Legendary Texas herpetologist and naturalist James R. (Jim) Dixon passed away yesterday, January 10, 2015, leaving a legacy in Texas herpetology and herpetoculture that will be hard to match.

Dr. Dixon never met a snake he didn't like. Professor Emeritus and Curator Emeritus of amphibians and reptiles at the Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection at Texas A&M University, in his long, distinguished career Dr. Dixon described hundreds of new species of reptiles and amphibians worldwide, with a special emphasis on the herpetofauna of Texas, Mexico, Central America, and South America.

Born in 1928 in Houston, Dr. Dixon first obtained his bachelor of science from Howard Payne University in 1950 before serving in the Korean War. Working as Curator of Reptiles at the Ross Allen Reptile Institute before earning his masters degree (1957) and PhD in (1961) from Texas A&M University, he was an Associate Professor of Veterinary Medicine at Texas A&M from 1959 until 1961.

As an Associate Professor of Wildlife Management at New Mexico State University from 1961 until 1965, he served as a consultant to the New Mexico Game and Fisheries department until leaving for the University of Southern California, where from 1965 until 1967 he was Curator of Herpetology at the Los Angeles County Museum.

In 1971 he returned to his Texas roots, becoming a professor at Texas A&M University, where he taught Wildlife and Fisheries Science and became Curator of the Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection. Dr. Dixon also served as president of several herpetological and naturalist societies including The Herpetologist League, Texas Herpetological Society, Texas Academy of Science, Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Southwestern Association of Naturalists. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Texas Systems of Natural Laboratories and the faculty of Stephen F. Austin State University.

Author and co-author of numerous books, book chapters, and hundreds of peer reviewed notes and articles, Dr. Dixon was one of the most prominent herpetologists of the latter 20th century, and over the years numerous species have been named in his honor by some of his thousands of students and admirers.