Theodosius (also Theodor or Theodorus) Gottlieb von Scheven (born 3 January 1751 on

Usedom Usedom (german: Usedom , pl, Uznam ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It is north of the Szczecin ...

- died 23 March 1810 from

typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure. ...

) was a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

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 ...

who specialised in

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

and

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 ...

Early life

Von Scheven was born on 3 January 1751 on

, as third son of

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

Joachim Nikolaus von Scheven and pastor's daughter Katharina Maria von Scheven (née Thilow). He studied in

Bützow Bützow is a town in the district of Rostock in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in north-eastern Germany, centered on Bützower See. History The town was first mentioned in 1171. From 1815 to 1918 Bützow was part of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwe ...

and at the University of Halle.

As pastor

He was a

, serving from 1777 to 1789 in

Altwarp Altwarp is a municipality located in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, on the border with Poland. It has about 500 inhabitants and is located on the Bay of Neuwarp (german: Neuwarper See) opposite the Polish town of Nowe Warpno Nowe War ...

, then as ''pastor primarius'' in

Neuwarp Nowe Warpno (; formerly german: Neuwarp) is a historic town in northwestern Poland, within Police County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship. It lies on the shore of the Szczecin Lagoon, at the border with Germany. It is the seat of the urban-rural gm ...

from 22 May 1789 until his death in 1810.

As naturalist

Von Scheven described ''

Zygaena lonicerae ''Zygaena lonicerae'', the narrow-bordered five-spot burnet, is a moth of the family Zygaenidae. The species was first described by Theodor Gottlieb von Scheven in 1777. Subspecies *''Zygaena lonicerae lonicerae'' *''Zygaena lonicerae abbast ...

'' (as ''Sphinx Lonicerae'') in 1777 in "Beyträge zur Naturgeschichte der Insekten. Erstes Stück" in ''

Der Naturforscher ''Der Naturforscher'' ( "The Naturalist") was a German scientific publication of the Enlightenment devoted to natural history. It was published yearly from 1774 to 1804, by J. J. Gebauers Witwe and Joh. Jac. Gebauer at Halle and edited first ...

'' volume 10 pages 88–101 Tab. II. In that same paper, he described three additional moths that are not currently considered valid taxa: ''Sphinx caffra'' (a junior homonym to ''Sphinx caffra'' Linnaeus, 1764), ''Sphinx scabiosae'' (synonymous to ''

Zygaena purpuralis ''Zygaena purpuralis'', the transparent burnet, is a moth of the family Zygaenidae. Description ''Zygaena purpuralis'' is a medium-sized moth with a wingspan reaching . Usually the forewings show three bright red longitudinal streaks quite va ...

'' per Naumann & Tremewan, 1984) and ''Sphinx schaefferi'' (''

Zygaena ephialtes ''Zygaena ephialtes'' is day-flying species of burnet moth found in Europe. It is typically found in xeric habitats, and populations have recently decreased. It also exhibits Müllerian mimicry with other species, like '' Amata phegea''. Descri ...

'', also per Naumann & Tremewan, 1984) He also described '' Crabro scutellatus'' (as ''Sphex scutellatus'') in 1781. Some of his work on bagworm moths, particularly his observations on the reproductive methods of "''Bombyx vestita''" (now ''

Paidia rica ''Paidia rica'' is a moth of the family Erebidae. It was described by Christian Friedrich Freyer in 1858. It is found in southern and central Europe. The wingspan is 28–33 mm. Adults have been recorded on wing from June to August in one g ...

''), was cited in volumes I and IV of William Kirby and

William Spence William Guthrie Spence (7 August 1846 – 13 December 1926), was an Australian trade union leader and politician, played a leading role in the formation of both Australia's largest union, the Australian Workers' Union, and the Australian Labor ...

's ''An Introduction to Entomology'', and described by Kirby as an "excellent elucidation of the history of this tribe, whose mode of generation is so singular".

Publications

He published several entomological papers, including in ''Der Naturforscher'' (twice in 1777, as well as in 1780, 1781 and 1784) and in

Johann Kaspar Füssli Johann Kaspar Füssli, also written Johann Caspar Fuesslins or Fuessly (9 March 1743 – 4 May 1786), was a Swiss painter, entomologist and publisher. He was born in Zurich, the son of Johann Caspar Füssli (1706–1782) and Anna Elisabeth Wa ...

's ''Neue Magazin für Liebhaber der Entomologie'' in 1782. Some of his published works include: *Beytraege zur Naturgeschichte der Insekten. - Der Naturforscher, Halle/Saale 10; 11; 14; 15; 20 (1777-1784), consisting of: ** ** ** ** **

Notes and references

*Groll, E. K. (2017)
''Biographies of the Entomologists of the World''
Online database, version 8, Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, Müncheberg. *Gaedike, R.; Groll, E. K. & Taeger, A. (2012)
''Index Novus Litteraturae Entomologicae''
Online database, version 1.0, Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut.

External links

Universitat Bielefeld Digital library
Digitised Der Naturforscher {{DEFAULTSORT:Scheven, Theodor Gottlieb von German entomologists German lepidopterists 1810 deaths 1751 births Hymenopterists University of Halle alumni 18th-century German zoologists 19th-century German zoologists