Peter and Rosemary Grant
Encyclopedia
Peter Raymond Grant and Barbara Rosemary Grant, a married couple, are both British
evolutionary biologists at Princeton University
; each holds the position of Emeritus Professor. They are noted for their work concerning Darwin's finches
on the Galápagos Island
named Daphne Major
. The Grants have spent six months of the year each year since 1973 capturing, tagging, and taking blood samples of the finches on the island.
The Grants were the subject of the book The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time
by Jonathan Weiner
(Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), ISBN 0-679-40003-6, which won the Pulitzer Prize
for General Non-Fiction in 1995.http://www.pulitzer.org/year/1995/general-non-fiction/
In 2003 the Grants were joint recipients of the Loye and Alden Miller Research Award
. They won the 2005 Balzan Prize
for Population Biology http://www.balzan.org//premiati.aspx?lang=en&Codice=1117&show=1&from=1117&from1=0. The Balzan Prize citation states:
Peter was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1987 and Rosemary in 2007. In 2008 both Peter and Rosemary Grant were among the thirteen recipients of the Darwin-Wallace Medal
, which is bestowed every 50 years by the Linnean Society of London
. In 2009 they were recipients of the annual Kyoto Prize
in basic sciences, an international award honoring significant contributions to the scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment of mankind.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
evolutionary biologists at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
; each holds the position of Emeritus Professor. They are noted for their work concerning Darwin's finches
Darwin's finches
Darwin's finches are a group of 14 or 15 species of passerine birds. It is still not clear which bird family they belong to, but they are not related to the true finches. They were first collected by Charles Darwin on the Galápagos Islands during the second voyage of the Beagle...
on the Galápagos Island
Galápagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, west of continental Ecuador, of which they are a part.The Galápagos Islands and its surrounding waters form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a...
named Daphne Major
Daphne Major
Daphne Major is a volcanic island just north of Santa Cruz Island and just west of the Baltra Airport in the archipelago Colon, commonly known as the Galápagos Islands...
. The Grants have spent six months of the year each year since 1973 capturing, tagging, and taking blood samples of the finches on the island.
The Grants were the subject of the book The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time
The Beak of the Finch
The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time is a 1994 nonfiction book about evolutionary biology, written by Jonathan Weiner. It won the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. The finches of the title are the Galapagos or 'Darwin's Finches,' passerine songbirds in the Galapagos...
by Jonathan Weiner
Jonathan Weiner
Jonathan Weiner is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author of non-fiction books on his biology observations, in particular evolution in the Galápagos Islands, genetics, and the environment....
(Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), ISBN 0-679-40003-6, which won the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
for General Non-Fiction in 1995.http://www.pulitzer.org/year/1995/general-non-fiction/
In 2003 the Grants were joint recipients of the Loye and Alden Miller Research Award
Loye and Alden Miller Research Award
The Loye and Alden Miller Research Award was established in 1993 by the Cooper Ornithological Society to recognize lifetime achievement in ornithological research...
. They won the 2005 Balzan Prize
Balzan Prize
The International Balzan Prize Foundation awards four annual monetary prizes to people or organisations who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of humanities, natural sciences, culture, as well as for endeavours for peace and the brotherhood of man.-Rewards and assets:Each year the...
for Population Biology http://www.balzan.org//premiati.aspx?lang=en&Codice=1117&show=1&from=1117&from1=0. The Balzan Prize citation states:
- "Peter and Rosemary Grant are distinguished for their remarkable long-term studies demonstrating evolution in action in Galápagos finches. They have demonstrated how very rapid changes in body and beak size in response to changes in the food supply are driven by natural selection. They have also elucidated the mechanisms by which new species arise and how genetic diversity is maintained in natural populations. The work of the Grants has had a seminal influence in the fields of population biology, evolution and ecology."
Peter was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1987 and Rosemary in 2007. In 2008 both Peter and Rosemary Grant were among the thirteen recipients of the Darwin-Wallace Medal
Darwin-Wallace Medal
The Darwin–Wallace Medal is a medal awarded by the Linnean Society of London for "major advances in evolutionary biology". Historically, the medals have been awarded every 50 years, beginning in 1908...
, which is bestowed every 50 years by the Linnean Society of London
Linnean Society of London
The Linnean Society of London is the world's premier society for the study and dissemination of taxonomy and natural history. It publishes a zoological journal, as well as botanical and biological journals...
. In 2009 they were recipients of the annual Kyoto Prize
Kyoto Prize
The has been awarded annually since 1985 by the Inamori Foundation, founded by Kazuo Inamori. The prize is a Japanese award similar in intent to the Nobel Prize, as it recognizes outstanding works in the fields of philosophy, arts, science and technology...
in basic sciences, an international award honoring significant contributions to the scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment of mankind.