Dorothy Bliss

Dorothy Elizabeth Bliss (February 13, 1916 – December 26, 1987) was an American carcinologist and curator of invertebrates at the American Museum of Natural History, with which she was associated for over 30 years. She was known as a pioneer in the field of hormonal control in crustaceans. She was editor-in-chief of the 10-volume series The Biology of Crustacea and author of the popular book Shrimps, Lobsters and Crabs. She served as president of the American Society of Zoologists and was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Early life and education Bliss was born in Cranston, Rhode Island on February 13, 1916. Her parents were Orville Thayer and Sophia Topham Bliss (née Farnell). She attended Pembroke College (now Brown University), earning a bachelor's degree in 1937 and a master's degree in 1942. She taught at Milton Academy in Massachusetts from 1942 to 1949 and was a teaching fellow at Radcliffe College from 1947 to 1951 while performing doctoral research in the lab of John Henry Welsh. Her dissertation research focused on the neural and hormonal structures in the eye stalks of the land crab Gecarcinus lateralis, a species which she would study in the lab and field throughout her career. She earned a PhD in 1952 from Radcliffe and continued as a research fellow until 1955.

Career In 1956, Bliss joined the staff of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City as assistant curator of invertebrates for the department known then as the Department of Fishes and Aquatic Biology. She then became an associate curator in 1962 and curator in 1967. From 1974 to 1977, she served as chair the department of fossils and living invertebrates. She retired in 1980, becoming curator emerita until 1987. Bliss also held several teaching positions, including anatomy professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine (1956–1964), adjunct biology professor at City University of New York (1971–1980), and adjunct zoology professor at the University of Rhode Island (1980–1987). She produced over 40 scientific papers and was editor-in-chief of The Biology of Crustacea (Academic Press), an influential 10-volume work begun in 1977 and continuing until 1986. She received an honorary Doctor of Science from Brown University in 1972, and a symposium honoring her and fellow invertebrate zoologist Lewis Kleinholz was held at the annual meeting of the American Society of Zoologists in 1983.

Publications