Donald Blair Siniff

Donald Blair Siniff was a man with a keen scientific mind, a great love of nature, and a kind and humble heart. His scientific accomplishments are abundant, but he also has touched the lives of many people. To his family, he was simply their Pops.

Donald was born to Millard and Irene Siniff in Ohio on July 7,1935. Farm life had a huge impact on the direction that his life would take. His father was a dairy farm manager which meant they moved around from farm to farm as he was growing up. Eventually, they ended up at the State Farm in North Eaton, Ohio. With 1200 acres to explore, Don had plenty of opportunity to observe and investigate the woods and streams fueling his fascination with ecosystems and animals in their natural habitat. He and his brother Charles (Chuck) became trappers and fishermen. They ran trap lines on the two creeks running through the farm. Don was in charge of one creek while his brother was in charge of the other. Their targets were muskrat and the occasional mink selling the pelts to save up money for college. Don also told stories about how he and his brother stole cokes intended for the farm hands from the farm’s refrigerator. He said that throughout his life drinking a Coke always reminded him of his brother.

Don's love of fishing came from his Grandpa Knotts, an avid fly fisherman. Under Grandpa Knotts’ tutelage he learned to tie his own flies and even built his own rod. This love Don passed down to his own grandson, Sam.

During high school Don was active in basketball, music, theater, and class leadership. He was the leading scorer on his high school basketball team. He also served as class president during his first three years of high school. However, during his senior year, he decided that the girls should be put in charge. So with 12 boys and 9 girls in his class, he was able to lead the boys into electing all girls for the class leadership roles. As he expected, they did a great job raising money and planning their class trip making it a great year.

Although Don excelled at mathematics and was encouraged to become an engineer, he couldn’t imagine sitting at a desk all day. This led him to a Fisheries and Wildlife degree at Michigan State University. He earned a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife, an M.S. in Statistics, and he was enrolled in Air Force ROTC. During this time he developed the reputation as a good statistician which led to working on projects of key people who would become life long friends and colleagues.

Also, while at Michigan State he met Edna DeHass. They married after college and began their lives together while Don was completing his training for the Air Force. His assignment with the Air Force led them to Anchorage, Alaska. There he flew as a navigator in a RB 57 jet, assigned as the target aircraft for trainees, though he often recalled that much of their time was spent looking for good fishing holes.

In 1960, Don was honorably discharged from the Air Force during a reduction in force. This ultimately led to a job in Juneau, Alaska as a biometrician for the Alaska Fish and Wildlife Service where he became involved with many projects studying species population problems. While in Juneau he and Edna welcomed their first two daughters, Cathy and Sherri.

Don was recruited to be a statistician for the University of Minnesota. He had a desire to pursue his doctoral study at the University of Minnesota, so he and his family moved to Minnesota and received his Ph.D. in 1967. During his doctoral studies, his third child, Nancy, was born. After completing his doctorate, Don joined the newly formed Department of Ecology and Behavioral Biology at the University of Minnesota and Don and Edna moved the family to a farm in Scandia, Minnesota. There, they raised their three daughters instilling the same love of animals and nature and an appreciation for hard work that had been a part of his childhood.

At the University, in the Department of Ecology and Behavioral Biology, Don began a 35-year research career. His scientific legacy grew from a rare combination of field curiosity, statistical expertise, and a willingness to adopt emerging technologies. He and his colleagues pioneered wildlife research methods that used radio-tracking technology, advancing understanding of the ecology and behavior of many species, including wild horses, sea otters, and Antarctic seals. Much of Don’s research was focused on Antarctic seals - Weddell, Leopard and Crabeater and resulted in more than 75 scientific papers. The Weddell Seal project, initiated in 1968, continues today and has yielded important insights into the population dynamics of these long-lived marine mammals.

Over the course of his career, Don trained more than 50 Ph.D. students and helped establish foundations for marine mammal conservation and management in North America and beyond. He worked as the director of the University of Minnesota’s Itasca Biological Station for 11 years. He also served on numerous panels and committees, including the Marine Mammal Commission, the National Research Council Committee to Review the Bering Sea Ecosystem, the National Research Council Committee on Polar Research, and the California Sea Otter Recovery Team. He was appointed to the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research by President Gerald Ford. He also consulted for the State of Alaska and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding damage from the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

In recognition of his Antarctic work, Siniff Bay, a 13-nautical-mile-wide body of water between Verleger and Melville Points, bears his name.

Following his divorce from Edna DeHass in 1990, Don married Alaine Will, whose daughter, Ann, completed his family of four daughters.

After retiring, Don returned to his farming roots and settled in Connorsville, Wisconsin on a beautiful small farm with Alaine. He was active in church life at West Akers Lutheran Church and the community at large and was beloved by many neighbors and friends across the country.

Don will be remembered for his devotion to family, his love of nature and animals, his lifelong curiosity, his mentorship of students and colleagues, and the humbleness, humor and tenderness he showed in everyday moments.

He is survived by his wife of 36 years, Alaine Siniff; his former wife, Edna Siniff; his daughters Cathy Darley, Sherri Clysdale (Stephen), Nancy Parsons (David), Ann Radil (Andy); his granddaughter Megan Darley (Shawn); his grandsons Benjamin Clysdale (Brooke), Samuel Clysdale, Henry Radil; Sister-in-law Priscilla Siniff and multiple nieces, nephews, great nephews and great nieces; and his beloved cat Scotch.

He was preceded in death by his brother Charles Siniff, nephew Theodore Siniff and his son-in-law Larry Darley.

Celebration of Life will be held on October 17th, 11am at West Akers Lutheran Church in Prairie Farm, Wisconsin. Luncheon to follow.