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Personal |
Brief Biography
I was born in March 1945 in Tuscumbia,
Alabama, where, at age 7, I encountered my first memorable herp in the field (a
rough green snake, Opheodrys aestivus).
I grew up as a "boy herpetologist" in Tuscumbia and, at age 11, moved
to Massillon, Ohio, where my herpetological interests, and collecting,
continued to grow (unfortunately, I was totally ignorant of the local Ohio Herp
Society, later to become the international Society for the Study of Amphibians
and Reptiles!). In high school, I was the weird guy who read Ditmars'
snake books in study hall and collected herps with my high school buds.
I attended college at Harding College in Arkansas where I experienced southern
herps west of the Mississippi. The copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix)
that I, as a freshman, dug out of hibernation in January 1964 still stands as
the Arkansas state size record. In Arkansas I also met Sharon Lisle from
Canyon, Texas; she and I have been married 52 years. Sharon doesn't
particularly like herps but she's a great field companion as well as a great
wife and mother! After Harding, Sharon, Sam (our parrot), and I went to
Utah State University for a master's program, where, in 1969, I eventually lost
the battle to avoid the Draft. Of significance in Utah was my first
exposure to herping in an arid environment. I
managed to avert having to experience the herps of Viet Nam but did serve two
years with Uncle Sam as a psychiatric technician in Ft. Ord, California, where
I was introduced to herps of the West Coast, and Ft. Sam Houston, Texas, where
I experienced the fabulous herps of Trans-Pecos Texas and the Chihuahuan Desert. After finishing my Ph.D. at the
University of Kansas, a truly great experience with a fine group of
herpetologists, I returned to Harding College (now Harding University) where I
have been teaching since December 1975.
Sharon and I have two grown children (and former field
companions), Scott Plummer and Melissa Vollmering of
Arlington, Texas. Helping these two fine young people grow up and find
their niche in life was the hardest job I ever had (and also the one from which
I received, and continue to receive, the greatest pleasure and
satisfaction)! Sharon always has had an uncanny ability to let me know
quickly when I was spending too much time on my research at the expense of the
more important things in life. Thanks, Sharon, for helping me keep my
life in proper perspective. Solomon once asked, "A good wife, who
can find?" The answer is -- Me!
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