Knud Christian Andersen (29 April 1867 in
Frederiksberg – last seen alive June 1918 in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
) was a Danish zoologist. His research focused on
bats
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...
.
Life and work
Towards the end of the 19th century, Andersen first worked as an ornithologist and ran field studies on the
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
. In 1901
Ferdinand I awarded him an appointment at the Zoological Museum of Sofia. Due to his frustration with the working conditions, he gave up this position.
[Jon Fjeldså: ''Danske ornitologer langt fra hjemmet: fra P.W. Lund til international fuglebeskyttelse'' In: ''100-års festskrift'' Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidsskr. 100 (2006):S. 265-275] In 1904, he was hired by the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
to research
bats
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...
in the
Pacific, in
South-East Asia and in
Queensland
)
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, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
. He was especially interested in the genus
Flying Fox and
Horseshoe bats
A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toen ...
, of which he described 15 new species. He published 13 scientific papers on the South-East Asian
Horseshoe bats
A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toen ...
. His most famous work was his ''Catalogue of the Chiroptera in the Collection of the British Museum,'' which is considered one of the most extensive works on flying foxes. Andersen was elected fellow of the
Zoological Society of London
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It was founded in 1826. Since 1828, it has maintained the London Zoo, and since 1931 Whipsnade Park.
History
On 29 ...
(ZSL) in 1909.
In June 1918 he mysteriously disappeared; his body has never been found.
His colleague
Oldfield Thomas
Michael Rogers Oldfield Thomas (21 February 1858 – 16 June 1929) was a British zoologist.
Career
Thomas worked at the Natural History Museum on mammals, describing about 2,000 new species and subspecies for the first time. He was appoin ...
submitted his final manuscript on his behalf and stated that Andersen expected "to be absent from his scientific work for some time."
Dedicated taxa
''Rhinolophus anderseni'' (1909 by
Ángel Cabrera; no longer a valid taxon, the subspecies ''anderseni'' and ''aequalis'' are today considered
synonyms
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
of the species ''
Rhinolophus arcuatus
The arcuate horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus arcuatus'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines.
Taxonomy and etymology
It was described as a new species in 1871 b ...
'' and ''
Rhinolophus acuminatus
The acuminate horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus acuminatus'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Southeast Asia. It lives in forests and urban areas.
Taxonomy and etymology
It was described as a new species in 1871 by G ...
'').
''
Dobsonia anderseni
Andersen's naked-backed fruit bat or Andersen's bare-backed fruit bat (''Dobsonia anderseni'') is a large cave-dwelling species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to the Bismarck Archipelago including the Admiralty Islands in Pap ...
'' (1914 by
Oldfield Thomas
Michael Rogers Oldfield Thomas (21 February 1858 – 16 June 1929) was a British zoologist.
Career
Thomas worked at the Natural History Museum on mammals, describing about 2,000 new species and subspecies for the first time. He was appoin ...
), ''
Artibeus anderseni
Andersen's fruit-eating bat (''Dermanura anderseni'') is a bat species found in South America.
Taxonomy and etymology
It was described as a new species in 1916 by American zoologist Wilfred Hudson Osgood. The holotype had been collected in 1915 ...
'' (1916 by
Wilfred Hudson Osgood).
See also
*
List of people who disappeared
Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...
Selected publications
*''Meddelelser om faeroernes Fugle med saerligt Hensyn til Nolsø, efter skriftlige Oplysninger'' (with P.F. Petersen), 1894
*''Diomedea melanophrys, boende paa Færøerne'', 1894 (English: ''Diomedea melanophrys in the Faröe Islands'', 1895)
*''Sysselmand H.C. Müller’s haandskrevne optegnelser om Færøoerne Fugle'' (with Hans Christopher Müller), 1901
*
*
*''On the determination of age in bats'', 1917
Species described by Knud Andersen
** ''
Acerodon humilis
The Talaud flying fox or Talaud fruit bat (''Acerodon humilis'') is a species of bat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to the islands of Salebabu and Karekaleng in the Talaud Archipelago of Indonesia. Its natural habitat is subtropical ...
'' K. Andersen 1909
** ''
Dobsonia praedatrix
The New Britain naked-backed fruit bat (''Dobsonia praedatrix'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to New Britain island in northern Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niu ...
'' K. Andersen 1909
** ''
Dobsonia inermis
''Dobsonia'' is a genus of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It contains the following 13 species:Nowak, Ronald M. Walker's Bats of the World. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP. 1991.
Genus ''Dobsonia''
* Andersen's naked-backed fruit bat, ''Dobson ...
'' K. Andersen 1909
** ''
Dobsonia exoleta
The Sulawesi naked-backed fruit bat (''Dobsonia exoleta'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between ...
'' K. Andersen 1909
** ''
Eonycteris major
The greater nectar bat or greater dawn bat (''Eonycteris major'') is a species of megabat within the genus ''Eonycteris''. It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Its range is limited and includes Luzon to Maripipi in the ...
'' K. Andersen 1910
** ''
Pteropus cognatus
The Makira flying fox (''Pteropus cognatus'') is a species of megabat in the genus ''Pteropus'', found in the Solomon Islands.D.E. Wilson & D.M. Reeder, 2005: ''Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference''. Third Edition. Th ...
'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus intermedius
Andersen's flying fox (''Pteropus intermedius'') is a species of flying fox in the family Pteropodidae found in south Burma and west Thailand. Although it is hunted for both food and as a pest, it is not known if this has a significant impact on ...
'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus lylei
Lyle's flying fox (''Pteropus lylei'') is a species of flying fox in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, with an outlying population in Yunnan, China. It faces persecution from farmers and it is killed for bus ...
'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus speciosus
The Philippine gray flying fox (''Pteropus speciosus'') is a species of flying fox in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in Indonesia and the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Phi ...
'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus pelewensis
The Pelew flying fox (''Pteropus pelewensis'') is a species of megabat in the genus ''Pteropus'' found in the Palau Islands. A subspecies found on Yap, the Yap flying fox, is considered as a separate species by some authorities.D.E. Wilson & D.M. ...
'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus pilosus'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Pteropus yapensis'' K. Andersen 1908
** ''
Rousettus celebensis
The Sulawesi rousette or Sulawesi fruit bat (''Pilonycteris celebensis'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae endemic to Sulawesi, an island in Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Sout ...
'' K. Andersen 1907
** ''
Macroglossus sobrinus'' K. Andersen 1911
** ''
Nyctimene minutus'' K. Andersen 1910
** ''
Nyctimene cyclotis'' K. Andersen 1910
** ''
Nyctimene certans
The mountain tube-nosed fruit bat (''Nyctimene certans'') is a species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to New Guinea island and to New Britain Island
New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarc ...
'' K. Andersen 1912
** ''
Pteralopex anceps'' K. Andersen 1909
** ''
Rhinolophus nereis'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus monoceros'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus madurensis'' K. Andersen 1918
** ''
Rhinolophus simulator'' K. Andersen 1904
** ''
Rhinolophus virgo'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus thomasi'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus subrufus'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus sinicus
The Chinese rufous horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus sinicus'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, and Vietnam.
The species is most easily confused with '' R. affinis'', from which it is be ...
'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus robinsoni'' K. Andersen 1918
** ''
Rhinolophus shortridgei'' K. Andersen 1918
** ''
Rhinolophus sedulus
The lesser woolly horseshoe bat (''Rhinolophus sedulus'') is a species of bat in the family Rhinolophidae. It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia. It is assessed as near-threatened by the IUCN
The International Union for Conservati ...
'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus stheno'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus inops'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus celebensis'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus cognatus'' K. Andersen 1906
** ''
Rhinolophus eloquens'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Rhinolophus darlingi'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Hipposideros nequam'' K. Andersen 1918
** ''
Hipposideros pomona'' K. Andersen 1918
** ''
Hipposideros beatus'' K. Andersen 1906
** ''
Hipposideros dinops'' K. Andersen 1905
** ''
Artibeus aztecus'' K. Andersen 1906
** ''
Artibeus hirsutus'' K. Andersen 1906
** ''
Nycteris aurita
Andersen's slit-faced bat (''Nycteris aurita'') is a slit-faced bat species found in East Africa. It has been recorded in Somaliland, through South Sudan and Ethiopia, into Kenya and Tanzania. No information is available on the population size of ...
'' (K. Andersen 1912)
** ''
Nycteris gambiensis'' (K. Andersen 1912)
** ''
Nycteris major" (K. Andersen 1912)
** ''
Nycteris nana'' (K. Andersen 1912)
** ''
Nycteris tragata
The Malayan slit-faced bat (''Nycteris tragata'') is a species of slit-faced bat that lives in Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country ...
'' (K. Andersen 1912)
** ''
Nycteris woodi
Wood's slit-faced bat (''Nycteris woodi'') is a species of slit-faced bat that lives in the dry savanna regions of Southern Africa. Its numbers are declining due to habitat loss from logging and farming, pesticide use, and the decline of baobab t ...
'' K. Andersen 1914
** ''
Mormopterus doriae
The Sumatran mastiff bat (''Mormopterus doriae'') is a species of bat in the family Molossidae, the free-tailed bats. It is only known from Sumatra in Indonesia. It was described in 1907 and has not been recorded since.
Taxonomy and etymology
I ...
'' K. Andersen 1907
** ''
Dobsonia crenulata
The Halmahera naked-backed fruit bat (''Dobsonia crenulata'') is a common and widespread species of megabat in the family Pteropodidae. It is endemic to Indonesia. The bat's non-Moluccan populations are apparently an undescribed separate sub-spec ...
'' K. Andersen 1909
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andersen, Knud Christian
1867 births
1910s missing person cases
1918 deaths
Danish zoologists
Fellows of the Zoological Society of London
Missing person cases in England
People from Frederiksberg
Year of death unknown