![Hevans](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Hevans.jpg)
Howard Ensign Evans (February 23, 1919 – July 18, 2002) 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 was a specialist on
wasp
A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. Th ...
s. He was also the author of several popular works on entomology including ''Life on a Little-known Planet'' (1978), ''The Pleasures of Entomology'' (1985) and ''Wasp Farm'' (1963).
Early life
Born in East Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Archie and Adella (Ensign) Evans, he developed an interest in natural history, and insects in particular, as a child on his parents' tobacco farm. He attended the
University of Connecticut
The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...
, where he studied English. He took an interest in biology after attending classes in entomology by J.A. Manter. His thesis was based on rearing insects from branches broken by a 1938 hurricane. He then began work on a Ph.D. at
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
, but this was interrupted by World War II. He chose to serve working as an army
parasitologist
Parasitology is the study of parasites, their hosts, and the relationship between them. As a biological discipline, the scope of parasitology is not determined by the organism or environment in question but by their way of life. This means it f ...
, doing pioneering work on the ''
Giardia
''Giardia'' ( or ) is a genus of anaerobic flagellated protozoan parasites of the phylum Metamonada that colonise and reproduce in the small intestines of several vertebrates, causing the disease giardiasis. Their life cycle alternates between ...
'' parasite while stationed in
St. John's, Newfoundland. ''Giardia'' is a genus of microscopic parasites that cause the diarrheal illness known as giardiasis. ''Giardia'' species (''G. intestinalis, G. lamblia'', or ''G. duodenalis'') is found on surfaces or in soil, food, or water that has been contaminated with feces from infected humans or animals.
He returned to North Carolina and worked at a base hospital studying parasites in the stools of returning servicemen. He resumed doctoral studies at Cornell with the passage in 1944 of the GI Bill that helped WWII veterans and their family members get money to cover costs for college-level education. He worked on the systematics of the Pompilidae under J. Chester Bradley and V.S.L. Pate. Wasps in the family Pompilidae are commonly called spider wasps, spider-hunting wasps, or pompilid wasps. The family includes some 5,000 species in six subfamilies.
Howard Ensign Evans held academic positions at
Kansas State University
Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...
, Cornell University,
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, and
Colorado State University
Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a public land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University System. Colorado State University is classified among "R1: ...
. Evans' passions included field biology, writing, teaching, the American West, backpacking, fishing, classical music, environmental conservation, and his family. Howard and Mary Alice Evans raised three children.
Research
Numbered among his accomplishments in
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 ...
n
taxonomy
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
was the novel
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Scolebythidae
The Scolebythidae are a small family of aculeate wasps in the superfamily Chrysidoidea. These chrysidoid wasps are found in Africa, Australia, the Neotropics, north China, Thailand and Fiji. They are parasites on larvae of Cerambycidae and Ptini ...
in addition to 31
genera
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...
and almost 800
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
. In addition to taxonomy, Evans produced important work on insect behavior and evolution.
[West-Eberhard MJ, (2005)]
Howard E. Evans 1919-2002
Biographical Memoirs, Volume 86. National Academies Press, Washington, DC, pp. 1-19. He worked on the behavior and systematics of sand wasps with Carl Yoshimoto and C.S. Lin between 1949 and 1952.
Honors
A
fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
at the
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
, he received a number of honors, including the William J. Walker Prize of the
Boston Museum of Science
The Museum of Science (MoS) is a science museum and indoor zoo in Boston, Massachusetts, located in Science Park, a plot of land spanning the Charles River. Along with over 700 interactive exhibits, the museum features a number of live presentat ...
(1967) and the
Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal
The Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal is awarded by the U.S. United States National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences "for meritorious work in zoology or paleontology study published in a three- to five-year period." Named after Daniel Gir ...
from the National Academy of Sciences (1976).
Publications
He was short-listed in 1964 for the
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors.
The Nat ...
for ''Wasp Farm''. His work includes 255
scientific paper
: ''For a broader class of literature, see Academic publishing.''
Scientific literature comprises scholarly publications that report original empirical and theoretical work in the natural and social sciences. Within an academic field, scienti ...
s, 40 popular
articles
Article often refers to:
* Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness
* Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication
Article may also refer to:
G ...
, and 15
book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...
s, including ''Wasp Farm'' and ''The Pleasures of Entomology''. He coauthored the book ''Wasps'' with
Mary Jane West-Eberhard
Mary Jane West-Eberhard (born 1941) is an American theoretical biologist noted for arguing that phenotypic and developmental plasticity played a key role in shaping animal evolution and speciation. She is also an entomologist notable for her work ...
. Several of his books, including ''Life on a Little Known Planet'', are among the most popular works on entomology for a general audience, and were translated into many languages and reprinted several times. His publications also include works on the history of biology, Australian natural history, and the American West; in addition, he published an entomology textbook and a volume of poetry. Several books were co-authored with his wife, Mary Alice (Dietrich) Evans (1921-2014), including a biography, ''
William Morton Wheeler
William Morton Wheeler (March 19, 1865 – April 19, 1937) was an American entomologist, myrmecologist and Harvard professor.
Biography Early life and education
William Morton Wheeler was born on March 19, 1865, to parents Julius Morton Wheeler ...
: Biologist'', ''Australia: a Natural History'', and ''Cache La Poudre: The Natural History of a River''. Some of his most noteworthy essays for popular audiences were published posthumously as ''The Man Who Loved Wasps: A Howard Ensign Evans Reader''. Also published posthumously was ''The Sand Wasps: Natural History and Behavior'', completed by Kevin M. O'Neill from notes left by Evans. Evans maintained an interest in poetry and wrote ''The Song I Sing'' (1951) which included a collection of poems that had he had published in Hartford newspapers.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Howard Ensign
Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences alumni
Cornell University faculty
American entomologists
Hymenopterists
1919 births
2002 deaths
University of Connecticut alumni
Kansas State University faculty
Harvard University faculty
Colorado State University faculty
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
20th-century American zoologists
United States Army personnel of World War II