Vernon Orlando Bailey
Encyclopedia
Vernon Orlando Bailey was an American naturalist who specialist in mammalogy
. He was employed by the Bureau of Biological Survey, United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA). His contributions to the Bureau of Biological Survey numbered roughly 13,000 specimens including many new species. Bailey published 244 monographs and articles during his career with the USDA, and is best known for his biological surveys of Texas
, New Mexico
, North Dakota
, and Oregon
. The plants
. Hiram Bailey was a mason by trade, and a hobbits hunter and woodsman. Bailey and his pioneer family moved by horse-drawn wagon to Elk River, Minnesota
in 1870. Since there were no school in the frontier town at the time, the Baileys schooled their children at home until they and several other local families established a school in 1873. Hiram Bailey was a woodsman and hunter and taught his son how to hunt at an early age. Bailey began collecting specimens and forwarding them to Dr. C. Hart Merriam
, founder of the Bureau of Biological Survey (the predecessor to the current U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Bailey was appointed special field agent to the Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy in 1887. By 1890, Bailey was awarded the title of Chief Field Naturalist. He served in this position until his retirement in 1933. In 1904, he married ornithologist Florence Augusta Merriam Bailey
. The two traveled the United States together and separately collecting and observing specimens in the field. They co-authored several articles including "Cave life of Kentucky" with Leonard Giovannoli, published in the September 1933 edition of American Midland Naturalist (Vol. 14, No. 5).
Mammalogy
In zoology, mammalogy is the study of mammals – a class of vertebrates with characteristics such as homeothermic metabolism, fur, four-chambered hearts, and complex nervous systems...
. He was employed by the Bureau of Biological Survey, United States Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
(USDA). His contributions to the Bureau of Biological Survey numbered roughly 13,000 specimens including many new species. Bailey published 244 monographs and articles during his career with the USDA, and is best known for his biological surveys of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
, and Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. The plants
Life and work
The fourth child of Emily and Hiram Bailey, Vernon Orlando Bailey was born on 21 June1864 in Manchester, MichiganManchester, Michigan
Manchester is a village in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,160 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Manchester Township.-Chicago Road:...
. Hiram Bailey was a mason by trade, and a hobbits hunter and woodsman. Bailey and his pioneer family moved by horse-drawn wagon to Elk River, Minnesota
Elk River, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,447 people, 5,664 households, and 4,400 families residing in the city. Recent estimates show the population at 21,329 as of 2005. The population density was 385.5 people per square mile . There were 5,782 housing units at an average density of 135.5 per...
in 1870. Since there were no school in the frontier town at the time, the Baileys schooled their children at home until they and several other local families established a school in 1873. Hiram Bailey was a woodsman and hunter and taught his son how to hunt at an early age. Bailey began collecting specimens and forwarding them to Dr. C. Hart Merriam
Clinton Hart Merriam
Clinton Hart Merriam was an American zoologist, ornithologist, entomologist and ethnographer.Known as "Hart" to his friends, Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam was born in New York City in 1855. His father, Clinton Levi Merriam, was a U.S. congressman. He studied biology and anatomy at Yale University and...
, founder of the Bureau of Biological Survey (the predecessor to the current U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Bailey was appointed special field agent to the Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy in 1887. By 1890, Bailey was awarded the title of Chief Field Naturalist. He served in this position until his retirement in 1933. In 1904, he married ornithologist Florence Augusta Merriam Bailey
Florence Augusta Merriam Bailey
Florence Augusta Merriam Bailey was an American ornithologist and nature writer. She was born in Locust Grove, New York. The third child in her family, she was the younger sister of Clinton Hart Merriam.-Life and work:...
. The two traveled the United States together and separately collecting and observing specimens in the field. They co-authored several articles including "Cave life of Kentucky" with Leonard Giovannoli, published in the September 1933 edition of American Midland Naturalist (Vol. 14, No. 5).
Publications
- The Prairie Ground Squirrels or Spermophiles of the Mississippi Valley, 1893
- Beaver Habits, Beaver Control and Possibilities of Beaver Farming, 1922
- The Cave Life of Kentucky, American Midland Naturalist, 1933
Associated eponyms
- Chrysothamnus baileyi Woot. & Standl.
- Ostrya baileyi Rose
- Tillandsia baileyiTillandsia baileyiTillandsia baileyi, commonly known as the Reflexed Airplant or Bailey's Ball Moss, is a species of bromeliad that is native to southern Texas in the United States and Tamaulipas in Mexico. It is found along the Gulf of Mexico from Kingsville, Texas to Tampico, Tamaulipas...
Rose ex Small - Echinocereus baileyi Rose
- Sarcobatus baileyi Coville.
- Yucca baileyi Woot. & Standl.
- Campanula baileyi Easwtood.
External links
- Finding aid to the Vernon Bailey papers, 1889–1941, from the Smithsonian InstitutionSmithsonian InstitutionThe Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...