During his 37-year UC Davis career, Leigh was based at the Kern County Shafter Research and Extension Center, also known as the U.S. Cotton Research Station. At Shafter, Leigh focused his research on the biology, ecology, host plant resistance, control and management of insects and spider mites on cotton.
He stood at the forefront of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) of cotton pests, according to an article in the summer 1994 edition of American Entomologist. He taught courses on cotton IPM and host plant resistance. He researched pest and beneficial arthropod management in cotton fields, and host plant resistance in cotton to insects, mites, nematodes and diseases.
Leigh joined the UC Davis Department of Entomology in 1958, retiring in 1991 as an emeritus professor. However, like many emeriti, he continued to remain active in his research and collaboration until his death on Oct. 26, 1993.
His work as an agricultural inspector with the Riverside County Agricultural Commissioner's Office from 1944-1945 sparked his interest in entomology. He received his bachelor of science degree in entomology from UC Berkeley in 1949, and his doctorate in entomology there in 1956. His thesis was on the influence of light, temperature and humidity on flight activity of the butterfly, Colias and involved both field and laboratory investigations.
Leigh served as an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas from 1954 to 1958, where he worked on the biology, ecology and control of pink bollworm and boll weevil, using chemicals and cultural means. He joined the UC Davis Department of Entomology, advancing from assistant entomologist to associate entomologist in 1963. In 1968, he was promoted to adjunct lecturer and entomologist.
During his career, he advised many graduate students who went on to become renowned entomologists in cotton IPM around the world,” wrote Charles E. Jackson of Uniroyal Chemical, Clovis, Calif., and J. Hodge Black, UC Cooperative Extension, Bakersfield in the American Entomologist. For his achievements in teaching and research, Leigh received the James H. Meyer Recognition Award for Distinguished Achievement Service Award in 1988.
Leigh served as president of the Pacific Branch of ESA in 1981. He also served on the ESA Governing Board and was a founding member and past president of the American Registry of Professional Entomologists (ARPE). In 1981 he received the ARPE Outstanding Entomologist Award. Leigh was elected as a director to the Board Certified Entomologists' certification board in 1993.
In addition, Leigh was active in the American Association for the Advancement of Science and was the founding president of the San Joaquin Entomology Association. He held membership in several other associations, including the Association of Applied Insect Ecologists, the Ecological Society of America, and the American Archeological Society. The UC Davis entomologist was a past president of the Shafter Rotary Club and also active in the Boy Scouts of America.
During his 37-year career, he authored more than 127 peer-reviewed publications.
“His many colleagues considered his research and teaching to be outstanding,” wrote authors Jackson and Black in the American Entomologist. “Leigh's caring, enthusiasm, intellect, expertise and professionalism were regarded highly by all who knew him.”
In his memory, his family and associates set up the Leigh Distinguished Alumni Seminar Entomology Fund. When his wife, Nina Eremin Leigh (1929-2002) died, the alumni seminar became known as the Thomas and Nina Leigh Distinguished Alumni Seminar.
He will speak on "Our Changing Menu: Using the Power of Food to Confront Climate Change" on Monday, Oct. 14 in the Putah Creek Lodge, 685 Putah Creek Lodge Drive. The event begins at 4 p.m. and will include a social, lecture and dinner. The event is open to department faculty, staff and students. (See news story.) The lecture will be recorded.
Hoffmann was selected the 2020 recipient of the Leigh Seminar Award, but the COVID pandemic intervened and other dates conflicted. This is the first Leigh Seminar since 2020.
A native of Wisconsin, Hoffmann holds a bachelor of science degree (1975) from the University of Wisconsin, and his master's degree from the University of Arizona (1978). He received his doctorate in entomology from UC Davis in 1990, studying with Professor Ted Wilson and later Professor Frank Zalom, an integrated pest management specialist and a past president of the Entomological Society of America. Hoffmann served with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from 1967 to 1971, attaining the rank of sergeant.
He remembers well his experiences at UC Davis. “I was privileged to work with many dedicated faculty in entomology and several other departments.”
1996: Michael Irwin
1990: Lowell "Skip" Nault
2004: Kenneth Yeargan
2008: Mary Purcell-Miramontes
2010: Murray Isman
2011: Gary Felton
2011: Brian Fisher
2012: Marc Tatar
2013: Kenneth Haynes
2015: Tim Paine
2017: Jennifer Thaler
2018: Robert Page Jr.
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