merostomes in the Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology (1955). From I960 onward, his administrative burdens lightened and he was able to exercise his imagination and skill on the study of both promising and unpromising rare specimens. Remarkable is his paper ( 1963) on

M EM O RIAL TO LEIF ST0R M E R 3

a large Carboniferous scorpion, and the fascinating story he extracted of the micro­organisms that preyed on the soft parts. In collaboration with C. D. W aterston of the Royal Scottish Museum (1968), meaning was brought to fragments of a unique comb-bearing arthropod found in late Paleozoic rocks. It is a great gain for paleontology that he was able to complete his descriptions (1970-1976) of the Lower Devonian arachnids, xiphosurans, eurypterids, and other arthropods from Aiken an der Mosel in Germany. As in all of his work, he did not stop at detailed and painstaking descriptions, but surveyed adaptive radiation and classification of eurypterids, and went on to a general account of the arthropod fauna, paleoecology, and a new and stimulating discussion of how arthropods invaded the land.

Leif St^rmer’s remarkable powers and accomplishments as a scientist stemmed from a broad, sound training and his joy in the natural world and particularly the study of fossils. He took great care in his observations and thought about them from every angle. He was always welcome among his international circle of friends, sharing the surprises of new observations and discussing their meaning with insight and knowledge. His scholarship was recognized by numerous honors in his country and abroad, including Honorary Fellowship in the Geological Society of America and election as a Correspondent of the Paleontological Society. He attended many International Geological Congresses and the accompanying excursions. From 1960 to 1965, he served as President of the International Commission on Stratigraphy. Another high light in his career was to serve as Chairman of the Committee which organized the highly successful NATO Advanced Study Institute held in Oslo in 1973, a first meeting of international experts on fossil arthropods. The genial and kindly presence of the master in this field will be remembered by all who attended.

St^rmer was a devoted husband and father. In 1932, he married (in New York City) his friend from childhood, Ingegerd (Tutti) Alten, and is survived by her, their three children, and grandchildren. He will be sorely missed by them and by his wide circle of friends and colleagues. His outstanding contributions to stratigraphy and paleontology will be read again and again, inspiring and challenging those who follow in his field of endeavour.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSI am indebted to Professor G. Henningsmoen, Paleontologisk Museum, Oslo, fo r

information about Professor St<jirmer, and to his colleague Dr. David L. Bruton fo r a translation o f the memorial by Professor N. Spjeldnaes (Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift, November 1979). Sir James Stubblefield and Dr. C. D. Waterston have also kindly assisted me.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF LEIF ST0RMER

1930 Scandinavian Trinucleidae with special reference to Norwegian species and varieties: Skrifter utgitt av Det Norske Videnskaps—Akademi i Oslo. I. Matematisk— naturvidenskapelig klasse. No. 4, 111 p., 14 pis.

1933 Are the trilobites related to the Arachnids?: American Journal of Science, v. 26, p. 147-157.

1934 Merostomata from the Downtonian sandstone of Ringerike, Norway: Skrifter utgitt av Det Norske Videnskaps—Akademi i Oslo. I. Matematisk—naturvidenskapelig klasse. No. 10, 125 p., 12 pis.

----- Cambrian-Silurian zones of the Oslo region, with a brief correlation between theBritish and Norwegian sections: Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association, London, England, v. 45, p. 329-337.

4 THE GEO LO G ICA L SOCIETY O F AMERICA

1936 Eurypteriden aus dem Rheinischen Unterdevon: Abhandlungen der Preussischen Geologischen Landesanstalt, Neue Folge, v. 175, p. 1-74, 12 pis.

1939 Studies on trilobite morphology. Part 1. The thoracic appendages and their phylogenetic significance: Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift, v. 19, p. 143-273, 12 pis.

1942 Studies on trilobite morphology. Part II. The larval development, the segmentation and the sutures, and their bearing on trilobite classification: Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift, v. 21, p. 49-163, 2 pis.

1944 On the relationships and phylogeny of fossil and recent Arachnomorpha. Acomparative study of Arachnida, Xiphosura, Eurypterida, Trilobita and other fossil Arthropoda: Skrifter utgitt av Det Norske Videnskaps—Akademi i Oslo. I. Matematisk—naturvidenskapelig klasse. No. 5, 158 p.

1949 Sous—embranchement des Trilobitomorphes, St^rmer, 1944 (Proarthopodes, Vandel, 1949). Traité de Zoologie: Masson, Paris, Vol. 6, p. 159-210.

1951 Studies on trilobite morphology. Part III. The ventral cephalic structures with remarks on the zoological position of the trilobites: Norsk Geologisk tidsskrift, v. 29, p. 108-158, 4 pis.

1952 (with Kjellesvig-Waering, E. N.) The Dolichopterus-Strobilopterus group in the Eurypterida: Journal of Paleontology, v. 26, p. 659-661.

1953 The Middle Ordovician of the Oslo region, Norway. 1. Introduction to stratigraphy, (assisted by A. Heintz, G. Henningsmoen, S. Skjeseth, and N. Spjeldnaes): Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift, v. 31, p. 37-141, 6 pis.

1955 Chelicerata and Merostomata, in Moore, R. C., ed., Treatise on InvertebratePaleontology, Part P, Arthropoda 2: Geological Society of America and University of Kansas Press, p. 1-41.

1959 Arthropoda—General features, Trilobitomorpha, Trilobitoidea, in Moore, R. C., ed., Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology, Part O, Arthropoda 1: Geological Society of America and University of Kansas Press, p. 3-16, 22-37.

1963 Gigantoscorpio willsi—A new scorpion from the lower Carboniferous of Scotland and its associated microorganisms: Skrifter utgitt av Det Norske Videnskaps—Akademi i Oslo. I. Matematisk—naturvidenskapelig klasse, New Series, No. 8, 171 p.

1966 Cambro-Silurian sequence, Caledonian folding, in Holtedahl, O., and Dons, J. A., cds.. Geological guide to Oslo and-district: Oslo, Universitetsforlaget, p. 18-34.

1967 Some aspects of the Caledonian geosyncline and foreland west of the Baltic Shield. 20th William Smith Lecture: Geological Society of London Quarterly Journal, v. 123, p. 183-214.

1968 (with Waterston, C. D.) Cyroctenus gen. nov., a large late Palaeozoic Arthropod with pectinate appendages: Royal Society of Edinburgh Transactions, v. 68, p. 63-104, 6 pis.

1970-1976 Arthropods from the Lower Devonian (Lower Emsian) of Aiken an der Mosel, Germany. Part 1: Arachnida. Senckenbergiana Lethaea, v. 51, p. 335-369, 5 pis. Part 2: Xiphosura. Ibid., v. 53, p. 1-29, 6 pis. Part 3: Eurypterida, Hughmilleriidae. Ibid., v. 54, p. 119-205, 13 pis. Part 4: Eurypterida, Drepanopteridae, and other groups. Ibid., v. 54, p. 359-451, 16 pis. Part 5: Myriapoda and additional forms, with general remarks on fauna and problems regarding invasion of land by arthropods. Ibid., v. 57, p. 87-183, 10 pis.

1975 (with Hansen, N.-M.) The trail of a large Silurian eurypterid: Fossils and Strata, no. 4, p. 255-270, 3 pis.

1980 Sculpture and microstructure of the exoskeleton in chasmopinid and phacopid trilobites: Palaeontology, v. 23, p. 237-271.

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