Martial Étienne Mulsant (2 March 1797,

Marnand, Rhône Marnand () is a former commune in the Rhône department in Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, o ...

– 4 November 1880) was a French

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 ...

and

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 ...

Biography

Initially employed in commerce, Mulsant wrote ''Lettres à Julie sur l'entomologie, suivies d'une description méthodique de la plus grande partie des insectes de France, ornées de planches''... ("Letters to Julie on entomology, followed by a methodical description of the greatest part of the insects of France with, decorated plates..."), dedicated to his future wife, Julie Ronchivole. In 1817, he became

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Saint-Jean-la-Bussière Saint-Jean-la-Bussière () is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list does not includes the ...

, where his parents had property. In 1827 he became, following his father and grandfather, a justice of the peace. He settled in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

in 1830 and in 1839, he obtained a post of assistant

librarian A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time, ...

and then, in 1843, a post of professor of natural history in a college; a post he occupied until 1873. In 1840, he published ''Histoire naturelle des Coléoptères de France'', ("Natural History of the

Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

of France") with various other entomologists :

Antoine Casimir Marguerite Eugène Foudras Antoine Casimir Marguerite Eugène Foudras (19 November 1783, Lyon – 13 April 1859, Lyon) was a French entomologist. He was a Member of the Société Linnéenne de Lyon. Although Eugène Foudras had to work hard to earn his living, he spent all ...

(1783–1859) and Claudius Rey (1817–1895), his former pupil. He also had as pupils Francisque Guillebeau (1821–1897) and Valéry Mayet (1839–1909). His 1846 and 1850 monographs on the subject formed the basis for much of modern

ladybug Coccinellidae () is a widespread family of small beetles ranging in size from . They are commonly known as ladybugs in North America and ladybirds in Great Britain. Some entomologists prefer the names ladybird beetles or lady beetles as they ...

taxonomy. With Jean Baptist Édouard Verreaux (1810–1868), he wrote ''Histoire naturelle des punaises de France'', ("Natural History of the bugs of France") between 1865 and 1879. He also published school texts on

zoology 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 ...

and

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

. He was, for many years, president of the ''Société linnéenne de Lyon''. He was also interested in birds, publishing several studies and taking part in the work of the commission on hunting small birds. In 1868, he wrote ''Lettres à Julie sur l'ornithologie'' ("Letters to Julie on ornithology"), a splendid work on the ''oiseaux-mouches de 1874 à 1877''. A monumental research work was published by Etienne Mulsant, titled ''Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux-Mouches, ou Colibris constituant la famille des Trochilïdes'' (published in 1874–77). It contained 4 text volumes, with a separate Atlas of colored plates in imperial quarto size (lg.4to) by Lyon-Geneve-Bale. The Atlas is illustrated with 120 exceptional, fine, large hand-colored

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

plates of the known species of

hummingbird 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 ...

s. Copies of this illustrated Atlas on hummingbirds are extremely rare. The "hummingbird of Mulsant", ''Acestrura mulsanti'' (now ''

Chaetocercus mulsant The white-bellied woodstar (''Chaetocercus mulsant'') is a species of hummingbird in tribe Mellisugini of subfamily Trochilinae, the "bee hummingbirds". It is found in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) '' ...

''), was named for him by

Jules Bourcier Claude Marie Jules Bourcier (19 February 1797 – 9 March 1873) was a French naturalist and expert on hummingbirds.Prosopo ...

in 1842. The ladybug genus ''

Mulsantina ''Mulsantina'' is a genus of ladybugs (family Coccinellidae), found in North and Central America and in the Caribbean (Haiti). The genus was named by entomologist Julius Weise after Étienne Mulsant, who in 1846 and 1850 published monographs th ...

'' is also named in his honor.

References

External links

Zoologica

Göttingen State and University Library The Göttingen State and University Library (german: Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen or SUB Göttingen) is the library for Göttingen University as well as for the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and is the state li ...

Species des coléoptères trimères sécuripalpes (1850)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mulsant, Etienne 1797 births 1880 deaths People from Rhône (department) Legitimists French entomologists French ornithologists Mayors of places in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes