Jean-Dominique-Philippe-Auguste Vinson (4 August 1819,

Sainte-Suzanne, Réunion Sainte-Suzanne () is a commune on the north coast of the French island and department of Réunion. Geography It is bordered by the communes of Saint-André, Sainte-Marie and Salazie. The course of the Saint-Jean River denoted the border be ...

– 27 August 1903,

Saint-Denis, Réunion Saint-Denis (, , unofficially Saint-Denis de La Réunion for disambiguation; ) is the prefecture (administrative capital) of the French overseas department and region of Réunion, in the Indian Ocean. It is located at the island's northernmos ...

) was a French physician and naturalist. His father, François-Auguste Vinson (1791–1851), was a noted physician and politician. He was educated in Saint-Denis,

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

and

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where he studied medicine under Alfred Velpeau. After finishing his studies in France, he returned to Saint-Denis.Vinson Auguste (1819-1903) - Découvrir le Patrimoine de La Réunion
(biographical information) In 1862 Vinson was sent to

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

to attend the coronation of

Radama II Radama II (September 23, 1829 – May 12, 1863 'contested'' was the son and heir of Queen Ranavalona I and ruled from 1861 to 1863 over the Kingdom of Madagascar, which controlled virtually the entire island. Radama's rule, although brief, ...

. While here, he conducted valuable investigations of the islands' flora and fauna. As a naturalist, he is known for his research of

Araneidae Orb-weaver spiders are members of the spider family Araneidae. They are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs often found in gardens, fields, and forests. The English word "orb" can mean "circular", hence the English name ...

(orb-weaver spiders) native to Madagascar,

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

and

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

. Vinson is also credited for being the first scientist to successively cultivate

cinchona ''Cinchona'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae containing at least 23 species of trees and shrubs. All are native to the Tropical Andes, tropical Andean forests of western South America. A few species are ...

on Réunion. Vinson was a corresponding member of the ''

Académie des Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research. It was at the ...

''.

Selected works

* ''Aranéides des 'îles La Réunion, Maurice et Madagascar, avec 14 planches contenant 118 figures dessinées d'aprés nature'', 1863 -

native to Réunion, Mauritius and Madagascar. * ''Voyage à Madagascar au couronnement de Radama II'', 1865 - Voyage to Madagascar for the coronation of Radama II. * ''Mémoire sur les essais d'acclimatation des arbres à quinquina à l'île de la Réunion'', 1875 - On acclimation of cinchona trees on Réunion. * "Faune détruite. Les Aepiornidés et les Huppes de l’île Bourbon", 1877. ''Bulletin Hebdomadaire de l’Association Scientifique de France'' 20, 327–331. * ''Salazie; ou, Le piton d'Anchaine, légende créole'', 1888. * ''Notes publiées par le Docteur Auguste Vinson, sur la Flore de l'île de la Réunion'', 1896 - Published notes of Dr. Vinson in regards to the flora of Réunion.OCLC WorldCat Identities
(publications)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vinson, Auguste 1819 births 1903 deaths People from Réunion French naturalists