Maria Nelly Carrillo Tarazona de Espinoza (1927 – 2017) was a Peruvian herpetologist known as Nelly Carrillo Espinoza.

Biography

Nelly was born 2 November 1927 in

Chiquián Chiquián (Quechua Chiqllan) is a town in central Peru. It is the capital of the Bolognesi Province in the Ancash Region Ancash ( qu, Anqash; es, Áncash ) is a department and region in northern Peru. It is bordered by the departments of La ...

, Peru, to Manuel Carillo and Daria Tarazona. On 22 September 1959, in San Isidro, she married the engineer Rubén Espinoza Chávez, with whom she had two children, Rubén Dario Espinoza Carillo (born 1961) and Nelly Rosario Espinoza Carrillo (born 1962). Nelly Carrillo Espinoza studied at the Faculty of Biology at the

National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos ( es, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, link=no, UNMSM) is a public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. It is considered the most important, recognized and representative educ ...

(UNMSM) in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

, where she took care of the department's important scientific collection. In 1973 she received her doctorate from UNMSM with her dissertation titled ''A new species of the genus Sibynomorphus (Serpentes: Colubridae)''.

Career

After moving to work at the Natural History Museum, her supervisor was

Jehan Albert Vellard Jehan is a male given name. It is the old orthography of Jean in Old French, and is rarely given anymore. It is also a variant of the Persian name Jahan in some South Asian languages. People with the given name Jehan * Jehan Adam (15th century ...

, the French scientist who contributed to the development and expansion of herpetological studies at the Museum's Herpetology Laboratory of the National University. Carrillo Espinoza succeeded him in that role and continued his line of research. She remained Head of the Department of Herpetology for more than 25 years. Carrillo Espinoza was considered generous and enjoyed sharing her knowledge with other scientists. Her handling of snakes and other reptiles was considered remarkable. During her time at the museum, it was unusual for a woman would work in this field, especially in a leading position, but despite the odds, she attracted attention in scientific circles and earned an excellent reputation. With co-authors Javier Icochea Monteza, Víctor Raúl Morales and Hernán Ortega, she published important descriptions and inventories of native species, which became the foundation for other experts and their research. She died on 12 August 2017 in Lima, Peru.

Taxa named in honor of Carrillo Espinoza

Several species were named in her honor. * Telmatobius carrillae: an Andean frog described by the Peruvian herpetologist Víctor Morales. * Euspondylus nellycarrillae: an Andean lizard described by German herpetologists

Gunther Köhler Gunther Köhler (born 20 May 1965 in Hanau) is a German herpetologist. His research is primarily focused in Central America and in the West Indies. Career In 1995, Köhler received a doctorate in natural sciences at the Goethe University Frankfurt ...

and Edgar Lehr. * In 1988, Victor Raul Morales Mondoñedo described new whistling frogs - Species ''Telmatobius carrillae''.

Taxa described by Carrillo Espinoza

Carrillo Espinoza worked alone or together with Edgar Lehr and Peter Joseph Hocking to describe new species. * William's Fat-headed Snake, ''

Dipsas williamsi ''Dipsas williamsi'', also known commonly as Williams's tree snake, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the subfamily Dipsadinae of the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Peru. It was named in honor of Ernest Edward Williams Ernest ...

'' , named after

Ernest Edward Williams Ernest Edward Williams (January 7, 1914 – September 1, 1998) was an American herpetologist. He coined the term ''ecomorph'' based on his research on anoles. Taxa named in honor of Ernest E. Williams The following species are named in honor of ...

Carillo de Espinoza, 1974 : ''Sibynomorphus williamsi nov. sp. (Serpentes: Colubridae).'' Publicaciones del Museo de Historia Natural “Javier Prado,” serie A (Zoología), n^o 24, p. 1-16. * Apurimac Forest Snake, ''Drymoluber apurimacensis''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carrillo Tarazona de Espinoza, Nelly 1927 births 2017 deaths Peruvian biologists Herpetologists Women herpetologists National University of San Marcos alumni People from Lima