Patrick R. Leacock
Research Associate (Mycology)
Department of Botany
The Field Museum
Chicago, Illinois 60605
Meet the Scientist
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Patrick R. Leacock Research Associate (Mycology) Department of Botany The Field Museum Chicago, Illinois 60605 Meet the Scientist Read CV |
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I was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA. As the fourth of five boys, I was the quiet artistic one. My interest in nature began at an early age. Hiking in the woods with my folks, checking out every bug and flower and rock, I wanted to know the name of each curiosity and how it fit in with everything else. I became an avid bird watcher at age 14 after our family attended a nature summit at Estes Park, Colorado. After high school science courses and a B.S. in Biology from the University of Minnesota, I was unclear in my career direction.
While leading a spring field trip at Itasca State Park, a patch of delicious morel mushrooms was discovered. A birding friend then introduced me to the local mushroom club and I was hooked. Here was a challenge in identification. Each foray was like a treasure hunt. A couple years later, I met up with Dave McLaughlin during an alumni weekend at Itasca State Park. Dave was doing mushroom forays while I was leading bird walks. We got to talking and I soon returned to the University of Minnesota and obtained a M.S. in botany and a Ph.D. in plant biology. I researched Lactarius (milk mushrooms) and the diversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi in ancient forests. In 1997, I joined The Field Museum where I continue my research interests with Greg Mueller. We are investigating fungal diversity in the greater Chicago region and how species distributions relate to factors such as habitat type, local pollution gradient, and oak woodland restoration. |
Write to Pat Fungi of the Chicago Region Fungi of Ancient Forests Lactarius Mushrooms Adult Courses |