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William Yarrell (3 June 1784 – 1 September 1856) 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 ...
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, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
, prolific writer,
bookseller Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers, bookdealers, bookpeople, bookmen, or bookwomen. The founding of librari ...
and naturalist admired by his contemporaries for his precise scientific work. Yarrell is best known as the author of ''The History of British Fishes'' (2 vols., 1836) and ''
A History of British Birds ''A History of British Birds'' is a natural history book by Thomas Bewick, published in two volumes. Volume 1, ''Land Birds'', appeared in 1797. Volume 2, ''Water Birds'', appeared in 1804. A supplement was published in 1821. The text in ''Lan ...
'' featuring 564 original engravings (in 3 vols., first ed. 1843, second ed. 1845, third ed. 1856). The latter went into several editions and was the standard reference work for a generation of British
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 ...
s. He described
Bewick's swan The tundra swan (''Cygnus columbianus'') is a small swan of the Holarctic. The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific, but are also sometimes split into two species: Bewick's swan (''Cygnus bewickii'') of the Palaearctic and the w ...
in 1830, distinguishing it from the larger
whooper swan The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/) (''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, pronounced ''hooper swan'', is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type specie ...
.


Early life

Yarrell was born in
Duke Street, St James's Duke Street, St James's is a street in the St James's area of the City of Westminster, London. It runs from Piccadilly in the north to King Street in the south, and is crossed by Jermyn Street. Ryder Street joins it on the western side. On ...
in London, to Francis Yarrell and his wife Sarah (née Blane). His father and uncle ran a newspaper agency and bookshop. He studied at Dr Nicholson's school in Ealing. His father died in 1794 and the Yarrells moved the short distance to Great Ryder Street, where William lived the rest of his life. In 1802 he became a clerk with the Herries, Farquhar and Co. bank. In 1803 he and his cousin, Edward Jones, joined his father's business.Anon. (1858) bituaryJournal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society 2:33–3
scanned
/ref> He sometimes left the business in Jones's care, going into the countryside to fish and shoot. He acquired the reputation of being the best shot and the best angler in London, soon becoming an expert naturalist. He sent many bird specimens to
Thomas Bewick Thomas Bewick (c. 11 August 17538 November 1828) was an English wood-engraver and natural history author. Early in his career he took on all kinds of work such as engraving cutlery, making the wood blocks for advertisements, and illustrating ch ...
, who engraved them as woodcuts.


Career

He joined the
Royal Institution The Royal Institution of Great Britain (often the Royal Institution, Ri or RI) is an organisation for scientific education and research, based in the City of Westminster. It was founded in 1799 by the leading British scientists of the age, inc ...
in 1817. His first publication, at the age of 40, was "On the Occurrence of some Rare British Birds" (1825). This was published in the 2nd volume of the 'Zoological Journal' and he later became one of that journal's editors. He was elected a Fellow of the
Linnean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...
in 1825. He wrote in 1827 on the structure of the tracheae of birds and on plumage changes in pheasants. He corresponded and shared specimens with other naturalists including
Thomas Bewick Thomas Bewick (c. 11 August 17538 November 1828) was an English wood-engraver and natural history author. Early in his career he took on all kinds of work such as engraving cutlery, making the wood blocks for advertisements, and illustrating ch ...
(from 1825), Sir William Jardine,
Prideaux John Selby Prideaux John Selby FRSE FLS (23 July 1788 – 27 March 1867) was an English ornithologist, botanist and natural history artist. Life Selby was born in Bondgate Street in Alnwick in Northumberland, the eldest son of George Selby of Beal a ...
and
Nicholas Aylward Vigors Nicholas Aylward Vigors (1785 – 26 October 1840) was an Ireland, Irish zoologist and politician. He popularized the classification of birds on the basis of the quinarian system. Early life Vigors was born at Old Leighlin, County Carlow on 17 ...
, as well as with the Cornish naturalist
Jonathan Couch Jonathan Couch (15 March 1789 – 13 April 1870) was a British naturalist, the only child of Richard and Philippa Couch, of a family long resident at Polperro, a small fishing village between Looe and Fowey, on the south coast of Cornwall. A ...
, who provided him with many specimens, especially of fish. Yarrell was one of the original members of the
Zoological Society of London The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It was founded in 1826. Since 1828, it has maintained the London Zoo, and since 1931 Whipsnade Park. History On 29 ...
. In 1833, he was a founder of what became the
Royal Entomological Society of London The Royal Entomological Society is devoted to the study of insects. Its aims are to disseminate information about insects and improving communication between entomologists. The society was founded in 1833 as the Entomological Society of London ...
. He was acknowledged by
John James Audubon John James Audubon (born Jean-Jacques Rabin; April 26, 1785 – January 27, 1851) was an American self-trained artist, naturalist, and ornithologist. His combined interests in art and ornithology turned into a plan to make a complete pictoria ...
both as a "valued friend" and for the information and "precious specimens of birds and eggs, collected in the desolate regions of the extreme north." He served for many years as treasurer both of the Entomological Society and of the Linnean Society.


Works

Yarrell's major works were ''A History of British Fishes'' (1836) and ''
A History of British Birds ''A History of British Birds'' is a natural history book by Thomas Bewick, published in two volumes. Volume 1, ''Land Birds'', appeared in 1797. Volume 2, ''Water Birds'', appeared in 1804. A supplement was published in 1821. The text in ''Lan ...
'' (1843), the latter having the same title as the popular book by
Thomas Bewick Thomas Bewick (c. 11 August 17538 November 1828) was an English wood-engraver and natural history author. Early in his career he took on all kinds of work such as engraving cutlery, making the wood blocks for advertisements, and illustrating ch ...
, published from 1797 to 1804, but with a different set of engravings. ''British Birds'' was first published "in thirty-seven parts of three sheets each, at intervals of two months; the first Part was issued in July 1837 and the last in May 1843." The sheets were then collected into two volumes, with the addition of "many occurrences of rare birds and of some that were even new to Britain". The additional birds were listed and briefly described in the Preface and "the new subjects have been engraved on single leaves, so paged, that the bookbinder may insert these separate leaves among the birds of the genus to which each respectively belongs." ''British Birds'' was illustrated with drawings by
Alexander Fussell Alexander Fussell or Fussel (b. circa 1814, Warwickshire; d. 1881) was an English artist and illustrator. He drew the bird illustrations for William Yarrell's 1843 ''History of British Birds''. Life and career Fussell painted in various me ...
. Yarrell thanks him for "nearly five hundred of the drawings on wood here employed". The pen for the remaining drawings (the title-page asserts there are 520 in the book) is not stated. Yarrell also thanks John Thompson (1785–1866) and his sons for the "very long series of
engravings Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an in ...
" of the drawings, as well as his printers, Messrs. Bentley, Wilson and Fley. At the time of its release, Yarrell's ''Birds'' was considered the best work on the subject both scientifically and artistically, as noted by Prof. Alfred Newton in his "Prospectus" to the 1871 edition, from which Yarrell's introduction was removed along with the names of contributing artists under Thompson's direction. Both Yarrell's books were so popular that their publisher stated that sales exceeded £4,000. Thomas R Forbes, in his biographical paper on Yarrell, writes that "All ditions of ''Birds''are outstanding because of the author's clear, narrative style, accuracy, careful scholarship and unassuming charm." Yarrell's last paper, "On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in Modifying External Character" (1856), described an experiment that disproved the belief that when a stag lacks a healthy testicle, it will fail to grow an antler on that side of the body.


Legacy

Yarrell died during a trip to
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
and a memorial was erected in
St James's Church, Piccadilly St James's Church, Piccadilly, also known as St James's Church, Westminster, and St James-in-the-Fields, is an Anglican church on Piccadilly in the centre of London, United Kingdom. The church was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren. T ...
. He was buried in the churchyard of St Mary's in Bayford, Hertfordshire, with his chosen epitaph "He was the survivor of twelve brothers and sisters, who, with their father and mother, are all placed close to this spot" together with
William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...
's lines "first and last, The earliest summon'd and the longest spared — Are here deposited." Yarrell has a number of species named after him, including the birds
yellow-faced siskin The yellow-faced siskin (''Spinus yarrellii'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Brazil and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist mountains, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, arable ...
(''Carduelis yarrellii'') and Chilean woodstar (''Eulidia yarrellii'') and the fish Yarrell's blenny (''Chirolophis ascanii''). The British subspecies of the
white wagtail The white wagtail (''Motacilla alba'') is a small passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which also includes pipits and longclaws. The species breeds in much of Europe and the Asian Palearctic and parts of North Africa. It has a toehold in ...
, the pied wagtail (''Motacilla alba yarrellii''), was also named for him.


Publications

* ''Observations on the Tracheae of Birds, with Descriptions and Representations of several not hitherto figured''. — Linn. Trans. 1827, 15. 378. * ''Description of a species of
Tringa ''Tringa'' is a genus of waders, containing the shanks and tattlers. The genus name ''Tringa'' is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by the Italian naturalist Ulisse Aldrovandi in 1599. They are mainly freshwater birds, often with ...
, killed in Cambridgeshire, new to England and Europe.'' — Linn. Trans. 16. 109. * ''On the Organs of Voice in Birds''. — Linn. Trans. 16. 305. * ''On a new species of Wild Swan, taken in England, and hitherto confounded with the Hooper''. — Linn. Trans. 16. 445. * ''Description of the Organs of Voice in a new species of Wild Swan (
Cygnus buccinator The trumpeter swan (''Cygnus buccinator'') is a species of swan found in North America. The heaviest living bird native to North America, it is also the largest extant species of waterfowl, with a wingspan of 185 to 250 cm (6 ft 2 in to 8 ft 2 in ...
, Richards.)''. — Linn. Trans. 17. * ''Descriptions of Three British Species of Freshwater Fishes, belonging to the genus
Leuciscus ''Leuciscus'' is a genus of fish belonging to the family Cyprinidae. They are inland water fishes commonly called Eurasian daces. The genus is widespread from Europe to Siberia. Species broadly distributed in Europe include the common dace ''Le ...
of Klein''. — Linn. Trans. 17. 5. * ''On the Habits and Structure of the Great Bustard (
Otis tarda The great bustard (''Otis tarda'') is a bird in the bustard family, the only member of the genus ''Otis''. It breeds in open grasslands and farmland from northern Morocco, South and Central Europe, to temperate Central and East Asia. European ...
of
Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...
)''. — Linn. Trans. 21. 155. * ''Notice of an Interwoven Mass of Filaments of Conferva fluviatilis of extraordinary size''. — Proc. Linn. Soc. 1. 65. * ''On the Influence of the Sexual Organ in modifying External Character''. — Journ. Linn. Soc. 1857, 1. 76–82.
''On the Growth of the Salmon in Freshwater, with six coloured illustrations of the fish of the natural size''
Oblong Folio. van Voorst, London, 1839.


References


External links


Princeton University: William Yarrell Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yarrell, William 1784 births 1856 deaths People from Westminster English ornithologists Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Entomological Society Secretaries of the Zoological Society of London English booksellers 19th-century British businesspeople