Have you ever wondered who Jack Randall is? That name is everywhere when looking up fish and when hearing about new fish species found, but few know who he is or why his name is everywhere.

Jack Randall, or actually John E. Randall, is a professionally trained zoologist. He studied at University of California, then later recieved his Ph.D. from the University of Hawaii. His interests have always been rooted in the classification of marine fishes, especially Indo-Pacific reef species. Randall has worked in many areas of his field including:

Professor of Zoology, University of Puerto Rico (1961-1965)
Director, Institute of Marine Biology, University of Puerto Rico (1962-1965)
Director, Oceanic Institute, Hawaii (1965-1966)
Ichthyologist, Bishop Museum (1966-1984)
Senior Ichthyologist, Bishop Museum (1984-present).

Apart from his field contributions to marine fish knowledge, he has also written several prominent books on the topic including:

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and Shore Fishes of the South Pacific: New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands.
Randall, J.E. 1996. Shore Fishes of Hawaii.
Randall, J.E. 1986. Sharks of Arabia.
Randall, J.E., G.R. Allen & R.C. Steene. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea.
Randall, J.E. & P.C. Heemstra. 1991. Revision of Indo-Pacific groupers (Perciformes: Serranidae: Epinephelinae), with descriptions of five new species.
Randall, J.E. & K. van Egmond. 1994. Marine fishes from the Seychelles: 108 new records.

After seeing this name so many times, I’m glad curiosity finally got the better of me. Randall has racked up an amazing list of contributions to our knowledge about the world’s reef fish, and his name is still making headlines nearly every time a new species is described. I’m adding him to the list of people I need to meet one day.

Jack also contributes to several sources online including our very own Reefs Magazine:
Aquarium Fish Longevity