Michael Waldman (palaeontologist)
British palaeontologist (1941–2025)
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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]
1941
Dr Michael Waldman | |
|---|---|
| Born | Michael Waldmann 1941 London, England |
| Died | (aged 83) Worton, North Yorkshire, England |
| Occupation | Palaeontologist |
| Known for | Work on fossil fish, mammals, and reptiles |
| Spouse | Hazel Mills |
| Children | 3 |
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]
Waldman retired from teaching in 2002.[15]
Personal life and death
Waldman was born Michael Waldmann in south-west London, England, to Rose (née Pushkin), a secretary and Myer Waldmann, who was a banker.[15] Myer Waldman, who was known as Max, died in 1949 when Mike was eight years old.[15]
Waldman married Hazel Mills, a primary school teacher, in Bristol in 1965.[15] The couple left for Australia by ship the day after the marriage, where they lived for a couple of years before moving to Canada; they returned to the UK in 1970 and went on to have three children.[15]
Waldman died at home in Worton, North Yorkshire, on 27 July 2025, aged 83.[16][17]
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.