Frank Alexander Wetmore (June 18, 1886 - December 7, 1978) was an American ornithologist and avian paleontologist.

Wetmore was born at North Freedom, Wisconsin and studied at the University of Kansas.

In 1925 Wetmore was appointed assistant secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, becoming secretary between 1945 and 1952.

He wrote A Systematic Classification for the Birds of the World (1930, revised in 1951 and 1960). This Wetmore Order received widespread acceptance, remaining popular until the end of the twentieth century.

External link

• Biography on the Smithsonian website