Jean Pierre François Camille Montagne (15 February 1784 – 5 December 1866) was a French

military physician The term military medicine has a number of potential connotations. It may mean: *A medical specialty, specifically a branch of occupational medicine attending to the medical risks and needs (both preventive and interventional) of sold ...

and

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

who specialized in the fields of

bryology Bryology (from Greek , a moss, a liverwort) is the branch of botany concerned with the scientific study of bryophytes ( mosses, liverworts, and hornworts). Bryologists are people who have an active interest in observing, recording, classifying ...

and

mycology Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans, including as a source for tinder, traditional medicine, food, and entheogens, as ...

. He was born in the commune of Vaudoy in the department of

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne (river), Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square ...

. At the age of 14, Montagne joined the French navy, and took part in

Napoleon's invasion of Egypt The French campaign in Egypt and Syria (1798–1801) was Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman territories of Ottoman Egypt, Egypt and Ottoman Syria, Syria, proclaimed to defend French First Republic, French tr ...

. In 1802 he returned to France to study medicine, and two years later became a military

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

. In 1832, at the age of 48 he retired from military service to concentrate on the study of

cryptogam A cryptogam (scientific name Cryptogamae) is a plant (in the wide sense of the word) or a plant-like organism that reproduces by spores, without flowers or seeds. The name ''Cryptogamae'' () means "hidden reproduction", referring to the fact ...

s ( mosses,

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

). In 1853 he was elected a 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 th ...

. In 1845 he was one of the first scientists (with

Marie-Anne Libert Marie-Anne Libert, (born 7 April 1782 in Malmedy, province of Liège, died 14 January 1865 in Malmedy) was a Belgian botanist and mycologist. She was one of the first women plant pathologists. She is sometimes referred to as "Anne-Marie Libert." ...

) to provide a description of ''

Phytophthora infestans ''Phytophthora infestans'' is an oomycete or water mold, a fungus-like microorganism that causes the serious potato and tomato disease known as late blight or potato blight. Early blight, caused by '' Alternaria solani'', is also often called "p ...

'', a

potato blight ''Phytophthora infestans'' is an oomycete or water mold, a fungus-like microorganism that causes the serious potato and tomato disease known as late blight or potato blight. Early blight, caused by ''Alternaria solani'', is also often called "po ...

fungus he referred to as ''Botrytis infestans''. Montagne is also known for investigations of mycological species native to

Guyane French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. It ...

. He contributed numerous articles to the ''Archives de Botanique'' and the ''Annales des Sciences naturelles''. The fungal genera '' Montagnaea'' (

DC. Augustin Pyramus (or Pyrame) de Candolle (, , ; 4 February 17789 September 1841) was a Swiss botanist. René Louiche Desfontaines launched de Candolle's botanical career by recommending him at a herbarium. Within a couple of years de Candolle ...

, 1835) and '' Montagnites'' ( Fr.) commemorate his name. Also genera ''

Montagnula ''Montagnula'' is a genus of fungi in the family Montagnulaceae. The genus, circumscribed by mycologist Augusto Napoleone Berlese in 1896, contains an estimated 24 species, but is probably polyphyletic as currently circumscribed. The genus nam ...

'' , '' Montagnina'' , '' Montagnellina'' and '' Camontagnea'' were named in his honour. He died in

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 ...

on 5 December 1866.

References

Laboratoire de Botanique et de Mycologie
(biography in French) Botanists active in South America 19th-century French botanists French mycologists Members of the French Academy of Sciences Corresponding members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences People from Seine-et-Marne Bryologists 1784 births 1866 deaths {{Mycologist-stub

See also

References