Hans-Dieter Sues

Hans -Dieter Sues ( born 1956 ) is a German-born American vertebrate paleontologist. He is currently " Associate Director for Research and Collections " at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC and " Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada".

Sue studied geology and zoology at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, the University of Alberta (Master of Science in Geology, 1977) and Harvard University, where in 1978 his master's degree in biology made ​​. In 1984 he received his doctorate at Harvard in biology. He was then at McGill University and the National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC, before he curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto in 1992. 1999 to 2002 he was vice president there for Collections and Research. At the same time he taught at the University of Toronto, where he became in 1997 Professor of Zoology. 2002 to 2004 he was Associate Director for Science and collections at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.

Sue is one of the leading specialists in particular in the area of ​​Mesozoic and Paleozoic reptiles. In particular, he explores the emergence of the main lines of development of the Triassic. He has, among others in the United States (including Pennsylvania ), Canada, Morocco, Uzbekistan, China ( Mongolia) and Germany collected fossil material and numerous species of fossil reptiles first described scientifically, including 1978 Saurornitholestes, a theropod dinosaur, 2009 Levnesovia, one of the oldest hadrosauriden dinosaurs ( together with Alexander Averianov ) Majungatholus ( with Philippe Taquet, 1979, a skull fragment from Madagascar, the first discovery of a Pachycelphalosauriers in the southern hemisphere ), Ornatotholus ( with Peter Galton 1983), Stygimoloch ( also in 1983 with Galton ) and Zephyrosaurus (1980 ).

He is the co-discoverer of the first well-preserved skeleton of gleitfliegenden reptile Coelurosauravus. With Peter Galton 1982, he examined the possible ( so the theory of Galton / Sue ) early ceratopsians Stenopelix valdensis. He also dealt with the evolution of land ecosystems.

2003 was Sues President of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. He is the Committee for Research and Exploration of the National Geographic Society in Washington DC, the largest private funder of paleontological digs. The dinosaur Hanssuesia was named after him in 2003.