Alexander F. Skutch was born on the 20th of May, 1904 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA and dies on the 13th of May, 2004. Already in his childhood he manifested a strong curiosity and sensibility for animals and plants, and in general for all aspects of nature in his surroundings; interests that would grow with time, and the studies and observations he performed during his educational years and as he travelled through the American Tropics.

At the age of 16, after reading poetry and essays by P.B.Shelley, he became a vegetarian. Initially, this was an expression of his interest and affection for animal species. Later he would find scientific reasons to support his practices, in his own words: “possibly one of the main causes of the destruction of the tropical forests is the desire to plant pastures for cattle raising. Certainly this is a less than economical way to provide food for human beings".

At the age of 17, he entered Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, where he received a Bachelor´s degree. A year later he travelled to Jamaica where he studied the anatomy of the banana tree leaf in a United Fruit Company plantation. His doctoral dissertation, presented in 1927, was entitled “The Anatomy of Leaf of Banana, Musa sapientum, L.Var.Hort. Gros Michel”. In 1928 he obtained a scholarship to continue his research on bananas in an experimental station of the United Fruit. Co. near Puerto Alimirante, Panama.

These were his first contacts with Tropical Nature, and particularly with american tropical birds; they would absorb his attention for the rest of his life. During the following 60 years plus, he studied the habitats of tropical birds, their anatomy, feeding behavior, mating and nesting, and social habits.

In 1930 he travelled through Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, Venezuela and Costa Rica. The result of these trips is an abundance of written studies on the tropical flora and avian fauna, based on observation and research. This work is widely recognized in Natural History publications (journals, bulletins on botany, zoology and ornithology), and later in books sponsored by ornithological societies, North American universities and other institutions dedicated to the conservation of nature.

In 1935 he moved to the General Valley in Costa Rica, under contract to collect plants for museums and botanical gardens in the USA and Europe. This would provide sufficient income to conduct different studies of birds. Since then, he became a resident of Costa Rica, leaving the country for a few brief periods throughout his life.

In 1941 he decided to remain definitely in the district of Quizarrá, in the area of Pérez Zeledón, Costa Rica, where he bought a farm next to the Peñas Blancas river. He called the farm Los Cusingos after the orange-beaked small toucan (Pteroglossus frantzii). The farm contained primary and secondary forest, and small tracts of land for planting crops.

Dr. Skutch remained in this farm for over 60 years, dedicated to the study of birds, and of human and animal behaviour. Here he found an ideal place to live a life in keeping with his philosophy and his esence as a naturalist. And here he developed a prolific work as a writer, transcribing his wisdom and humanity into more than 30 books and hundreds of articles on ornithology, botany and philosophy.

In 1950 he married Ms Pamela Lankaster, daughter of the british naturalist and coffee producer Charles H. Lankester. In devotion to her husband and his work, she left the comforts of urban life to join him in the simplicity of Los Cusingos. She was a loyal and loving companion to “don” Alexander, sharing his love for nature and his wisdom; many who met her and shared her company came to love her dearly. She passed away in June of 2001, and three years later in May of 2004, Dr.Skutch passed away just 7 days before his 100 birthday.



Contributions to Science

Perhaps the most important contribution that Dr. Skutch made to ornithology was the complete studies of the life habits of close to 300 birds of the american tropic, including the Quetzal, “a bird of superlative beauty”, in his own words. Furthermore, he demonstrated that the procreation of tropical birds is slower than that of the same families in the northern hemisphere. He also studied the dispersion of seeds by birds and mammals.

Even though the study of birds was his priority, he would not omit the observation and description of many other animal species – mammals, insects, reptiles- of the tropical ecosystems which he explored. With his observations, ladened with patience and reflection, he was able to define the associations and interactions that some of these species establish with their environment.

It is important to underscore his contributions to botany. His studies and collections of tropical plants for different museums and botanical gardens resulted in the discovery of species of flora unknown to science. Of great relevance is the study of the crossed reproductive system of the “aguacatillo” (Persea cerulia), and his studies on the Guarumo tree (Cecropia sp.). In recognition to his important contributions to botanical science, many authors have given the name skutchii to the plant species they have discovered.

Dr. Skutch´s observational skills, and his capacity to reflect on the nature of life, led to his writing numerous texts on philosophy and ethics, and his personal meditations on animal and vegetal life.

However, as important as his studies and his written work for scientists worldwide, is his life and his ideals narrated in his books “The Farm of a Naturalist”, “A Naturalist in Costa Rica”, “The Imperative Call”, and other books of great descriptive power and inmense natural, cultural and historical value.