1894-1953

English-born mammalogist who from 1921 until his death was affiliated with the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He made a number of specimen-collecting field trips to South America, Africa, and the Southwest Pacific and published extensively on various mammal groups. He also collected insects and plants and had research interests in geography and ecology. Tate's half-dozen books included accounts of South American mouse opossums and the mammals of the Pacific and eastern Asia. During World War II he was exploration chief for the American Rubber Development Corporation in Brazil, but the rapid development of synthetic rubber terminated his mission there. His career was cut short by leukemia and complications from several diseases contracted in Africa.