Klaus Immelmann (May 6, 1935 – September 8, 1987) was a German

ethologist Ethology is the scientific study of animal behaviour, usually with a focus on behaviour under natural conditions, and viewing behaviour as an evolutionarily adaptive trait. Behaviourism as a term also describes the scientific and objective ...

and

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

. He undertook field research in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and published works in German and English. His second and third visit to South Africa were in 1969 and 1971. Immelmann became a permanent executive member of the

International Ornithological Union The International Ornithologists' Union, formerly known as the International Ornithological Committee, is a group of about 200 international ornithologists, and is responsible for the International Ornithological Congress and other international ...

, and its president in 1986. He is the author of ''Australian finches in bush and aviary'' (1965), regarded as the first standard text on the subject, and a study of comparative biology of

estrildid Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family (taxonomy), family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. D ...

finches in Australia. His first visit to Australia was in the late 1950s, shortly after receiving his PhD. His 1976 book ''Einführung in die Verhaltensforschung'', which brought together much of his scientific thinking, was translated into English in 1980.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Immelmann, Klaus 1935 births 1987 deaths German ornithologists Ethologists Ornithological writers 20th-century German zoologists