Jonathan Copeland,79, of Savannah, passed away Friday, October 31, 2025.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Jonathan was the third born child of Amelia and Robert Copeland. He is survived by his wife Ursula Sterling, his daughter Kate Copeland (Kristin Bradshaw), his granddaughter, Olive Bradshaw, his sister, Karin Havdala (Samuel Havdala) his nephew, Robert Havdala (Elanna) and their 3 children,(Jacob, Brea and Rami), an extended family in the United States and in Israel, as well as by his treasured pets (Sammy, Melvin, Simba and Arielle).

Jonathan was a passionate scientist, with a career spanning decades and continents. He earned a PhD from SUNY Stony Brook in 1975 and later served as a research fellow at Princeton University. His doctoral dissertation earned many accolades.

Jonathan’s research into synchronously flashing fireflies took him to Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, and later to the Great Smoky Mountains where he helped set up workshops and tours that have become so popular that people are booking them years and months in advance.

In addition to having been interviewed by NPR several times, Dr.Copeland has authored and co-authored countless publications in journals including American Scientist, Sigma Xi, Ecological Psychology, and many more.

His enthusiasm for science extended into the classroom, with a teaching career ranging from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to Grinnell College to Swarthmore College to Georgia Southern University. He served as Professor of Biology for 34 years and made a tremendous impact on students and colleagues alike, with a colorful and charismatic approach to pedagogy.

Jonathan met Ursula Sterling in 1994. Their bond began after they had talked on the phone several times and finally arranged to meet for coffee at The Mill in Savannah, Georgia. The plan was to recognize each other by the flower in the lapel of his jacket and the copy of Antoine de St. Exupéry’s “Petit Prince” tucked under Ursula’s arm and they talked for over four hours that day.

The couple spent three decades building and enjoying a small but close-knit community of friends, family, and pets amidst the Island Marshes of Savannah, Georgia. Together, they created a legacy of love, caring, and nurturing for the natural world and for their families. With their home situated as an idyllic oasis in the marsh, Jonathan spent countless hours enjoying the deer, squirrels, alligators, wild birds and raccoons. He also loved feeding the hummingbirds and then observing them from the kitchen window.

Always a creative thinker, Jonathan explored musical pursuits like tuba in his youth, and in his retirement began a creative writing practice. In recent years, he explored continuing education courses on topics ranging from cinema to history, and dabbled in photography and art.

A celebration of life is being planned sometime close to what would have been his 80th birthday.

A donation to Coastal Pet Rescue or The Humane Society would be a lovely way to honor Jonathan’s memory.