Donald Frederick Hoffmeister

Born in San Bernardino, California, on March 21, 1916, Donald F. Hoffmeister became a respected American mammalogist whose work connected field research, teaching, and museum work. An obituary in the Journal of Mammalogy records that he died on February 6, 2011, at age 94.

He was closely associated with the University of Illinois, where he served as director of the Museum of Natural History and later became professor emeritus. His books include Fieldbook of Illinois Mammals, Mammals of Arizona, and a popular guide to familiar American mammals written with Herbert S. Zim.

His writing is remembered for making zoology approachable without losing scientific care, which helps explain why his books still turn up in libraries and natural history collections. He also appears to have been active for decades in the American Society of Mammalogists and was widely recognized within that field.