3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

3
The New York Years (1931–1953)
Emigration to the United States and Life in New York City
Mayr’s main research in Berlin right after his return from the Solomon Islands concerned
the study of his bird collections from the Saruwaget and Herzog Mountains,
New Guinea (Fig. 3.1) which included a lengthy visit to the Rothschild Museum
in Tring, England to compare certain specimens. In June 1930 Mayr attended the
VIIth International Ornithological Congress at Amsterdam where he met many
of the luminaries in ornithology, including Frank M. Chapman, chief curator of
the Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)
inNewYorkCity.AfewmonthslaterMayrwasinvitedtocometoNewYorkfor
Fig.3.1. Ernst Mayr back from the South Seas has joined the “Stresemann circle” again;
Museum of Natural History Berlin, 1930. From left: Hans Scharnke, Erwin Stresemann,
ErnstMayr,MaxStolpe,GeorgSteinbacher(hidden), Hans Schildmacher, and Hermann
Desselberger (Photograph courtesy of Henriette Desselberger, Giessen, Germany)