Robert Cyril Layton Perkins FRS (15 November 1866 – 29 September 1955) was a distinguished British

entomologist 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 ...

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 naturalist noted for his work on the fauna of the islands of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

and on

Hymenoptera Hymenoptera is a large order (biology), order of insects, comprising the sawfly, sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 living species of Hymenoptera have been described, in addition to over 2,000 extinct ones. Many of the species are Par ...

. He is not to be confused with his son

John Frederick Perkins John Frederick Perkins FRES (5 May 1910, in Paignton, Devon – 14 May 1983) was an English entomologist. He was the son of Zoë Lucy Sherrard Alatau and Robert Cyril Layton Perkins, also a hymenopterist. He was first educated at Newton Colleg ...

, also a hymenopterist.

Life

Perkins was born on 15 November 1866 at

Badminton, Gloucestershire Badminton is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It consists of Great Badminton and Little Badminton. History In 1612 Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester, bought from Nicholas Boteler his manors of Great and Little Ba ...

and was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School,

St. Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman ro ...

– his father, Rev Charles Perkins, was the headmaster – and at Merchant Taylors' School before obtaining a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

in 1885. After two years of studying classics, he switched to reading Natural History, notwithstanding that he had not studied science at school, having been inspired to make the change by the lectures of Edward Poulton on the colour of insects. His first publications in natural history journals came when he was still studying classics. He obtained a fourth-class degree in the

Animal Morphology Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). The science began in the classical era, continuing in t ...

specialism of the Natural Sciences course in 1889. In 1891, a committee appointed by the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

and the

British Association for the Advancement of Science The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chie ...

asked Perkins to investigate the land fauna of the

Hawaiian islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...

, and he was engaged in this for almost ten years, conducting research on the islands and carrying out studies at 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 ...

on his trips back home. The fruits of this research first began to be published in 1899, in ''

Fauna Hawaiiensis ''Fauna Hawaiiensis'' or the ''Zoology of the Sandwich (Hawaiian) Isles'' is a three-volume work, published between 1899 and 1913, on the fauna of Hawaii. It was edited by David Sharp (entomologist), David Sharp. External links''Fauna Hawaiiensis ...

'' (edited by David Sharp), and he completed his work in 1913 with a general introduction to the series. For this work, he was awarded the Linnean Society's gold medal for eminent services to zoology. In October 1901, Perkins married Zoe Lucy Sherrard Alatau, eldest daughter of A.T. Atkinson. The wedding took place in Waialua, on the island of Oahu, Hawaii.Scott, Hugh. “Robert Cyril Layton Perkins. 1866-1955.” Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, vol. 2, 1956, pp. 215–236. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/769486. Accessed 20 Jan. 2021. He worked for the Agricultural Department of the Hawaiian Islands between 1902 and 1904, and became the first Director of the experimental station of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association's insect department in 1904, looking at controlling sugar cane pests and weeds with their natural parasites and enemies. In order to collect these, he made journeys to Australia and other places. Ill-health forced his retirement in 1912, and he moved to Newton Abbot, in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

. He carried on working on Hawaiian insects and published his research for a further 20 years. He was also known for his work on British insects, including bees and sawflies. He was elected 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 ...

in 1920 and, having been a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society for more than 50 years, was appointed an Honorary Fellow in 1954. He died in Bovey Tracey, Devon, aged 88.

Life

References

Further reading