The son of famous archeologists Louis and Mary Leakey, renowned palaeoanthropologist and author Richard Erskine Leakey (1944-) was born on this day at Nairobi in Kenya.

"We tend to look at life with a very short-term perspective," he once said.

The esteemed scientist discovered extensive human ancestral fossils in East Africa and was able to study the changes of mankind. "We are very lucky that the earth's history is recorded in fossilized remains," he explained.

On a dig in eastern Africa, Leakey found the remains of an intelligent, tool-using hominoid, the 1.8 million-year-old skull believed to be our human ancestor.

A passionate advocate for the conservation of Nature and preservation of the African elephant from extinction, Leakey left fossil hunting in 1989 and devoted his time to wildlife conservation.

In August 2001, the passionate environmentalist warned that the world was losing between 10,000 and 50,000 species every year. About the imperiled planet, he said, "The environment must be seen as a basic human right."

 There are no limits to what you can do.