Obituaries

Abstract

All of us who knew Rod Baxter were shaken by the news of his sudden death on 17 October 2015. Although Rod had entered the community of the “Dormousers” (specialists studying dormice and regularly communicating in meetings) late in his career, he played a prominent role in research on Southern African small mammal biology, ever since his studies at the University of Natal (South Africa) in the 1970s. Roderick Murray Baxter was born on 27 August 1951 in Irene near Pretoria, Union of South Africa (now Republic of South Africa), to Patricia and Murray F. Baxter. His father was head of medical research at the Counsel for Scientific and Industrial Research. The family has resided in South Africa since the 19th century. During the Anglo-Boer War, Rod’s great uncle Jack Baxter was executed by British troops for wearing a khaki suit, which was illegal lest for British soldiers. This tragic incident had left bitter resentment in Rod against British colonialists. Rod had spent his youth together with two brothers and one sister in an arid region, and frequently evoked his early experience of struggling with drought. He went to school in Irene and in Lyttelton (both Gauteng Province, South Africa). In the 1970s he joined the University of Natal in Pietermaritzburg and started his professional career as research assistant of Waldo Meester, studying, at that time, less known small mammals. Although the title at first had sounded impressive to a young postgraduate, the workload was high and the salary was low. Besides, there was a generation gap between these two men. While Waldo Meester, an internationally recognized authority on the taxonomy of African mammals, had based his works on museum vouchers, Rod, just like the majority of other junior staff, had nursed interest on behaviour and was desperate to work with living animals. His colleagues remember Rod as a bright, intelligent, and dynamic young man with a wide interest and true passion, particularly for his beloved and “favourite” mammals: Shrews. His enquiring mind and his excellent powers of observation were equally admired as was his empathy and compassion for his fellows. Caring about others, offering help and time lending an ear or even two to his students who sometimes had private, social, or family problems had top priority throughout his many years working with students and colleagues. At that time, Rod had long hair, a beard, and enjoyed smoking a pipe – he liked the smell of tobacco. He was not the only smoker among the University staff and in those days when people were still allowed to smoke inside, the smell of tobacco had filled the zoology department. After receiving his Master’s degree, he stayed in Pietermaritzburg for a short time before he joined the University of Cape Town. Thereafter, in 1983, he started lecturing at the University of Fort Hare, Alice, Eastern Cape Province, living in King Williams Town and later in Grahamstown together with his wife Ann, which meant long daily drives to and from work. In 2008 they moved to Venda, Folia Zool. – 67 (2): 120–127 (2018) DOI: 1 .25225/fozo.v67.i2.a8.2018