| Dr. Douglas Rossman | |
| Field: | Zoology |
| Work Institutions: | Louisiana State University |
| Alma Mater: | University of Florida |
| Known For: | His research pertaining to snakes |
Douglas Athon "Dag" Rossman (July 4, 1936 – July 23, 2015)[1] was a U.S. herpetologist specializing in garter snakes. He studied at the University of Florida, where he was awarded a Ph.D. in 1961.[2]
He was a professor of zoology at the Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
He co-authored The Amphibians and Reptiles of Louisiana, and also The Garter Snakes: Evolution and Ecology .
His wife, Nita Jane Rossman[3] (born 1936), also has an interest in herpetology and even had a subspecies named after her: Thamnophis saurita nitae, a subspecies of the eastern ribbon snake. She had collected the holotype for this subspecies on a field trip with her husband for his dissertation research, and he named it in her honor.[4]
Rossman also wrote The Nine Worlds: A Dictionary of Norse Mythology (1983), Where Legends Live: A Pictorial Guide to Cherokee Mythic Places (1988), and several other works related to Norse mythology.
Douglas Rossman is commemorated in the scientific name of a species of Mexican garter snake, Thamnophis rossmani.[5]