José H. Leal is a Brazilian-born

malacologist Malacology, from Ancient Greek μαλακός (''malakós''), meaning "soft", and λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (molluscs or mollusks), the second-largest ...

and American citizen residing in the United States since 1984. Between 1996 and 2013 he was the executive director of the

Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium is a museum and aquarium devoted to every aspect of seashells, conchology, and malacology, including the paleontological and archeological/anthropological aspects of the study of shells. The ...

, in Sanibel Island, Florida, and he is currently the science director and curator of that museum. Dr. Leal received his Ph.D. in marine biology and fisheries from the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science,

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

. He was an assistant editor for '' Sea Frontiers Magazine'', (Miami), a visiting professor at the

Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the Ja ...

(Paris), and postdoctoral fellow at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. With 4.4 ...

(Washington, DC). Dr. Leal holds honorary faculty positions at the University of Miami and

Florida Gulf Coast University Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) is a public university in Lee County, Florida, near Fort Myers. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is its second-youngest member. The university was established on May 3, 1991, and is acc ...

(Fort Myers), where he is an affiliate member of the Coastal Watershed Institute. He has numerous scientific publications, and is also the editor of the malacological journal ''

The Nautilus ''Nautilus'' is the fictional submarine belonging to Captain Nemo featured in Jules Verne's novels ''Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas'' (1870) and '' The Mysterious Island'' (1875). Description ''Nautilus'' is described by Verne as ...

''. He has been president of the '' American Malacological Society'' and of '' Conchologists of America''. In 2023, Dr. Leal received the prestigious '' Neptunea Award'' from '' Conchologists of America'', for his services to the global community of shell enthusiasts.

Taxa

Taxa named in honor of José H. Leal include: * '' Epitonium leali'' Garcia, 2011 * '' Tritonoharpa leali'' Harasewych, Petit, & Verhecken, 1992 * '' Dermomurex leali'' Houart, 1991 * '' Chicoreus leali'' Thach, 2016 * '' Cucullaea leali'' Thach, 2023

References

Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum Museum entry on Dr. Leal

WeekAway.com interview about a new exhibit

Times of the Islands.com profile

Museum of the Earth interview about the Gulf oil spill
Brazilian malacologists Brazilian zoologists Living people Federal University of Rio de Janeiro alumni Scientists from Rio de Janeiro (city) Year of birth missing (living people) {{Brazil-scientist-stub