History
Konrad Lorenz Research Center
When Konrad Lorenz, then director of the German Max Planck Department for Behavioral Physiology, retired at the age of 70, he returned to Austria and sought a place where he could continue his research on his semi-tame flock of gray geese. Through Otto König, Konrad Lorenz was invited by Ernst August, Duke of Cumberland. Buildings were renovated, ponds were dug, and soon after, Lorenz and his staff were able to begin moving the geese from Seewiesen to Grünau. It took 10 years for the flock to stabilize again.
The first few years of Lorenz’s research were still funded by the German Max Planck Institute. The Austrian Academy of Sciences took over payments in 1980. In addition to geese, research was also conducted on the development of other birds, beavers, and wild boars. When Konrad Lorenz died in 1989, the future of the KLF was uncertain. Beginning in July 1990, work was able to resume thanks to the efforts of Prof. John Dittami and the State of Upper Austria.
On December 12, 1973, Konrad Lorenz, Nikolaas Tinbergen, and Karl von Frisch were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Lorenz had already taken his geese to the Almtal that year, and the KLF was subsequently founded in 1974. From 1990 to 2018, Prof. Dr. Kurt Kotrschal served as director of the KLF; since 2018, Prof. Dr. Sonia Kleindorfer has headed the research center.
From 1990 to 2012, the KLF operated exclusively under the auspices of the “Association of Supporters of the Konrad Lorenz Research Center.” Since 2012, the KLF has also been a core facility of the University of Vienna. The KLF’s activities continue to be supported by the Association of Supporters of the Konrad Lorenz Research Center.
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz
* November 7, 1903, in Vienna; † February 27, 1989
Konrad Lorenz was an Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist. Together with Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1973.
When Konrad Lorenz stepped down as director of the German Max Planck department for Behavioral Physiology in Seewiesen in 1973 at the age of 70, he returned to Austria and sought a place where he could continue his research on the behavioral ecology of his habituated flock of gray geese. Otto König introduced Konrad Lorenz to S.M. Ernst August (Duke of Cumberland), who invited him to Grünau. Buildings were adapted, ponds were created, and soon Lorenz and his colleagues began relocating the geese from Seewiesen to Grünau. With support from the Cumberland Foundation, he founded the Konrad Lorenz Research Center for Behavior and Cognition (in the Almtal valley of Upper Austria; now a core facility of the University of Vienna’s Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology) and established a flock of 100 gray geese, which has survived over the past 50 years with a flock size ranging from 100 to 200 geese.
Lorenz was an outstanding scientist and a great communicator of science, particularly in the field of ethology. He laid many important foundations for the study of animal behavior that continue to shape the discipline to this day. For example, he held the view that animal behavior should be studied for its own sake, and not merely as a means to better understand humans.
As a student of anatomy and taxonomy, Lorenz recognized that animal behavior, as a trait subject to selection, could be studied within an evolutionary and phylogenetic framework. His work on instinct and imprinting has shaped the emergence of studies on gene-environment interactions, as we continue to reflect on the role of heredity and experience in gene expression and the development of phenotypes. Lorenz proposed that learning and teaching are important adaptive traits shaped by natural selection, and his emphasis on the a priori mechanisms of sensory information processing even cast a shadow over the field of cognitive biology. Building on the concepts of homology and analogy, Lorenz viewed cultural evolution and the role of technology passed down from generation to generation as analogous to the gables of San Marco—that is, to the design constraints that can shape “body plans,” implementation, and information transmission. Lorenz founded the field of behavioral biology and made it clear that animal psychology and human psychology are, in fact, inextricably linked. He popularized behavioral biology worldwide, particularly in German-speaking countries.
If you are interested in learning more about Konrad Lorenz's life and his publications, please click on the following links:
Two other Konrad Lorenz departments in Austria that conduct research in behavioral biology
Why is the KLF still named after Konrad Lorenz?
The Konrad Lorenz Research Center was founded in 1973 by Konrad Lorenz and has been a core facility of the University of Vienna since 2012. We support an examination of Lorenz’s legacy—whose role during the Nazi era we by no means endorse—and advocate for a thorough examination of the reciprocal influences between politics and science. The Konrad Lorenz Research Center at the University of Vienna supports activities that contextualize Lorenz’s life. We will take the research findings of the “Critical Honors” project seriously and use them as an opportunity to reflect on our own (European) history, the person of Konrad Lorenz, and the history and person of Lorenz.