Arthur Davis Hasler (January 5, 1908 – March 23, 2001) was an

ecologist Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

who is credited with explaining the

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus '' Oncorhy ...

's homing instinct. ''The New York Times'': Arthur D. Hasler, 93; Deciphered Salmon's Homing Instinct
/ref>Ecological Society of America:Resolution of Respect, Arthur Hasler
/ref>National Academies Press - Biographical Memoirs, V.82
/ref> Hasler was a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' called him "an internationally recognized authority on freshwater ecology". He served as President of The

Ecological Society of America The Ecological Society of America (ESA) is a professional organization of ecological scientists. Based in the United States and founded in 1915, ESA publications include peer-reviewed journals, newsletters, fact sheets, and teaching resources. I ...

, which called him "one of the leading figures in 20th century freshwater ecology". Hasler pioneered a research method based on manipulation of entire lake ecosystems. This method became an instrumental new tool for ecology. He published over 200 scientific papers, was an author or an editor of 7 books, and supervisor of 52 doctoral degrees.

Career

Hasler was born in Lehi, Utah. He married Hanna Prusse in 1932, and they had six children: Sylvia, A. Frederick, Bruce, Galen, Mark, and Karl. He graduated from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

in 1932. He received a doctorate in zoology from the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

in 1937. Hasler was an analyst with the

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

Strategic Bombing Survey based in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Hasler was a Fulbright scholar at the Max Planck Institute in Germany from 1954 to 1955. Subsequently, Hasler was on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin–Madison for 41 years and under his leadership it became a hub for lake research. In 1961 he served as President of The

. He headed the Limnology Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1963 to 1968. In 1969 he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasler, Arthur D. 1908 births 2001 deaths 20th-century scientists American ecologists Brigham Young University alumni People from Lehi, Utah Scientists from Madison, Wisconsin Salmon University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences United States Army Air Forces officers American limnologists Scientists at University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center