Frank and John Craighead

For the entomologist, see Frank C. Craighead Sr.

Frank and John Craighead
Born(1916-08-14)August 14, 1916
Washington, D.C., U.S.
DiedFrank: October 21, 2001(2001-10-21) (aged 85)
Jackson, Wyoming, U.S.
John: September 18, 2016(2016-09-18) (aged 100)
Missoula, Montana, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Michigan
Occupation(s)Conservation, falconry, grizzly bear biology
Years active1934–1976

Frank Cooper Craighead Jr. (August 14, 1916 – October 21, 2001) and John Johnson Craighead (August 14, 1916 – September 18, 2016), twin brothers, were American conservationists, naturalists, and researchers who made important contributions to the studies of falconry and grizzly bear biology.[1] The brothers were born in Washington, D.C., where both graduated from Western High School in 1935. The brothers began collecting and identifying animals and plants they found alongside the Potomac and soon expanded their interests to birds and hawks. They traveled west in 1934 to begin studying falconry. After World War II, during which they were employed as survival trainers, they each married and resumed their work in falconry. During the 1950s, the Craighead brothers expanded their work to other animals, including many species living in and around Yellowstone, and eventually separated.[2]

In 1959 their careers merged again, this time to begin a 12-year study of grizzly bears in Yellowstone since the animals were considered threatened by increased human activity. However, a 1971 disagreement with the National Park Service ended their Yellowstone studies. Fortunately, their work continued elsewhere in Montana, including the Scapegoat Wilderness.[3] After 1976, their work was mostly confined to field guides and educating the public about environmentalism. Their work in field ecology continued until Frank's death in 2001 from Parkinson's disease.

In 1998, the National Audubon Society named the brothers among the top 100 conservationists of the 20th century.[4] John won the Wildlife Society's Aldo Leopold Memorial Award in the same year.[5]

  1. ^ "Frank Craighead Legacy". Craighead Institute. Retrieved September 4, 2015.
  2. ^ Cloud Gardens in the Tetons, National Geographic, June 1948.
  3. ^ Studying Grizzly Habitat by Satellite. National Geographic, July 1976.
  4. ^ Croke, Vicki Constantine (November 11, 2007). "The Brothers Wild". The Washington Post Magazine. Retrieved September 4, 2015.
  5. ^ Briggeman, Kim (September 19, 2016). "Legendary wildlife scientist John Craighead dead at 100". missoulian.com. Retrieved February 17, 2023.