Rudolf Stahlecker (25 November 1898 in Sternenfels near

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the nickname "Goldstadt" ("Golden City") ...

– 26 October 1977 in Urach) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

and biology teacher.

Biography

He studied with the German

paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

Friedrich von Huene at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

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 ...

. He participated in expeditions to collect fossils in the

geopark A geopark is a protected area with internationally significant geology within which sustainable development is sought and which includes tourism, conservation, education and research concerning not just geology but other relevant sciences. In 2 ...

of Paleorrota in 1928 and 1929. He also made several collections of fossils in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. In his honor, the dicynodonts '' Stahleckeria potens'' received its name. This

dicynodont Dicynodontia is an extinct clade of anomodonts, an extinct type of non-mammalian therapsid. Dicynodonts were herbivorous animals with a pair of tusks, hence their name, which means 'two dog tooth'. Members of the group possessed a horny, typic ...

s was collected in Paleontological Site Chiniquá, São Pedro do Sul. After finishing his doctorate, Stahlecker did not become a scientist but a biology teacher at a school in Stuttgart. His motto was, "the ''Führer'' wanted to teach people to think again biologically; we scientists have to be here as its first collaborators". After World War 2, he had to pause for some years during de-Nazification, thought he was not as intensely involved in the Nazi Party as his brother,

Walter Stahlecker Franz Walter Stahlecker (10 October 1900 – 23 March 1942) was commander of the SS security forces (''Sicherheitspolizei'' (SiPo) and the ''Sicherheitsdienst'' (SD) for the ''Reichskommissariat Ostland'' in 1941–42. Stahlecker commanded '' Ei ...

.Hans-Joachim Lang
Stahleckeria seit 80 Jahren in der hiesigen Paläontologischen Sammlung
an
Prunkstück aus der Steinwüste.

Schwäbisches Tagblatt The ''Schwäbisches Tagblatt'' is a daily newspaper for Tübingen, in print since 1945, as well as the publishing house that prints it. With 40,820 paid subscriptions in 2012, it is the newspaper with the highest circulation in the district of Tü ...

of 20. Mai 2009 (in German).

Biography

References

Further reading