Jane Goodall is a name many grew up hearing. The notable zoologist and anthropologist has died at the age of 91 on October 1, 2025. The Jane Goodall Institute broke the news with her cause of death revealed.
“The Jane Goodall Institute has learned this morning, Wednesday, October 1, 2025, that Dr. Jane Goodall DBE, UN Messenger of Peace and Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute has passed away due to natural causes,” they stated.
“She was in California as part of her speaking tour in the United States. Dr. Goodall’s discoveries as an ethologist revolutionized science, and she was a tireless advocate for the protection and restoration of our natural world.”
Born on April 3, 1934, in London, England, Goodall’s lifelong dream was to study wildlife and travel to Africa. In 1960, at the age of 26, she travelled to Gombe, Tanzania, to study chimpanzees under the guidance of anthropologist Louis Leakey.
She also earned a PhD in ethology, the study of animal behavior, from the University of Cambridge.
Goodall’s work studying chimpanzees led to revolutionary discoveries that defined her career. She uncovered their social hierarchies and hunting habits, and broke with tradition by naming individual chimps rather than numbering them.
In 1977, she founded the Jane Goodall Institute, devoted to the conservation and protection of great apes, and established the Roots & Shoots youth program. She also wrote multiple books, was the subject of documentaries, and was honored with damehood by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.
Goodall is survived by her son, Hugo Eric Louis van Lawick, born in 1967, whom she had with her first husband, Dutch wildlife photographer Hugo van Lawick. She and Lawick divorced in 1974, with her later marrying Derek Bryceson in 1975 until his death from cancer in 1980. Bryceson was a Tanzanian member of parliament and director of the Tanzanian national parks.
This story was originally reported by Men’s Journal on Oct 1, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men’s Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
