Karl Georg Theodor Kotschy pl, Teodor Koczy (15 April 1813 – 11 June 1866) was an Austrian
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 ...
and explorer.
On his botanical investigations, Kotschy collected large amount of plants and herbs. He also described forty species of oaks in this work, some of them new to science.
Biography
Kotschy was born in
Ustroń in
Austrian Silesia (today
Poland). He was the son of theologian
Carl Friedrich Kotschy (1789–1856).
Kotschy studied theology in Vienna from 1833.
From 1836 to 1862 he performed extensive botanical research throughout the Middle East and northern Africa, in which he collected over 300,000 botanical specimens. Beginning in 1836, he accompanied
geologist Joseph Russegger (1802–1863) on a scientific trip to
Cilicia
Cilicia (); el, Κιλικία, ''Kilikía''; Middle Persian: ''klkyʾy'' (''Klikiyā''); Parthian: ''kylkyʾ'' (''Kilikiyā''); tr, Kilikya). is a geographical region in southern Anatolia in Turkey, extending inland from the northeastern coas ...
and
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, afterwards journeying through
Nubia and
Sennar. Following the dissolution with Russegger's expedition, he remained in
Egypt. He later traveled to
Kurdufan (1839),
Cyprus, Syria,
Mesopotamia and
Kurdistan (1840–41); and during 1842–43 he undertook an expedition to
Persia.
He was appointed Assistant Curator in 1847 and Custos-Adjunct in 1852 at Vienna. In 1862 he performed additional botanical research in Egypt, Palestine, and Lebanon (1855) in Cyprus, Asia Minor, and Kurdistan (1859), and back to Cyprus (1862). He died in Vienna at the age of 53.
Legacy
The plant genus ''
Kotschya'' from the family
is named in his honor. His name is associated with a species of
lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...
, "Kotschy’s
gecko
Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from .
Geckos ar ...
" (''
Cyrtopodion kotschyi
Kotschy's gecko (''Mediodactylus kotschyi'') is a species of gecko, a lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to southeastern Europe and the Middle East. It is named in honour of the Austrian botanist and explorer Karl Georg Theodo ...
'' ), and with the
Cyprus bee orchid (''Ophrys kotschyi'').
Cyprus Bee Orchid. ''ukwildflowers.com''.
Retrieved 4 August 2017. His name is also used for a crocus species - ''Crocus kotschyanus
''Crocus kotschyanus'', Kotschy's crocus, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Crocus'' of the family Iridaceae, found from Turkey to Caucasus and Lebanon.
Growing to tall, it produces pale lilac-blue flowers in autumn, followed by sw ...
'', discovered by him in SE Turkey.
Selected publications
* ''Reise in den cilicischen Taurus überTarsus''. (1858); First description of the region of Bulghar Dagh, western Taurus.
* ''Abbildungen und Beschreibungen neuer und seltener Thiere und Pflanzen, in Syrien und im westlichen Taurus gesammelt'', (Illustrations and descriptions of new and rare animals and plants, in Syria and western Taurus); (1843)
* ''Analecta botanica'' (with Heinrich Wilhelm Schott (1794–1865) and Carl Fredrik Nyman Carl Fredrik Nyman (31 August 1820 – 26 April 1893) was a Swedish botanist born in Stockholm. His middle name is alternatively spelled Frederik or Frederick.
Nyman was a curator at the Swedish Museum of Natural History in Stockholm (1855–188 ...
1820–1893), (1854)
* ''Coniferen des Cilicischen Taurus'' (Conifers of Cilician Taurus), (with Franz Antoine
Franz Antoine (23 February 1815 in the on the Löwelbastei, Vienna – 11 March 1886) was an Austrian horticulturalist and gardener.
From 1865 he was director of royal gardens to the Austrian/Austro-Hungarian monarchy. He was an authority on ...
1815–1886), (1855)
* ''Die Eichen Europas und des Orients'', (Oaks of Europe and the Orient); (1858–1862)
* ''Plantae Tinneanae'' (with Johann Joseph Peyritsch 1835–1889); (1867)
References
Note
* ''Parts of this article are based on a translation of an equivalent article at the German Wikipedia
The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia.
Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia), ...
.''
External links
Itinerary in southern Persia 1842-43
biography of Theodor Kotschy
Die Eichen Europas und des Orients
- High-resolution scan of Kotschy's book of descriptions and illustrations of oaks.
1813 births
1866 deaths
People from Ustroń
19th-century Austrian botanists
People from Austrian Silesia
Austrian people of Polish descent
{{Austria-botanist-stub