Georg Christian Karl Wilhelm Michahelles (5 May 1807,

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

– 15 August 1834,

Nauplia Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece and it is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important touristic destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the ...

) was a German

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 ...

and physician originally from

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

. From 1827, he studied medicine at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

, where he made the acquaintance of naturalist

Lorenz Oken Lorenz Oken (1 August 1779 – 11 August 1851) was a German naturalist, botanist, biologist, and ornithologist. Oken was born Lorenz Okenfuss (german: Okenfuß) in Bohlsbach (now part of Offenburg), Ortenau, Baden, and studied natural history and ...

. In 1831 he received his doctorate of medicine and surgery with the thesis ''Das Malo Di Scarlievo in Historischer Und Pathologischer Hinsicht''.Saecular-Feier der Naturhistorischen Gesellschaft in Nürnberg 1801-1901 ...
(Google Books) by Naturhistorische Gesellschaft Nürnberg Michahelles travelled extensively in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

Illyria In classical antiquity, Illyria (; grc, Ἰλλυρία, ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; la, Illyria, ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyr ...

and

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, becoming well known for his study of the birds of the area. He died after being affected with dysentery in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, aged only 27, where he went to practice medicine and study the wildlife. He identified, amongst other

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

species, the

western rock nuthatch The western rock nuthatch (''Sitta neumayer'') (sometimes known simply as rock nuthatch) is a small passerine bird which breeds from Croatia east through Greece and Turkey to Iran. This nuthatch is largely resident apart from some post-breeding di ...

ladder snake The ladder snake (''Zamenis scalaris'') is a species of non-venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to southwestern Europe. Distribution The geographic range of the ladder snake includes Portugal, Spain, southern France a ...

and the

Iberian ribbed newt The Iberian ribbed newt, gallipato or Spanish ribbed newt (''Pleurodeles waltl'') is a newt endemic to the central and southern Iberian Peninsula and Morocco. It is the largest European newt species and it is also known for its sharp ribs which ...

. The

yellow-legged gull The yellow-legged gull (''Larus michahellis'') is a large gull found in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, which has only recently achieved wide recognition as a distinct species. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of either the Cas ...

(''Larus michahellis'') was named after him by

Johann Friedrich Naumann Johann Friedrich Naumann (14 February 1780 – 15 August 1857) was a German scientist, engraver, and editor. He is regarded as the founder of scientific ornithology in Europe. He published ''The Natural History of German Birds'' (1820–1844) a ...

Publications

* ''Ueber einige dalmatinische Vertebraten''. in: Isis, 1830. p. 809—820. * ''Neue südeuropäische Amphibien''. In: Isis von Oken, XXIII, Leipzig 1830, S. 189–195, S. 806–809.Bibliotheca historico-naturalis: Verzeichniss der Bücher ...
by Wilhelm Engelmann

References

1807 births 1834 deaths German ornithologists Scientists from Nuremberg Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni {{Ornithologist-stub