Thomas van der Hammen

Thomas van der Hammen (Schiedam, Netherlands, 27 September 1924 - Chía, Colombia, 12 March 2010) was a Dutch palaeontologist, botanist and geologist. He had published more than 160 works in five languages.

Biography

Personal life and education Thomas van der Hammen was born in the city of Schiedam in South Holland, western The Netherlands. He studied botany and palaeontology at Leiden University from 1944 to 1949. He was a deeply religious man.

Career After his studies and years of research at the University of Amsterdam, van der Hammen arrived in Bogotá in 1951. Van der Hammen has contributed greatly to the understanding of the geology of the Bogotá savanna and surrounding areas. He has worked with Gonzalo Correal Urrego towards an understanding of the prehistoric sites, as El Abra, Tequendama and Tibitó in central Colombia and has defined and described various geological formations, such as the Marichuela, Tunjuelo, and Subachoque Formations. His paleobotanical background proved valuable in dating the continental Cacho Formation.

In 2000, a natural reserve in the north of Bogotá bordering Chía and Cota, Thomas van der Hammen Natural Reserve, was named after the naturalist. The mayor of Bogotá, Enrique Peñalosa, who ran twice for the Green Party, allowed the construction of homes in the reserve, leading to protests by residents.

In 2003, van der Hammen granted a wide-ranging interview to Radio Netherlands about his work and his life.

Works This list is a selection.

Books 2008 - La Cordillera Oriental Colombiana Transecto Sumapaz - Estudios de Ecosistemas Tropandinos 2007 - Atlas de Páramos de Colombia 1986 - La Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Colombia) Transecto Buritaca-La Cumbre 1979 - Changes in life conditions on Earth during the past one million years 1953 - Late-glacial flora and periglacial phenomena in the Netherlands

Articles 2006 - La conservación de la biodiversidad: hacia una estructura ecológica de soporte de la nación colombiana 2001 - Diversidade biológica e cultural da Amazonia 1997 - El bosque de Condalia 1981 - Environmental changes in the Northern Andes and the extinction of Mastodon 1978 - Stratigraphy and environment of the Upper Quaternary of the El Abra corridor and rock shelters (Colombia) 1972 - Changes in vegetation and climate in the Amazon basin and surrounding areas during the Pleistocene 1966 - The Pliocene and Quaternary of the Sabana de Bogotá (The Tilatá and Sabana Formations) 1957 - Climatic periodicity and evolution of South American Maestichtian and Tertiary floras 1951 - Vegetatie en stratigrafie van het Laat-glaciaal en het Pleni-glaciaal 1949 - De Allerod-oscillatie in Nederland. Pollenanalytisch onderzoek van een laatglaciale meerafzetting in Drente