Boonsong Lekagul (15 December 1907 – 9 February 1992) was a Thai medical doctor,

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

, ornithologist,

herpetologist 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 rep ...

,Boelens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael. (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Boonsong", p. 31). and conservationist. He was born at Songkhla in southern Thailand and received a medical degree from

Chulalongkorn University Chulalongkorn University (CU, th, จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย, ), nicknamed Chula ( th, จุฬาฯ), is a public and autonomous research university in Bangkok, Thailand. The university was originally fo ...

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

in 1933. In 1935 he established Thailand's first

polyclinic A polyclinic (where ''poly'' means "many"; not to be confused with the homonym policlinic, where ''poli'' means "city" and which is sometimes used for a hospital's outpatient department) is a clinic or health care facility that provides both gen ...

in Bangkok. At first a keen hunter, he became a strong conservationist as he saw Thailand's forests and wildlife becoming fragmented and destroyed. In 1952 he founded the Association for the Conservation of Wildlife. In the mid-1950s, he and the ACW lobbied for a bird sanctuary on the banks of the Chao Phraya River to protect the only known nesting site in Thailand of the

openbill stork The openbill storks or openbills are two species of stork (family (biology), family ''Ciconiidae'') in the genus ''Anastomus''. They are large wading birds characterized by large bills, the mandibles of which do not meet except at the tip. This f ...

. In 1962 he founded the Bangkok Bird Club (the Bird Conservation Society of Thailand since 1993) and worked actively with the

International Council for Bird Preservation BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

and the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...

Eponymous species

Several

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

and subspecies are named after Boonsong Lekagul in honour of his work as naturalist and conservationist: *Boonsong's roundleaf bat, '' Hipposideros lekaguli'' *Boonsong's variable squirrel, ''Callosciurus finlaysonii boonsongi'' *

Hill blue flycatcher The hill blue flycatcher (''Cyornis whitei'') is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in southern China, northeastern India and Southeast Asia. It was treated as a subspecies of ''Cyornis banyumas'' before molecular phyloge ...

, ''Cyornis whitei lekhakuni'' * Grey-eyed bulbul, ''Iole propinqua lekhakuni'' *Boonsong's stream snake, '' Opisthotropis boonsongi'' – a

snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

, in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Colubridae *Tuk-kai Boonsong, '' Cyrtodactylus lekaguli'' – a species of bent-toed gecko endemic to Thailand"''Cyrtodactylus lekaguli'' ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org. *Lekagul's horned frog, '' Xenophrys (

Megophrys ''Megophrys'' is a genus of frogs in the family Megophryidae. They are endemic to Indonesia, where they are found on the islands of Java and Sumatra. They commonly have elongated upper "eyebrows" and are thus known as Indonesian horned toads. T ...

) lekaguli'' – a megophryid

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" ''Triadobatrachus'' is ...

from Eastern

Awards

*Honorary member of the

World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wor ...

, 1971 *Commander (Third Class) of the Most Exalted

Order of the White Elephant __NOTOC__ The Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันเป็นที่เชิดชูยิ่งช้างเผือก; ) is an order of Thailand. It wa ...

, 1974 *Corresponding

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the American Ornithologists Union, 1974 *

Honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

in Forestry,

Kasetsart University Kasetsart University ( th, มหาวิทยาลัยเกษตรศาสตร์; ), commonly known and referred to as Kaset or KU, is a public research university in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the largest university in Thailand. It ...

, 1976 *Honorary member of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, 1978 * J. Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation Prize from the World Wildlife Fund US, 1979 *

in sciences, Chulalongkorn University, 1979 * Order of the Golden Ark from Prince Bernard of the Netherlands, 1980 *Knight Commander (Second Class) of the Most Noble

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันมีเกียรติยศยิ่งมงกุฎไทย; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama ...

, 1985

Publications

Works authored or coauthored by him include: *Lekagul, Boonsong (1968). ''Bird Guide of Thailand''. (Illustrated by the author). *Lekagul, Boonsong (1969). Monitors (''Varanus'') of Thailand. ''Conservation News of S.E. Asia'' 8: 31–32. *Lekagul, Boonsong; Cronin, Paul (1974). ''Bird Guide of Thailand''. (2nd edition). (Illustrated by the senior author). Bangkok: Association for the Conservation of Wildlife. *Lekagul, Boonsong; Askins, Karen; Nabhitabhata, Jarujinta; Samruadit, Aroon (1977). ''Fieldguide to the Butterflies of Thailand''. Bangkok: Association for the Conservation of Wildlife. *Lekagul, Boonsong; McNeely, Jeffrey A. (1977). ''Mammals of Thailand''. *Lekagul, Boonsong; Round, Philip D. (1991). ''A Guide to the Birds of Thailand''. (Illustrated by Mongkol Wongkalasin and Kamol Komolphalin). Thailand: Saha Karn Bhaet Co.

References

External links

Bird Conservation Society of ThailandOfficial Dr Boonsong Lekagul Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lekagul, Boonsong Lekagul, Boonsong Lekagul, Boonsong Lekagul, Boonsong Boonsong Lekagul Boonsong Lekagul Boonsong Lekagul Lekagul, Boonsong

Eponymous species

Awards

Publications

References

Further reading

External links