NAIROBI, Kenya

Richard Leakey, a top Kenyan paleoanthropologist famous for his discovery of early hominid fossils in East Africa, died Sunday afternoon, Kenya's president said in a message of condolence.

“I have this afternoon, Sunday 2nd January 2022, received with deep sorrow the sad news of the passing away of Dr. Richard Erskine Frere Leakey, Kenya's former head of public service," Uhuru Kenyatta said in his message.

Leakey, a globally renowned Kenyan paleoanthropologist and conservationist, served Kenya over the years with distinction, Kenyatta said, noting that besides these achievements, he also played several public service roles, including as director of the National Museums of Kenya and chairman of the Kenya Wildlife Service Board of Directors.

“On behalf of the people of Kenya, my family and on my own behalf, I send heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the family, friends and associates of Dr. Richard Leakey during this difficult period of mourning,” he added.

Leakey and his family are famous for their discoveries in East Africa of the fossils of hominids, or human-like apes believed to be the ancestors of humans, that have answered questions about human evolution, showing that it started in Africa rather than in the Asian continent as previously thought.

Leakey was the first person to discover an Australopithecus skull in East Africa, according to the National Museums of Kenya.

Prior to 1960, most of the evidence for the evolution of man during the early Pleistocene period was confined to southern Africa.

The Leakey family, with Richard at the helm, amassed the greatest body of evidence for early hominid development, which was obtained from a large site in northern Kenya. Between 1968 and 1972, 87 fossil hominid specimens were recovered.