Alípio de Miranda-Ribeiro (21 February 1874,
Rio Preto, Minas Gerais – 8 January 1939) was a Brazilian
herpetologist
Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...
and
ichthyologist
Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...
. His son, Paulo de Miranda-Ribeiro (1901–1965), was also a
zoologist
Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...
.
From an early age Alípio de Miranda-Ribeiro had a passion for
natural history; as an adolescent he translated works of
Buffon into Portuguese. He studied medicine in
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
, and from 1894 worked as a preparator at the
National Museum of Brazil. Here he later served as secretary (from 1899), and director of the department of zoology (from 1929).
During his career he explored the
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
region many times, and under the direction of
Candido Rondon (1865–1958) he took part in installing the first
telegraph
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...
through the Amazon and
Mato Grosso
Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...
. In 1911, after visiting museums and
fishery
Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish far ...
programs in Europe and the United States, he founded a fisheries inspectorate in Brazil, the first official services on fisheries in the nation.
In 1911 he published the highly regarded ''Fauna brasiliensis-Peixes'' (Brazilian fishes). He was also the author of numerous works in the field of
herpetology
Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...
.
Taxa named in his honor
*''
Alipiopsitta'' a genus of yellow-faced parrots;
*''
Characidium alipioi''
Travassos, 1955, a South American
darter;
*''
Corona ribeiroi''
Ihering, 1915
a Brazilian
orthalicid snail;
*''
Drymaeus ribeiroi''
Ihering, 1915
, a Brazilian
bulimulid snail;
*''
Glanidium ribeiroi''
Haseman, 1911 a South American
catfish species;
*''
Hemitriccus mirandae'' the Buff-breasted Tody-Tyrant, a bird species from Brazil;
*''
Ribeiroia'' a genus of
trematode parasites of amphibians;
*''Talaus ribeiroi'' Moreira, 1912, a
fish louse species, now considered to be a synonym of ''
Dipteropeltis hirundo'' Calman, 1912.
Taxon described by him
*See
:Taxa named by Alípio de Miranda-Ribeiro
References
* Kraig Adler (1989), Society for the study of amphibians and reptiles: ''Contributions to the History of Herpetology'' 202 p. ()
1874 births
1939 deaths
Brazilian herpetologists
Brazilian ichthyologists
People from Minas Gerais
20th-century Brazilian scientists
19th-century Brazilian scientists
{{Brazil-scientist-stub