author
Storrs L. Olson
1944–2021
A leading avian paleontologist, he spent decades at the Smithsonian studying fossil and subfossil birds, especially on islands such as Hawaii, Ascension, and St. Helena. His work helped illuminate how birds evolved, dispersed, and disappeared across fragile ecosystems.
1 Audiobook
The cretaceous birds of New Jersey
by Storrs L. Olson, David C. Parris
About the author
Born in Chicago in 1944 and raised in Tallahassee, Storrs L. Olson became one of the best-known specialists in fossil birds. He built his career at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History, where he served as a curator and senior scientist and later retired as emeritus curator of birds.
Olson was especially admired for research on island birds and avian paleontology. Across a long career, he published widely and became known for combining deep anatomical knowledge with sharp, independent judgment. Colleagues remembered him not only as an influential scientist, but also as a mentor and an unusually observant naturalist.
Beyond ornithology, he had a serious interest in bryology, the study of mosses, and supported the growth of a bryological library at the University of Connecticut. He died in 2021, leaving behind a body of work that continues to matter to ornithologists, paleontologists, and readers curious about the history of life.