In Memoriam

Lucius Gilbert Eldredge III, PhD
(1938 - 2013)

Lucius Gilbert Eldredge, III, was born on 1 March 1938 in East Greenwich, Rhode Island and grew up on the family farm. Lu received his BS in zoology from the University of Rhode Island in 1959 and earned his PhD in invertebrate zoology from the University of Hawaii in 1965. 

Lu was on faculty at the University of Guam from 1965 to 1987, among his roles serving as the Director of the Marine Laboratory from 1967-1971 and Interim Director of the Micronesian Area Research Center from 1982 – 1984.  He surveyed flora and fauna of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, and completed fieldwork throughout the Caroline, Marshall, Line, and Hawaiian Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Taiwan and Indonesia, and numerous other islands.  On sabbatical, he earned his Master’s of Library Studies from University of Hawaii in 1987.  Following retirement from the University of Guam, he worked for the Regional Seas Directories and Bibliographies at the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, Italy.

Lu joined the staff of the Bishop Museum in 1989 to take up his position as the Executive Secretary of the Pacific Science Association.  He continued his work on the impact of invasive species, serving on the Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative and the Federal Invasive Species Advisory Council.  He was a founding member of the Hawaii Bishop Research Institute and was appointed as its Executive Secretary in 1990, a position he kept until his death. After leaving the Pacific Science Association in 2004 he became Invertebrate Zoologist at the Bishop Museum where he conducted extensive research, editing, and publishing.

He retired from the Museum in 2012 but continued to work on keeping files of every publication known on the fauna of Pacific Islands and co-edited the annual Records of the Hawaii Biological Survey (a record of all native and introduced species to the Hawaiian islands) since its founding in 1992.  He was world renowned for his investigations of animals introduced to the Pacific islands from outside sources, where they came from, when, and their current status.  Throughout his career, Lu mentored young scientists, consulted with government agencies and published extensively.

Lu was loving father, whose four daughters could swim before they could walk and learned from him to appreciate the beauty and diversity in the world.  He was a gourmet chef and gracious host and his house was the gathering place for celebrations small and large.  He had a generous and optimistic spirit, a sympathetic ear, and a big heart. Unfortunately, his heart was not strong enough to handle his last few weeks and he passed away peacefully on 1 May 2012.

We are saddened by Lu’s sudden illness and passing, and are bolstered by his many friends who have shared stories about his adventures.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Bishop Museum, earmarked for the Hawaii Biological Survey, and mailed to the Hawaii Biological Survey at 1525 Bernice St, Honolulu, HI  96817-2704.

This page last revised 10 May 2013