Gottlieb August Wilhelm Herrich-Schäffer (17 December 1799 – 14 April 1874) was a German

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 ara ...

and

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

. He was born, and died, in

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the ...

. Herrich-Schäffer studied and collected particularly butterflies and moths (

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order of insects that includes butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 families and 46 superfamilies, 10 percent of the total described speci ...

). He was chairman of the Regensburg Botanical Society () from 1861 to 1871, and was awarded an honorary citizenship of Regensburg in 1871. He wrote ''Systematische Bearbeitung der Schmetterlinge von Europa'' between 1843 and 1856, one of the most influential works on the higher classification of Lepidoptera of the 19th century. Many of the lepidopteran higher taxa recognized today were defined in this work for the first time. He based his classification mostly on wing venation. Parts of his collection went to

Otto Staudinger Otto Staudinger (2 May 1830 – 13 October 1900) was a German entomologist and a natural history dealer considered one of the largest in the world specialising in the collection and sale of insects to museums, scientific institutions, and in ...

at the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin and M. J. Bastelberg at the

Zoologische Staatssammlung München The Bavarian State Collection of Zoology (german: Zoologische Staatssammlung München) or ZSM is a major German research institution for zoological systematics in Munich. It has over 20 million zoological specimens. It is one of the largest natur ...

. Many

Microlepidoptera Microlepidoptera (micromoths) is an artificial (i.e., unranked and not monophyletic) grouping of moth families, commonly known as the 'smaller moths' (micro, Lepidoptera). These generally have wingspans of under 20 mm, and are thus harder to ...

in his collection were given to

Ottmar Hofmann Ottmar Hofmann (20 September 1835, in Frankfurt am Main – 22 February 1900, in Regensburg) was a German entomologist. He is not to be confused with Ernst Hofmann, also an entomologist specialising in Lepidoptera. Ottmar Hofmann was a physicia ...

(1835–1900) at the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...

in London. The author citation used for Herrich-Schäffer is Herr.-Schaeff. in

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 ...

or Herrich-Schäffer in

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 kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, an ...

Bibliography

* ''Die wanzenartigen Insekten. Getreu nach der Natur abgebildet und beschrieben''. (Fortsetzung des Hahn’schen Werkes). (Volume 4, 1839 - Volume 9 & Alphabetisches synonymisches Verzeichniss, 1853) F? band. C.H. Zeh, Nbg. 108 pp. 1839. * ''Die Wanzenartigen Insekten. Getreu nach der Natur abgebildet und beschrieben''. Achter band. J.L. Lotzbeck, Nbg. 130 pp. 1848. * ''Systematische Bearbeitung der Schmetterlinge von Europa, Zugleich als Text, Revision und Supplement zu Jacob Hubner’s Sammlung europäischer Schmetterlinge''. (6 Volumes, 1843-1856) Vierter Band. Zünsler u. Wickler. Manz, Regensburg. 288 + 48 pp. 1849 See under Jacob Hubner Commons for scans from this work. * Die Schmetterlinge der Insel Cuba. ''Corr Bl Zool Min Ver Regensb'' 22: 147-156.1868. * ''Nomenclator entomologicus. Verzeichniss der europäischen Insecten, zur Erleichterung des Tauschverkehrs mit Preisen versehen''. Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg 1835-1840 * ''Index alphabetico-synonymicus insectorum hemiptera heteropterorum. Alphabetisch-synonymisches Verzeichniss der wanzenartigen Insecten''. G. J. Manz, Regensburg 1853
''Sammlung neuer oder wenig bekannter aussereuropäischer Schmetterlinge''. G. J. Manz, Regensburg 1850-1858
* ''Neue Schmetterlinge aus Europa und den angrenzenden Ländern''. G. J. Manz, Regensburg 1860 * Neuer Schmetterlinge aus dem

Museum Godeffroy The Museum Godeffroy was a museum in Hamburg, Germany, which existed from 1861 to 1885. The collection was founded by Johann Cesar VI. Godeffroy, who became a wealthy shipping magnate a few years after the expansion of the trade towards Austr ...

in Hamburg. Erste Abtheilung: die Tagfalter.'' Stett. ent. Ztg''. 30(1-3): 65-80, pls. 1-4 1869.

References

* Parts of this article are based on an English translation o
ADB:Herrich-Schäffer, Gottlieb August
@

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Ac ...

. German lepidopterists 1799 births 1874 deaths German taxonomists People from Regensburg 19th-century German zoologists {{entomologist-stub