Osbert Salvin FRS (25 February 1835 – 1 June 1898) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

naturalist,

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

, and

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians ( gymnophiona)) and rep ...

best known for co-authoring ''

Biologia Centrali-Americana The ''Biologia Centrali-Americana'' is an encyclopedia of the natural history of Mexico and Central America, privately issued in 215 parts from 1879 to 1915 by the editors Frederick DuCane Godman and Osbert Salvin, of the British Museum (Natural ...

'' (1879–1915) with

Frederick DuCane Godman Frederick DuCane Godman DCL FRS FLS FGS FRGS FES FZS MRI FRHS (15 January 1834 – 19 February 1919) was an English lepidopterist, entomologist and ornithologist. He was one of the twenty founding members of the British Ornithologists' ...

. This was a 52 volume encyclopedia on the natural history of

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

Biography

Osbert Salvin was born in

Finchley Finchley () is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet. Finchley is on high ground, north of Charing Cross. Nearby districts include: Golders Green, Muswell Hill, Friern Barnet, Whetstone, Mill Hill and H ...

, north London, the second son of the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Anthony Salvin Anthony Salvin (17 October 1799 – 17 December 1881) was an English architect. He gained a reputation as an expert on medieval buildings and applied this expertise to his new buildings and his restorations. He restored castles and country h ...

, of Hawksfold,

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. He was educated at

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

and

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the fifth-oldest surviving college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by ...

, taking his degree in 1857. Shortly afterwards he accompanied his second cousin by marriage,

Henry Baker Tristram Henry Baker Tristram FRS (11 May 1822 – 8 March 1906) was an English clergyman, Bible scholar, traveller and ornithologist. As a parson-naturalist he was an early supporter of Darwinism, attempting to reconcile evolution and creation. Biogra ...

, in a natural history exploration of

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and eastern

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. Their account of this trip was published in ''

The Ibis ''Ibis'' (formerly ''The Ibis''), subtitled ''the International Journal of Avian Science'', is the peer-reviewed scientific journal of the British Ornithologists' Union. It was established in 1859. Topics covered include ecology, conservation, be ...

'' in 1859 and 1860. In the autumn of 1857, he made the first of several visits to

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

, returning there with

in 1861. It was during this journey that the ''Biologia Centrali-Americana'' was planned. In 1871 Salvin became editor of ''

''. He was appointed to the Strickland Curatorship in the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and produced his ''Catalogue of the Strickland Collection''. He was one of the original members of the British Ornithologists' Union. He produced the volumes on the ''

Trochilidae Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...

'' and the ''

Procellariidae The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the diving petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes (or tubenoses), which also ...

'' in the ''Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum''. One of his last works was the completion of Lord Lilford's ''Coloured Figures of British Birds'' (1897). Osbert Salvin00

Salvin was a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

, the Linnean,

Zoological 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 kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and dis ...

and

Entomological Societies Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

, and at the time of his death was Secretary of the British Ornithologists' Union. The

Godman-Salvin Medal The Godman-Salvin Medal is a medal of the British Ornithologists' Union awarded "to an individual as a signal honour for distinguished ornithological work." It was instituted in 1919 in the memory of Frederick DuCane Godman and Osbert Salvin. M ...

, a prestigious award of the British Ornithologists' Union, is named after him and Godman. In the scientific field of

herpetology Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

, he described two new species of

reptiles Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the Class (biology), class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsid, sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, Squamata, squamates (lizar ...

: ''

Bothriechis aurifer :''Common names: yellow-blotched palm-pitviper,Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. 2 volumes. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. . Guatemalan palm viper.Mehrtens JM. 1 ...

'' and ''

Typhlops tenuis The coffee worm snake (''Amerotyphlops tenuis'') is a harmless blind snake species found in Mexico and Guatemala. No subspecies are currently recognized. Geographic range It is found from Mexico (Veracruz) south to Guatemala (Alta and Baja Verap ...

''. Also, three species and one subspecies of reptiles have been named in his honor: '' Anolis salvini'', '' Crotalus scutulatus salvini'', '' Sceloporus salvini'', and ''

Staurotypus salvinii The giant musk turtle (''Staurotypus salvinii'') , also known commonly as the Chiapas giant musk turtle or the Mexican giant musk turtle , is a species of turtle in the family Kinosternidae. The species is found in Central America. Geographic ...

''.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Salvin", p. 232).

Family

In 1863, he married Caroline Octavia Maitland in

Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...

, Essex. They had three daughters, Sybil Maitland Salvin (born 1867), who married Edmund Leveson Calverley in 1893, Heloise Salvin (born 1875) and Viola Salvin (born 1878). Heloise Salvin married biologist John Edmund Sharrock Moore. Osbert's grandson is

Ñāṇamoli Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli Bhikkhu (born Osbert John S. Moore; 25 June 1905 – 8 March 1960) was a British Theravada Buddhist monk and translator of Pali literature. Biography Born in Cambridge, Osbert was the only child of biologist John Edmund Sharrock M ...

, a Theravada Buddhist monk and translator of Pali literature, he was originally also named Osbert after his grandfather.

References

Sources

* *Mullens and Swann – ''A Bibliography of British Ornithology'' *Papavero, Nelson; Ibáñez-Bernal, Sergio (2003). "Contributions to a history of Mexican dipterology.– Part 2. The Biologia Centrali-Americana". ''Acta Zoologica Mexicana'' (n.s.) 88: 143–232

*

External links

*
Digital Version of ''Biologia Centrali-Americana''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salvin 1835 births 1898 deaths People from Finchley Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge English ornithologists English entomologists Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Zoological Society of London Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Entomological Society