User:Lemnaminor/Richard Pyle

Richard Pyle (born March 24, 1967) is an American ichtyologist. He is a specialist in the evolutionary biology of marine fishes. His interest in the 'twilight zone' of coral reefs (200 to 500 ft deep) led to a number of innovations in technical diving, including development of rebreather technology and Pyle stops, an ascent technique used in deep diving. His expeditions have been featured in numerous documentaries. He is the recipient of the 2004 NOGI Award in science, serves on the boards of IANTD and the Association for Marine Exploration and is a fellow of the Schmidt Ocean Institute.

Early life and career
Pyle was born and raised in Hawaii and started scuba diving at age 13. He studied zoology with Jack Randall at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and obtained his PhD in 2003. A diving accident while diving with Randall in 1986 in Palau left him paralyzed below the neck. It took him more than a year to recover, but it also convinced him that he wanted to spend the rest of his life looking for new species on deep coral reefs. He was offered a position in the fish collection at the Bishop Museum, where he still works.

Ichtyology
His interest in the taxonomy and biogeography of coral reef fishes started at childhood.

Diving
Pyle began scuba diving at the age of 13.
 * In-water recompression
 * Pyle stops
 * involvement in the development of the Cis-Lunar rebreathers