James Edwin Duerden or J.E. Duerden M.Sc., Ph.D., A.R.C.S. (1869 – 4 September 1937) was a British

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

who became an international expert on the

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...

industry.

Early life and education

Little is known about the early life of James Edwin Duerden, but it's believed that he was born in

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

in 1869. His family were members of the Ebenezer Baptist Church. Duerden attended the Royal College of Science in London from 1885 to 1889, becoming an Associate, then later transferred to

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

where he received an

M.Sc. A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

and

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

, graduating in 1900. Duerden married in 1893 in Burnley. The couple had one son, Edwin Noel on 30 March 1896, who died at the age of six on 24 September 1902.

Career

Duerden was employed in the Royal College of Science for Ireland from 1893 to 1895 as a Demonstrator in Zoology and Palaeontology. He lectured and conducted fishery surveys along with

Alfred Cort Haddon Alfred Cort Haddon, Sc.D., FRS, FRGS FRAI (24 May 1855 – 20 April 1940, Cambridge) was an influential British anthropologist and ethnologist. Initially a biologist, who achieved his most notable fieldwork, with W.H.R. Rivers, C.G. Seligma ...

and

Ernest William Lyons Holt Ernest William Lyons Holt or E. W. L. Holt (17 October 1864 – 10 June 1922) was an eminent English marine naturalist and biologist who specialized in ichthyology, the study of fish. His work helped lay a scientific foundation for the fis ...

, with his published material focused on Irish Hydrozoa and

Bryozoa Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary colonies. Typically about long, they have a special feeding structure called a l ...

. The specimens he collected were exhibited at meetings of the

Dublin Naturalists' Field Club Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cens ...

and the

Dublin Microscopical Club Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. His findings of new and unusual bryozoans were published by the

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ga, Acadamh Ríoga na hÉireann), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned socie ...

(1893), the

Royal Dublin Society The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) ( ga, Cumann Ríoga Bhaile Átha Cliath) is an Irish philanthropic organisation and members club which was founded as the 'Dublin Society' on 25 June 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economi ...

(1895), and in '' The Irish Naturalist'' (1892 and 1894). From this position in Dublin, Duerden took up a role of curator in the Museum in the Institute of Jamaica,

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

in 1895. Whilst in Jamaica, Duerden studied the local caves, marine resources, anthropological findings, and madreporarian corals, publishing a monograph on the latter in 1901. At this point, Duerden was best known for his work on corals. Duerden remained in contact with colleagues in Dublin, sending geological material to

Grenville Cole Grenville Arthur James Cole FRS, FGS, MRIA (21 October 1859 – 20 April 1924) was an English geologist. He was from 1890 the Professor of Geology and Mineralogy in the Royal College of Science for Ireland, and from 1905 he became the fifth Dir ...

. Duerden moved to the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

, taking up the position of Acting Professor of Biology from 1902 to 1903, filling in for Professor

Henry Van Peters Wilson Henry Van Peters Wilson (1863–1939) was a professor at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic discipl ...

. Whilst there, Duerden taught a variety of subjects, including general biology, mammalian anatomy, vertebrate histology, zoology, and vertebrate embryology, and was a member of the

Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society Elisha ( ; or "God is my salvation", Greek: , ''Elis îos'' or , ''Elisaié,'' Latin: ''Eliseus'') was, according to the Hebrew Bible, a prophet and a wonder-worker. His name is commonly transliterated into English as Elisha via Hebrew, Eli ...

. During his time in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Duerden published at least 15 papers on the morphology and biology of corals between 1902 and 1906. Between 1903 and 1905, he was the Acting Assistant Professor or Instructor of Zoology at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and an Honorary Curator at 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 ...

. He conducted an expedition to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

to study Pacific corals, funded by the Carnegie Institution for Science. He moved to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

in 1904 to take up the role of Professor of Zoology at Rhodes University. He was the first person to hold this position, and for a number of years he was the only member of staff. Whilst there, he studied

ostrich Ostriches are large flightless birds of the genus ''Struthio'' in the order Struthioniformes, part of the infra-class Palaeognathae, a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus, rheas, and kiwis. There are ...

es, focusing on their feathers, producing a number of papers on the subject in 1909 and 1913. The ostrich feather industry collapsed due to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, so Duerden's academic focus turned to

. In this work he was associated with the Grootfontein College of Agriculture and the

Onderstepoort Veterinary Academic Hospital The Faculty of Veterinary Science is a faculty of the University of Pretoria. Founded in 1920, it is the second oldest veterinary faculty in Africa. With the exception of the faculties in Khartoum (Sudan, 1938), and Cairo (Egypt, 1946), all t ...

. Having built up a research team, Duerden became a leading authority on wool, leading to his appointment as the Director of Wool Research at the

Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

. He devised the Duerden Crimp Scale in 1927, for use by the wool industry. Duerden was elected as the President of the

South African Association for the Advancement of Science The Southern Africa Association for the Advancement of Science (S2A3 or S2A3) is a learned society, originally known as the South African Association for the Advancement of Science (SAAAS). Established in 1902, its principal aim is to increase th ...

in 1921. Duerden spoke and published on

eugenics Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or ...

whilst in this position.

Later life and legacy

Duerden retired from Rhodes University in 1932, though continued to work with the Grootfontein Agricultural College. This college has an annual prize named in his honour, the Duerden Shield, for a student working in the area of sheep, goats and wool. Duerden returned in England, where he worked for the Wool Industries Research Association at Headingley, Leeds, and was appointed an Honorary Fellow of the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

. He died in Leeds on 4 September 1937.

Eponymous species

*''Homostichanthus duerdeni'' Carlgren, 1900. *'' Pavona duerdeni'' Vaughan, 1907. *'' Atractaspis duerdeni'' Gough, 1907. ("Duerden", p. 76).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duerden, James Edwin British naturalists 1869 births 1937 deaths People from Burnley Herpetologists Presidents of the Southern Africa Association for the Advancement of Science