Richard Leakey, a well known paleoanthropologist, has died at the age of 77. There is a brief bio on the France 24 website.
The country's president said that Richard Leakey, who unearthed evidence that helped to prove humankind evolved in Africa, died on Sunday at the age of 77.
The sad news of the passing away of Dr Richard Erskine Frere Leakey, the former head of public service in the country, was received by the president.
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The middle son of famed paleoanthropologists Louis and Mary Leakey, Leakey had no formal archaeological training of his own but led expeditions in the 1970s that made landmark discoveries of early hominid fossils.
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In 1984 he discovered an extraordinary, near- complete Homo erectus skeleton, which was nicknamed Turkana Boy, at one of his digs.
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In 1989 Leakey was tapped by President Daniel arap Moi to lead the national Wildlife Service, where he spearheaded a vigorous campaign to stamp out rampant ivory trading.
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In 1993, his plane crashed. He lost both legs.
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He ran civil society institutions, and briefly headed the civil service in the country.
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He returned to the helm of the KWS for a three year term despite being unwell.
Here is Leakey in 2010.
The most complete early hominin skeleton found to date is that of the Turkana boy.
