David C. Culver received his BA from Grinnell College and his PhD from Yale University. He is Professor Emeritus of Environmental Science at American University. He has studied the ecology, evolution, biogeography, and biodiversity of the subterranean fauna for five decades and has published more than 120 papers in refereed journals, and authored or co-authored four books, two with Tanja Pipan. His studies of the subterranean fauna have taken him to more than 20 countries. He was co-editor with William B. White of the first two editions of the Encyclopedia of Caves.