Ezra Townsend Cresson, also Ezra Townsend senior (18 June 1838, in Byberry – 19 April 1926, in Swarthmore) was an American

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 the

Hymenoptera Hymenoptera is a large order (biology), order of insects, comprising the sawfly, sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 living species of Hymenoptera have been described, in addition to over 2,000 extinct ones. Many of the species are Par ...

order of insects. He wrote ''Synopsis of the families and genera of the Hymenoptera of America, north of Mexico'' Philadelphia: Paul C. Stockhausen, Entomological printer (1887) and many other works. His son Ezra Townsend, Jr. (1876–1948) was also an entomologist but a specialist 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 ...

. Cresson also documented many new species including ''

Nomada texana ''Nomada texana'' is a species of bee native to the southern and western United States and other parts of North America (including Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sover ...

''.

References

* Essig, E. O. 1931 ''A History of Entomology''. -New York, Macmillan Company. *Mallis, A. 1971 ''American Entomologists''. Rutgers Univ. Press New Brunswick 343-348, Portr. *Osborn, H. 1937 ''Fragments of Entomological History Including Some Personal Recollections of Men and Events.'' Columbus, Ohio, Published by the Author. *Osborn, H. 1952 ''A Brief History of Entomology Including Time of Demosthenes and Aristotle to Modern Times with over Five Hundred Portraits''.

External links

* Hymenopterists American entomologists 1838 births 1926 deaths {{US-entomologist-stub