Margaret Altmann

Margaret Altmann (1900–1984) was a German-American biologist focusing on animal husbandry and psychobiology. She was one of the first women to work in the psychobiology, ethology and animal husbandry fields, with a focus on livestock.

Early life and education

Margaret Altmann was born in Berlin, German Empire. In 1938, Altmann received her second PhD from Cornell, with a degree in animal breeding from the psychobiology department. In the same year she became a citizen of the United States.

Career

Altmann started working at the Hampton Institute, where she was associate professor, and then professor. She taught animal genetics and animal husbandry. Eventually, she started working on large wild mammals and relocated to Colorado. From 1948 until 1956 she lived in Colorado, working at a biological research center. During this time, she started studying psychobiology. She taught at Kenyon College. From 1959 until 1969 she taught at the University of Colorado. In 1969, she retired, and became professor emerita. She wrote papers about moose, elk and packs.

She was a twenty-year member of the American Society of Mammalogists and published work in the Journal of Mammalogy.

Published works

Altmann, Margaret. "A study of behavior in a horse-mule group." Sociometry. 14.4 (1951), pp. 351–354. Chiszar, D. and Wertheimer, M. (1988), Margaret Altmann: A rugged pioneer in rugged fields. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 24: 102–106. doi: 10.1002/1520-6696(198801)24:1<102::AID-JHBS2300240121>3.0.CO;2-O