Charles Howard Curran (20 March 1894 – 23 January 1972) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

who specialised in

Diptera Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced ...

. Curran's main taxonomic interests were in brachyceran flies, particularly the

flower flies Hover flies, also called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while ...

Syrphidae, in which he described 723 species. From 1922 to 1928 he worked as a specialist service in Diptera Entomology of Canada. In 1928, he was hired by the

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...

as Assistant Curator and, from 1947 until his

retirement Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

in 1960, as Curator of Insects and Spiders. In 1931, he donated his collection to that institution: it has 10,000 specimens representing about 1,700 species including 400 types. He received in 1933 a Doctorate of Science at the

University of Montreal A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

with a thesis entitled The Families and Genera of North American Diptera. He was vice-president of the

New York Entomological Society The New York Entomological Society was founded in 1892. The Brooklyn Entomological Society merged with the Society in 1968. The Society publishes '' Entomologica Americana'' which is the successor to the ''Journal of the New York Entomological Soc ...

in 1936, president the following year.

References

Paul H. Arnaud Jr. et Thelma C. Owen (1981). Charles Howard Curran (1894-1972). ''Myia,'' 2 : 393 p. {{DEFAULTSORT:Curran, Charles Howard Canadian entomologists Dipterists 1894 births 1972 deaths People associated with the American Museum of Natural History People from Orillia Université de Montréal alumni 20th-century Canadian zoologists