Ronald Strahan (1922–2010) was a zoologist, historian and author of works on the fauna of Australia. Strahan graduated from the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany and various other facilitie ...

in 1947, furthering his studies at Oxford and other universities in Hong Kong and New South Wales. He became director of

Taronga Zoo Taronga Zoo is a zoo located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in the suburb of Mosman, on the shores of Sydney Harbour. The opening hours are between 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Taronga is an Aboriginal word meaning 'beautiful water view'. It ...

in 1967 and joined the staff of the

Australian Museum The Australian Museum is a heritage-listed museum at 1 William Street, Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest museum in Australia,Design 5, 2016, p.1 and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the ...

in 1974. He was the editor of major publications assembled by museum, and extensively involved in oversight of the

National Photographic Index of Australian Wildlife The National Photographic Index of Australian Wildlife was founded as a project of the Australian Museum on 3 June 1969 (as the National Photographic Index of Australian Birds) to compile a comprehensive collection of photographs of Australian bir ...

which included ''The Complete Book of Australian Birds'' and ''The Complete Book of Australian Mammals''. Strahan also created travelling exhibitions, and wrote a series of essays on the history and work of the Australian Museum, ''Rare and Curious Specimens''. His own publications include works on Australian fauna, and his instigated a major collection of bird song at the Australian Museum. Strahan's second marriage was to the wildlife artist

Pamela Conder Pamela may refer to: *''Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'', a novel written by Samuel Richardson in 1740 *Pamela (name), a given name and, rarely, a surname *Pamela Spence, a Turkish pop-rock singer. Known as her stage name "Pamela" * MSC ''Pamela'', ...

. In the 1994 Queen's Birthday Honours Strahan was made a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Order (distinction), honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of Australia, Queen of Aus ...

for "service to zoology and to advancing understanding of Australia's natural biological heritage".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Strahan, Ronald 1922 births 2010 deaths Australian zoologists Directors of museums in Australia Zoo directors Members of the Order of Australia