Norman Edouard "Kibe" Hartweg (August 20, 1904 – February 16, 1964) was an American herpetologist, Curator of Herpetology for the Museum 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 president of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. He was a specialist in the

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

and distribution of

turtle Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked tu ...

s, and is honored by having a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of turtle named after him: the western spiny softshell turtle, '' Apalone spinifera hartwegi''. He is also credited with having described several new species, including the Big Bend slider, '' Trachemys gaigeae'', the Oaxacan patchnose snake, ''

Salvadora intermedia Salvadora may refer to: * Salvadora Medina Onrubia Salvadora Medina Onrubia (pen name: Dr. Brea; March 23, 1894July 21, 1972) was an Argentine storyteller, poet, anarchist and feminist. Biography Salvadora Medina Onrubia was born March 23, 1894, ...

'', and Dunn's hognose pit viper, ''

Porthidium dunni :''Common names: Dunn's hognosed pitviper.Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. 2 volumes. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates. 870 pp. 1,500 plates. .'' ''Porthidium dunni'' is a speci ...

''. The scientific exploits of Hartweg also led him to discover a corpse of a murdered lady in 1932, in an area that later became the

Pymatuning Reservoir Pymatuning Reservoir is a man-made lake in Crawford County, Pennsylvania and Ashtabula County, Ohio in the United States, on land that was once a very large swamp. Much of it is incorporated into two state parks: Pymatuning State Park in Pennsyl ...

. The case was never solved.

Career

Hartweg attained his doctorate at the University of Michigan in 1934 under the direction of Dr. Alexander Grant Ruthven and became eventually a professor at the Department of Zoology. In 1946 he became Curator of Herpetology at the Museum of Zoology. In 1950 he became editor of herpetology for the periodical '' Copeia'', and for 1960 he was elected president of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. He died on February 16, 1964 after a sudden illness.

Legacy

Two species of amphibians are named after Hartweg: Hartweg's salamander, ''

Bolitoglossa hartwegi Hartweg's climbing salamander (''Bolitoglossa hartwegi''), also known as Hartweg's mushroomtongue salamander, and Hartweg's salamander, is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. It is found in the north-central Chiapas, Mexico, and ...

''; and Hartweg's spikethumb frog, '' Plectrohyla hartwegi''. Two subspecies of reptiles are named after him: the western spiny softshell turtle, '' Apalone spinifera hartwegi''; and Hartweg's emerald lizard, '' Sceloporus taeniocnemis hartwegi''."''Sceloporus taeniocnemis'' ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hartweg, Norman Edouard American herpetologists 20th-century American zoologists 1904 births 1964 deaths University of Michigan alumni University of Michigan staff