Richard C. (Richard Crittenden) McGregor

Born in Sydney, Australia, on February 24, 1871, and raised by his American mother after his father died, he later moved to the United States, living in California and Denver. He attended Stanford University and, although he graduated in philosophy in 1898, his lasting passion was natural history—especially birds.

McGregor became closely associated with the early Cooper Ornithological Club and joined collecting expeditions in places including California, Colorado, Alaska, and Hawaii. In 1901 he went to Manila as a bird collector, and after a brief return to California, he settled in the Philippines in 1906, where he worked with the Bureau of Science and later edited the Philippine Journal of Science.

He is best remembered for A Manual of Philippine Birds (published in 1909 and 1910), an early comprehensive treatment of Philippine birdlife, as well as for many scientific papers and species descriptions. He died in Manila on December 30, 1936, leaving a major mark on the study of Philippine natural history.