Joseph Beal Steere

Joseph Beal Steere (9 February 1842 – 7 December 1940) was an American ornithologist.

Life and career Steere was born in Rollin, Michigan, the son of William Millhouse and Elizabeth Cleghorn (Beal) Steere. He received a B.A. from the University of Michigan in 1868 and a B. of Law in 1870.

Shortly after his graduation he entered upon an extensive tour to make collections for the University Museum. His mother's cousin, Rice A. Beal—owner and publisher of the Ann Arbor Courier—agreed to pay for the expedition if Steere would write letters from his journey to be published in the Courier.

He married Helen F. Buzzard on 30 September 1879.

He took one final excursion in 1901, leading a group of students to the Amazon to collect specimens for the Smithsonian Institution.

Steere described a number of new birds. He is commemorated in the scientific names of a number of birds, including: Steere's liocichla, Liochicla steerii; the wattled broadbill, Eurylaimus steerii; the black-hooded coucal, Centropus steerii; and the azure-breasted pitta, Pitta steerii.

A species of lizard, Parvoscincus steerei, is named in his honor.

Publications Steere, J. B., 1890. "A List of Birds and Mammals Collected by the Steere Expedition to the Philippines, with New Species." Steere, J. B., 1903. Narrative of a visit to Indian tribes of the Purus River, Brazil. A. Rept. U. S. natl Mus., Washington, D. C. 1903: 359–393. Steere, J. B., 1927. The archeology of the Amazon. Univ. Michigan off. Publs 29 (9, Pt. 2): 20–26. Steere, J. B., 1949. Tribos do Purus. Sociologia, São Paulo 11 (2): 64–78, 212–222.