Alfredo Dugès (birth name- Alfred Auguste Delsescautz Dugès); (16 April 1826 – 7 January 1910) was a French-born, Mexican physician and naturalist born in

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

. He was the son of

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 ...

Antoine Louis Dugès Antoine Louis Dugès (19 December 1797 – 1 May 1838) was a French obstetrician and naturalist born in Charleville-Mézières, Ardennes. He was the father of zoologist Alfredo Dugès (1826–1910), and a nephew to midwife Marie-Louise Lachape ...

(1797-1838). Alfredo Dugès is largely remembered for his extensive studies of Mexican

herpetology Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

. He studied medicine at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

, and in 1852 emigrated to Mexico. He settled in

Guanajuato Guanajuato (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Guanajuato), is one of the 32 states that make up the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 46 municipalities and its capital city i ...

, where he worked as an

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

, also giving classes in natural history at the ''Escuela de Estudios Superiores de Guanajuato''. With his brother,

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 ...

Eugenio Dugès (1826-1895), he organized frequent field trips in order to collect specimens. Dugès published numerous scientific papers in several fields including

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

, and

entomology Entomology () is the science, 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 ...

. At Guanajuato, he was director of the local museum, later named the '' Museo Alfredo Dugès'' ( es) in his honor. In Mexico, he described 40 new species of reptiles and amphibians, of which nearly half are considered valid today. As a botanist, he is the

taxonomic authority In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon) and these groups are given ...

of the genus ''Barcena'' (family

Rhamnaceae The Rhamnaceae are a large family of flowering plants, mostly trees, shrubs, and some vines, commonly called the buckthorn family. Rhamnaceae is included in the order Rosales. The family contains about 55 genera and 950 species. The Rhamnaceae h ...

). Dugès is commemorated in the scientific names of five

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

(three species and two subspecies) of reptiles: '' Diadophis punctatus dugesi'', '' Geophis dugesii'', '' Phrynosoma orbiculare dugesi'', ''

Plestiodon dugesii ''Plestiodon dugesii'', also known commonly as Dugès' skink, Duges's skink, and ''eslabon'' in Mexican Spanish, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to Mexico. Etymology The specific name, ''dugesii'', is i ...

'', and ''

Sceloporus dugesii ''Sceloporus dugesii'', also known commonly as Dugès' spiny lizard and ''la lagartija espinosa de Dugès del este'' in Mexican Spanish, is a species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is endemic to Mexico. Etymology The spe ...

''.

Books about Alfredo Dugès

*"Early foundations of Mexican herpetology; an annotated and indexed bibliography of the herpetological publications of Alfredo Dugès, 1826-1910", by Hobart M. Smith and Rozella B. Smith.Google Books
Early foundations of Mexican herpetology

References

*''This article is based on a translation of an equivalent article at the

French Wikipedia The French Wikipedia (french: Wikipédia en français) is the French-language edition of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. This edition was started on 23 March 2001, two months after the official creation of Wikipedia. It has article ...

.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Duges, Alfredo French emigrants to Mexico Herpetologists Mexican biologists Physicians from Montpellier 1826 births 1910 deaths University of Paris alumni Directors of museums in Mexico Mexican obstetricians

See also

Books about Alfredo Dugès

References