Joseph (Joe) Schieser Nelson (April 12, 1937 – August 9, 2011) was an American

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish ( Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of Octobe ...

. He is best known for the book ''

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011) is a standard reference for fish systematics. Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of the diversity and classification of the ...

'' (1st edition 1976, 4th edition 2006), which is the standard reference in fish systematics and evolution. Nelson obtained his PhD from

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in 1965. He retired in 2002 from the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

where he made most of his career; he continued to hold position as a Professor Emeritus and stayed scientifically active until his final years. Outside academia, Nelson was a black belt in

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

Legacy

Species described by Nelson: Species named after Nelson:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Joseph S. 1937 births 2011 deaths Canadian biologists University of British Columbia alumni People from San Francisco University of Alberta faculty American ichthyologists Scientists from California Educators from California