Arthur Erskine Ellis (1 October 1902 – 28 February 1983), often known as A.E. Ellis, was a British scientist, biologist and naturalist. Ellis is best known for his large number of malacological publications, including some which became essential texts on the subject of British non-marine malacology. To a lesser extent, Ellis published papers about other land invertebrates and various aspects of the fauna and flora of Britain. In addition Ellis had five ghost stories published. Ellis was also a plant collector. From 1919 to 1961 he contributed specimens of

spermatophytes A spermatophyte (; ), also known as phanerogam (taxon Phanerogamae) or phaenogam (taxon Phaenogamae), is any plant that produces seeds, hence the alternative name seed plant. Spermatophytes are a subset of the embryophytes or land plants. They inc ...

to a number of different

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

s in Britain. Stella Turk, the British naturalist said about Ellis, "It is difficult to categorise people. Should one even try? We are all multiple in a singular way!"; she also commented, "As might have been expected, he wrote his own obituary in which he gives a broad outline of his life and very lengthy bibliography", ( J. Conch. 31 1983).Stella Turk, "Stella Turk writes from Cornwall", 1 January 2013, The Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland, "Mollusc World", http://www.conchsoc.org/MolluscWorld8/11, accessed 2014, 01, 06

Taxa named in his honour

Two taxa were named in Ellis' honour: * '' Limicolariopsis ellisi'' Crowley & Pain, 1964 (Rev. Zool. Bot, Afr. 69: 191) -- a large African

land snail A land snail is any of the numerous species of snail that live on land, as opposed to the sea snails and freshwater snails. ''Land snail'' is the common name for terrestrial gastropod mollusks that have shells (those without shells are known as ...

* ''Pisidium (Afropisidium) ellisi'' Dance, 1967 (J. Conch. 26: 178) -- a small

freshwater clam Freshwater bivalves are one kind of freshwater mollusc, along with freshwater snails. They are bivalves that live in fresh water as opposed to salt water, which is the main habitat type for bivalves. The majority of species of bivalve molluscs l ...

Publications

Books

A.E. Ellis published several books which were the standard reference texts for identifying the non-marine Mollusca of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and Ireland during most of the 20th century: * ''British Snails, a guide to the non-marine

Gastropoda The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. ...

of Great Britain and Ireland, Pleistocene to Recent'', 1926, reprinted in 1969, Oxford University Press * ''Key to Land Shells of Great Britain'' * ''British Freshwater Bivalve Mollusca'' (Synopses of the British fauna; new series, number 11)

Papers

Publications on non-marine mollusca and obituaries of conchologists: :JC =

Journal of Conchology The ''Journal of Conchology'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by The Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland, covering research in conchology and malacology. It claims to be the world's oldest continuing publication on t ...

. PMS =

Proceedings of the Malacological Society The ''Journal of Molluscan Studies'' is the peer-reviewed scientific journal of the Malacological Society of London, covering research in malacology.

(London) *1924 Mollusca of

Flamborough Flamborough is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north-east of Bridlington town centre on the prominent coastal feature of Flamborough Head. The most prominent man-made feature o ...

. JC 17: 149–153 *1924 Notes on some British

Helicidae Helicidae is a large, diverse family of small to large, air-breathing land snails, sometimes called the "typical snails." A number of species in this family are valued as food items, including ''Cornu aspersum'' (formerly ''Helix aspersa'') the b ...

, JC 17: 162–167 *1924 Land Mollusca on the Mewstone, JC 17: 187–188 *1924 Mollusca in the neighbourhood of

Market Harborough Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, in the far southeast of the county, forming part of the border with Northamptonshire. Market Harborough's population was 25,143 in 2020. It is the admi ...

, JC 17: 188–192, 212–219; 18:8 *1925 Experimental acclimatisation of '' Sabinea ulvae'' (Pennant) to freshwater, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 15: 96–7 *1925 The invalidity of '' Sabinea'' Sowerby. ibid. 16: 48–49 *1926 ''Planorbis (Gyraulus) acronicus'' Férussac at Oxford. JC 18: 52–53 *1926 British Snails. Clarendon Press (2nd edition, 1969). *1926 '' Helix draparnaudi'' Sheppard, and '' Planorbis draparnaldi'' Jeffreys. JC 18: 54 *1926 Notes on some land Molluscs from

Land's End Land's End ( kw, Penn an Wlas or ''Pedn an Wlas'') is a headland and tourist and holiday complex in western Cornwall, England, on the Penwith peninsula about west-south-west of Penzance at the western end of the A30 road. To the east of it is ...

. PMS 17: 123–6 *1927 Variation in '' Trichia liberta'' (Westerlund).JC 18: 118 *1927 Additional notes on the Molluscs of the

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

district. JC 18: 137–8 *1927 An abnormality in ''

Lymnaea stagnalis ''Lymnaea stagnalis'', better known as the great pond snail, is a species of large air-breathing freshwater snail, an aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Lymnaeidae. The great pond snail is a model organism to study parasitology, ...

'' (Linn.).JC 18: 139 *1927 The snail as a zoological type, School Science Review No. 34: 102–110 *1928 ''

Vertigo moulinsiana Desmoulin's whorl snail (''Vertigo moulinsiana'') is a species of minute air-breathing land snail, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusc or micromollusc in the family Vertiginidae, the whorl snails. This species was named in honor of th ...

'' (Dupuy) near

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. JC 18: 208 *1928 '' Planorbis vorticulus'' Troschel in

West Sussex West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...

. PMS 18: 127 *1929 A garden fauna. JC 18: 312 *1930 Mollusca on

Gateholm Gateholm or Gateholm Island is a small tidal island off the south west coast of Pembrokeshire, in the community of Marloes and St Brides, in the south west side of Wales, in the west of the UK, and about 8 miles (13 km) west of the port of M ...

. JC 19: 61 *1931 A reclaimed

saltmarsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominated ...

. PMS 19: 278–9 *1931 Molluscs of

Wicken Fen Wicken Fen is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest west of Wicken in Cambridgeshire. It is also a National Nature Reserve, and a Nature Conservation Review site. It is protected by international designations as a Ramsar wetland si ...

ote OTE is the national telecommunications provider of Greece. OTE may also refer to: * Ocean thermal energy conversion, a renewable energy source * Oda of Haldensleben (978–1023), daughter of the Margrave of the North March, Theoderich * On-ta ...

JC 19: 170 *1931 Notes on some

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

Molluscs. JC 19: 177–8 *1931 (with D. Aubertin & G. C. Robson) The natural history and variation of the Pointed Snail, '' Cochlicella acuta'' (Müll.). Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. for 1930: 1027–1055, pl. 1 *1932 The habitats of

Hydrobiidae Hydrobiidae, commonly known as mud snails, is a large cosmopolitan family of very small freshwater and brackish water snails with an operculum; they are in the order Littorinimorpha. Distribution Hydrobiidae are found in much of the world, ...

in the Adur estuary. PMS 20: 11–18 *1932 Further localities for '' Planorbis vorticulus'' Troschel. JC 19: 258–9 *1939 A Surrey

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

interment. JC 21: 90 *1939 A discussion on the variation of ''

Lymnaea ''Lymnaea'' is a genus of small to large-sized air-breathing freshwater snails, aquatic pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the subfamily Lymnaeinae ( of the family Lymnaeidae, the pond snails.Bouchet, P.; Rosenberg, G. (2013). Lymnaea Lamarck, 179 ...

'', etc. PMS 23: 313 *1940 The identification of the British species of ''

Pisidium ''Pisidium'' is a genus of very small or minute freshwater clams known as pill clams or pea clams, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the family Sphaeriidae, the pea clams and fingernail clams. In some bivalve classification systems, the family S ...

''. PMS 24: 44–88, pl. 3–6 *1940 Some

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

s. JC 21: 190 *1941 The Mollusca of a Norfolk broad (presidential address). JC 21: 224–243 *1941 Ecological notes. JC 21: 258–9 *1941 '' Anodonta minima'' Millet in

. JC 21: 280 *1942 '' Milax gracilis'' (Leydig) in

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

. JC 21: 325–6 *1945 '' Limax flavus'' L. in a 'wild' habitat. JC 22: 135 *1946 '' Milax sowerbyi'' (Fér.) in woodland. JC 22: 177 *1946 On ''

Potomida ''Potomida'' is a genus of bivalves belonging to the subfamily Gonideinae of the family Unionidae The Unionidae are a family of freshwater mussels, the largest in the order Unionida, the bivalve molluscs sometimes known as river mussels, or s ...

'' Swainson. PMS 27: 105–8, pl. 7 *1946 Freshwater bivalves (Mollusca). ''

Corbicula ''Corbicula'' is a genus of freshwater and brackish water clams, Aquatic animal, aquatic bivalve mollusks in the family Cyrenidae, the basket clams.Gofas, S. (2015). Cyrenidae Gray, 1847. In: MolluscaBase (2015). Accessed through: World Registe ...

'', ''

Sphaerium ''Sphaerium'' is a genus of very small freshwater clams, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the family Sphaeriidae, known as the fingernail clams. The small clams in this genus are unusual in that many of them, such as ''Sphaerium corneum'', can climb ...

'', ''

Dreissena ''Dreissena'' is a genus of small freshwater mussels in the family Dreissenidae in the class Bivalvia. They are found attached to firm substrates by threads from underneath the shells and are the only freshwater bivalves to attach to hard subst ...

''. Linn. Soc. Synopses of the British Fauna, No. 4 *1947 Freshwater bivalves (Mollusca): Unionacea. ibid. No. 5 *1947 '' Retinella nitidula'' (Drap.) ''monstr. sinistrorsum''. JC 22: 271 *1947 Dimensions of '' Anodonta minima'' Millet. JC 22: 271 *1948 The survey of Bookham Common. Land Mollusca of Bookham Common. London Naturalist for 1947: 56–59 *1949 A Broadland slug 'Agriolimax_agrestis''_L..html" ;"title="Agriolimax_agrestis.html" ;"title="'Agriolimax agrestis">'Agriolimax agrestis'' L.">Agriolimax_agrestis.html" ;"title="'Agriolimax agrestis">'Agriolimax agrestis'' L.Transactions of the Norfolk & Norwich Nature Society. 16: 388 *1950 ''Succinea putris'' (L.) parasitized by ''Leucochloridium''. JC 23: 107 *1950 The type species of ''Testacella''. JC 23: 115 *1951 R. Winckworth, obituary. JC 23: 157–62 *1954 ''Volvulus'' Oken. JC 23: 394 *1959 E. W. Swanton, obituary. JC 24: 326 *1961 Land and freshwater Mollusca in

and its region, p. 73. British Association. Jarrold, Norwich *1961 H. H. Bloomer, obituary. Proc. Linn. Soc. Lond. 172nd session: part 1. *1962 British freshwater bivalve Molluscs. Linn. Soc. Synopses of British fauna, No. 13 *1964 L. W. Grensted, obituary. JC 25: 291–3, pl. 20 *1964 ''

Arion lusitanicus ''Arion lusitanicus'', also known by its common name Portuguese slug, is a species of air-breathing land slug, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Arionidae. Distribution ''Arion lusitanicus'' is endemic to forests of the ...

'' Mabille in Cornwall. JC 25: 285–287 *1964 '' Milax budapestensis'' (Hazay) in woodland. JC 25: 298 *1965 ''

'' Mabille in

. JC 25: 345–347 *1967 '' Agriolimax agrestis'' (L.): some observations. JC 25: 345–7 *1978 British freshwater bivalve Molluscs, Linn. Soc. Synopses of British Fauna (New Series) No. 11 Conchological Society; Papers for Students *No. 3 (1964). Key to land shells of Great Britain. *No. 3 (2nd edition, 1974). Key to the land snails of the British Isles. *No. 12 (1969). Key to British slugs Publications in the Conchologists' Newsletter: *1961 Land and freshwater snails, additions to the British list, 3:12–13 *1962 Biographical note, 4:16 *1964 Some etymology, 9:50–51 *1964 Sinistrosity, 9:53–54 *1964 Snails extinct in England, but living abroad, 11:68–69 *1964 Posting living molluscs, 11:68–69 *1966 (with Stella Turk), Cornish localities for ''

'' 16:108 *1967 Conkers and conchology, 20:138–139 *1967 '' Nesovitrea hammonis'' and ''N. petronella'', 21:6 *1967 Unorthodox orthography, 22:15–16 *1967 Poems on

Conchology Conchology () is the study of mollusc shells. Conchology is one aspect of malacology, the study of molluscs; however, malacology is the study of molluscs as whole organisms, whereas conchology is confined to the study of their shells. It includ ...

, 22:24–25 *1968 ''Arion lusitanicus'' in Ireland, 25:40–41 *1968 Metamerism, 25:47 *1968 Pronunciation, 27:65–66 *1969 Snail-eating dragons, 31:13 122 *1970 Slugs and the poets, 35:185–186 *1971 Names of British marine molluscs, 37:205–206 *1971 Slugs and the poets, 39:233–234 *1972 Blueprint for peace, 43:289 *1972 Such numbers of snails, 43:289 *1973 Who is Brittannia? What is She? 4.44:302 *1973 Perils of the deep, 44:310 *1973 Footnote to, Who is Britannia, 44:313 *1973 An Old English

Riddle A riddle is a statement, question or phrase having a double or veiled meaning, put forth as a puzzle to be solved. Riddles are of two types: ''enigmas'', which are problems generally expressed in metaphorical or allegorical language that requir ...

, 45:316–317 *1973 Hooper's hypothesis, 45:323 *1973 Biographical and historical footnotes, 45:323 *1973 ''Cochlea liberum'', the snail in old nursery rhymes, 47:346–348 *1974 Paradise lost? 49:373 *1974 First record of ''Arion lusitanicus'' in Ireland, 49:384 *1974 Review, From the diary of a snail,

Günter Grass Günter Wilhelm Grass (born Graß; ; 16 October 1927 – 13 April 2015) was a German novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor, and recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature. He was born in the Free City of Da ...

, 50:393–394 *1974 First record of ''Arion lusitanicus'' in Ireland, 50:395 *1974 Excelsior: the snail ascending, 51:398–399 *1975 Place names with a molluscan flavour, 52:412–414 *1975 Why collect shells? 53:434–435 *1975 Pestalozzian conchology, a note, 54:449–450 *1975 Shells as musical instruments, 55:460–461 *1975 The snail in 19th century verse, 55:464–466 *1975 Pestalozzian conchology, 55:469 *1976 L'escargot, 58:519-520 *1976 Molluscan place names: supplement, 58:520–521 *1976 Correction to an Old English Riddle, 58:521 *1977 Shells murmurs, 71:189-190. 62:33–34 *1977 The mollusc in fables, 63:44–46 *1978

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and

sea shell A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washe ...

s, 67:105–106 *1979 Adventure of a snail hunter, 69:153–154 *1979 Poem on the

limpet Limpets are a group of aquatic snails that exhibit a conical shell shape (patelliform) and a strong, muscular foot. Limpets are members of the class Gastropoda, but are polyphyletic, meaning the various groups called "limpets" descended indep ...

, 71:182–183 *1979 Snails and slugs in Shakespeare, 71:189–190 *1981 Cassel's Natural History, 76:309–310. *1982 Celebrities in shells, 81:9 *1982 Concerning Captain Thomas Brown, 82:35–36 *1982 Sue Wells, international trade in ornamental shells, 83:56

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Arthur Erskine 1902 births Alumni of the University of Oxford British zoologists British malacologists Scientists from Bangalore Fellows of the Linnean Society of London 1983 deaths New Naturalist writers 20th-century Indian zoologists British people in colonial India