Victor Fatio (28 November 1838 – 19 March 1906), was a
Swiss zoologist
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 d ...
. He was a bird conservationist, noting the value of birds in pest control in agriculture. He was involved in organizing the first anti-phylloxera congress in Lauxanne in 1877.
Biography
Fatio was born as Victor Fatio de Beaumont in
Geneva
, neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier
, website = https://www.geneve.ch/
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
to lawyer Gustave Fatio de Beaumont and Suzanne Françoise. His interest in animals was aroused in childhood, when he was accompanied his father on hunting trips. Fatio studied
physiology
Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...
in
Zurich,
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
and
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
where he studied under Ernst Heinrich and Eduard Weber to receive the degree of a
Doctor of Philosophy
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
with a thesis titled ''De avium corpore pneumatic'' (1860). In 1861 however, he almost forgot his physiology knowledge due to a
typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
illness. After his recovery he went to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
in 1862 to participate in the courses of
Henri Milne-Edwards (1800–1885) and Claude Bernard at the
Muséum national d'histoire naturelle
The French National Museum of Natural History, known in French as the ' (abbreviation MNHN), is the national natural history museum of France and a ' of higher education part of Sorbonne Universities. The main museum, with four galleries, is loc ...
, where he studied zoology. He also studied zoology at Zurich under Oswald Heer and Heinrich Frey. Fatio married Anne Germaine, daughter of banker Alphone Turrettini in 1865.
When
Phylloxera invaded
Switzerland in 1874, Fatio made extensive studies and initiated the world's first congress for the prevention of the grapevine pest which took place in
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...
in 1877. The results of his studies and the congress were published in his work ''État de la question phylloxérique en Europe en 1877'' in 1878. Furthermore, he wrote several publications about ''Phylloxera'' in
Switzerland and in
Savoy.
Between 1869 and 1904 he worked on the ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse'' was released, a comprehensive work with six volumes about the mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish species of Switzerland.
Together with
Théophile Rudolphe Studer (1845–1922), Victor Fatio published the ''Catalogue des oiseaux de la Suisse'' ("Catalog of the Swiss birds"), of which only the first three booklets were released between 1889 and 1901. Further sixteen volumes were released by other editors until 1956.
Fatio described several animal species including the
Albock (''Coregonus wartmanni alpinus'', later reclassified as full species ''Coregonus fatioi'' by
Maurice Kottelat
Maurice Kottelat (born 16 July 1957 in Delémont, Switzerland[C ...](_blank)
in 1997), the
Pfarrig (''Coregonus confusus''), the
Autumn brienzlig (''Coregonus albellus''), or the
Alpine pine vole (''Microtus multiplex'').
Publications
Fatio's publications include:
* ''Instructions sommaires à l'usage des Commissions centrales d'étude et de vigilance du Phylloxera des départements de la Savoie et de la Haute-Savoie.'' Chambéry, Ménard, 1877. C'est un opuscule destiné à permettre de reconnaître les premières attaques du phylloxéra.
* ''Die Phylloxera (Reblaus). Kurzgefaßte Anweisungen zum Gebrauche für die kantonalen und eidgenössischen Experten in der Schweiz''. Ins Deutsche übertragen von H. Krämer. Aarau, 2. Aufl. 1879
*
Catalogue des Oiseaux de la Suisse – 1: Rapaces diurnes' / par V. Fatio et D. Studer. 1889
*
Catalogue des Oiseaux de la Suisse – 2: Hiboux et Fissirostres' / par V. Fatio et Th. Studer. 1894
*
Catalogue de Oiseaux de la Suisse – 3:' ''Saxicolinae et Motacillidae.''
* ''Des diverses modifications dans les formes et la coloration des plumes''. (Tiré des Memoires...de Genève tome XVIII, 2ème partie). 1866
* ''Les campagnols du bassin du Léman''. 1867
* ''Importance d'une assurance mutuelle contre le Phylloxera dans le canton de Genève''. 1879
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des Mammifères''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1869
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des reptiles et des batraciens. ''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1872
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des Poissons. Part I.''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1882
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des Poissons. IIme partie. Physostomes (suite et fin), Anacanthiens, Chondrostéens, Cyclostomes.''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1890
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des Oiseaux Ie Partie''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1899
* ''Faune des Vertébrés de la Suisse – Histoire naturelle des Oiseaux IIe Partie''. Genève et Bâle. H. Georg, 1904
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatio, Victor
Leipzig University alumni
Scientists from Geneva
1838 births
1906 deaths
19th-century Swiss zoologists