Michael Waldman (palaeontologist)

Dr Michael Waldman
Born1941 (1941)
Died (aged 83)
NationalityBritish
OccupationPalaeontologist
Known forWork on fossil fish, mammals, and reptiles

Michael Waldman (1941 – 27 July 2025) was a British palaeontologist known for his work on fossilised fish, mammals, and reptiles. He discovered the globally important fossil site of Cladach a'Ghlinne,[1][2][3][4] near Elgol on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, in 1971. This site exposes the Kilmaluag Formation and provides a valuable record of Middle Jurassic ecosystems.[1] During the 1970s he visited the site several times with fellow palaeontologist Robert Savage.[1]

The fossil turtle Eileanchelys waldmani was named after Waldman in recognition of his notable contributions to palaeontology.[5][6].

Academic career

Waldman gained his PhD at Monash University in 1968. He worked as a research assistant at University of Bristol in the early 1970s working alongside Robert Savage. Later in the 1970s he started teaching at Stowe School, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.[7]

Waldman named several fossil taxa during his research career. These include the Cretaceous fish Wadeichthys oxyops,[8] the theropod dinosaur Duriavenator hesperis,[9] the mammaliaform Borealestes,[10] and the tritylodontid, Stereognathus hebridicus[10] (although S. hebridicus is now thought to be a junior synonym to S. ooliticus[11]). He also discovered, along with his fieldwork colleagues, some of the most complete mammal fossils ever found in the UK.[12][13]

Waldman also contributed to the anatomical understanding of the lepidosauromorph Marmoretta.[14]

Later life and death

Waldman retired from teaching in 2002. He died at home on 27 July 2025, at the age of 83.[15][16]

Publications

  • Waldman, M., 1968. Fish from the freshwater Lower Cretaceous, near Koonwarra, Victoria, Australia: with comments on the palaeo-environment (Doctoral dissertation, Monash University).
  • Waldman, M., 1970. Comments on a Cretaceous coprolite from Alberta, Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 7(3), pp. 1008-1012.
  • Waldman, M. 1971. Fish from the freshwater Lower Cretaceous of Victoria, Australia with comments on the palaeo-environment. Special Papers in Palaeontology 9: 1–62.
  • Waldman, M. and Savage, R.J.G., 1972. The first Jurassic mammal from Scotland. Journal of the Geological Society, 128(2), 119-125.
  • Waldman, M. 1974. Megalosaurids from the Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) of Dorset. Palaeontology, 17(2), 325–339.
  • Waldman, M. and Evans, S.E., 1994. Lepidosauromorph reptiles from the Middle Jurassic of Skye. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 112(1-2), 135-150.
  • Evans, S.E. and Waldman, M., 1996. Small reptiles and amphibians from the Middle Jurassic of Skye, Scotland. Museum of Northern Arizona Bulletin, 60, 219-226.

References

  1. ^ a b c Panciroli, Elsa; Benson, Roger B. J.; Walsh, Stig; Butler, Richard J.; Castro, Tiago Andrade; Jones, Marc E. H.; Evans, Susan E. (2020). "Diverse vertebrate assemblage of the Kilmaluag Formation (Bathonian, Middle Jurassic) of Skye, Scotland". Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 111 (3): 135–156. Bibcode:2020EESTR.111..135P. doi:10.1017/S1755691020000055. ISSN 1755-6910.
  2. ^ "Ancient salamander was hidden inside mystery rock for 50 years – new research". 15 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Rare Jurassic mammal fossil from Scotland is new species". 27 January 2021.
  4. ^ "Take to the Skye: New pterosaur discovery". 22 February 2022.
  5. ^ Anquetin, J.; Barrett, P.M.; Jones, M.E.H.; Moore-Fay, S.; Evans, S.E. (2009). "A new stem turtle from the Middle Jurassic of Scotland: new insights into the evolution and palaeoecology of basal turtles". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 276 (1658): 879–886. doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.1429. ISSN 0962-8452. PMC 2664364. PMID 19019789.
  6. ^ "The Isle of Skye turtle fossils discovery". 21 November 2008.
  7. ^ Hudson, John D (2016). "The Great Estuarine Group (Jurassic, Scotland) as a source of vertebrate fossils: some reminiscences and field trips" (PDF). HOGG: Newsletter of the History of Geology Group of The Geological Society. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  8. ^ Waldman, M. Fish from the freshwater Lower Cretaceous of Victoria, Australia: with comments on the palaeo-environment. No. 9. Palaeontological Association, 1971. [1]
  9. ^ Waldman, Michael (1974). "Megalosaurids from the Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) of Dorset". Palaeontology. 17 (2): 325–339.
  10. ^ a b Waldman, M.; Savage, R. J. G. (1972). "The first Jurassic mammal from Scotland". Journal of the Geological Society. 128 (2): 119–125. Bibcode:1972JGSoc.128..119W. doi:10.1144/gsjgs.128.2.0119. S2CID 128622858.
  11. ^ Panciroli, Elsa; Walsh, Stig; Fraser, Nicholas C.; Brusatte, Stephen L.; Corfe, Ian (2017-09-03). "A reassessment of the postcanine dentition and systematics of the tritylodontid Stereognathus (Cynodontia, Tritylodontidae, Mammaliamorpha), from the Middle Jurassic of the United Kingdom". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 37 (5): e1351448. Bibcode:2017JVPal..37E1448P. doi:10.1080/02724634.2017.1351448. hdl:10138/230155. ISSN 0272-4634.
  12. ^ Panciroli, E., Benson, R.B., Fernandez, V., Humpage, M., Martín‐Serra, A., Walsh, S., Luo, Z.X. and Fraser, N.C. 2021. Postcrania of Borealestes (Mammaliformes, Docodonta) and the emergence of ecomorphological diversity in early mammals. Palaeontology, 65, pe12577.
  13. ^ Panciroli, E., Benson, R.B., Fernandez, V., Fraser, N.C., Humpage, M., Luo, Z.X. and Walsh, S. 2024. Jurassic fossil juvenile reveals prolonged life history in early mammals. Nature, 632: 815-812.
  14. ^ Waldman, M.; Evans, S. E. (1994). "Lepidosauromorph reptiles from the Middle Jurassic of Skye". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 112 (1–2): 135–150. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1994.tb00315.x.
  15. ^ Panciroli, Elsa (21 August 2025). "Michael Waldman obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
  16. ^ "Michael Waldman". Darlington & Stockton Times. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
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