Ryder, Michael Lawson, 1927-2015
Dates
- Existence: 1927 - 2015
Biography
Michael Lawson Ryder was born in Leeds in 1927. His schooling at Leeds Grammar School was interrupted by his evacuation to the Yorkshire Dales during the Second World War. After completing his National Service in West Africa between 1945 and 1948, Ryder enrolled at the University of Leeds, receiving his BSc in 1951. In the same year, he began work in the biology department of the Wool Industries Research Association in Leeds, but also continued his studies at the University of Leeds, gaining his MSc in 1954 and PhD in 1956.
From 1960 to 1962 Ryder was a senior lecturer in Livestock Husbandry at the University of New England in Armidale, Australia. The following year, he returned to the UK to take up the position of Principal Scientific Officer at the Animal Breeding Research Organisation in Edinburgh. He remained at ABRO for twenty years, also becoming an Honorary lecturer at the University of Edinburgh in 1966. In 1984, he left ABRO to work for three years at the Hill Farming Research Organisation.
Ryder became known as an international expert on sheep and wool, publishing over 220 academic papers and several academic books, including 'Wool Growth' (1968) and the acclaimed 'Sheep and Man' (1983), which combined anthropology, archaeology, geography and folklore as well as biology and agriculture. The book encapsulated Ryder's lifelong interest in the domestication and spread of sheep among ancient civilizations, in the European middle ages the Islamic world. Ryder also made significant contributions to archaeozoology with his book 'Animal Bones in Archaelogy' (1961) and other papers. He continued to use his knowledge to analyse and interpret preserved ancient wool and textile remains, such as the finds from the site of Hallstatt in Austria in 2007.
After his retirement, Ryder relocated to Hampshire and continued to reseach and travel widely. He died on 6 February 2015.
Found in 45 Collections and/or Records:
The fleece of Wiltshire x Wensleydale sheep, 1978
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1978. Volume 12 of 19.
The origin of spinning, 1964
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1962 - 1964. Volume 3 of 19.
The pre-natal develoment of skin follicles in Mouflon (Ovis musimon) x Soay, Soay and Shetland sheep, 1977
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1977. Volume 11 of 19.
The sheep and wool of Ireland, 1968-1969
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1969 - 1970. Volume 6 of 19.
The structure of, and growth cycles in, the coat of Wild Mouflon sheep (Ovis musimon) and their crosses, 1973
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1973 - 1974. Volume 8 of 19.
The use of skin autografts to study wool growth cycles in sheep, 1977
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1977. Volume 11 of 19.
The world's largest wool producer, 1965
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1965 - 1966. Volume 4 of 19.
Thyroxine and wool follicle activity, 1979
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1979. Volume 13 of 19.
Why not grow fine wool in Britain?, 1975
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1975. Volume 9 of 19.
Wool fibre shedding and seasonal variation in wool growth, 1965
Located in A.B.R.O. Reprints 1965 - 1966. Volume 4 of 19.
Additional filters:
- Type
- Archival Object 44
- Collection 1
- Subject
- Animal Genetics 44
- Sheep 34
- Wool--Growth 28
- Wool 18
- Seasonal variations 7
- Animals and history 5
- Merino sheep 5
- Sheep breeds 5
- Wool industry 5
- Great Britain 4
- Australia 3
- Cross-Breeding 2
- Domestication 2
- Animal populations--Climatic factors 1
- Animals--Colour 1
- Archaeology 1
- Biology 1
- Cattle 1
- Crimea (Ukraine) 1
- Hebrides (Scotland) 1
- Histology 1
- Ireland 1
- Livestock improvement 1
- Mouflon sheep 1
- Scotland 1
- Scotland -- Inverness-shire -- St Kilda 1
- Shetland (Scotland) 1
- Soay sheep 1
- Spinning 1
- Textile crafts 1
- Thyroid hormones 1
- Wood 1
- Zoo-archaeology 1
- Zoology 1 + ∧ less