Joseph Philippe de Clairville (1742 – 31 July 1830) was a notable

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

botanist 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 wo ...

and

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 ...

, who was mainly active in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. De Clairville’s collection of

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 ...

, his chief interest, is in the Natural History Museum in Basel. He was also interested in

Diptera Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced ...

and Odonata. After his stay in Nyon and

Bex Bex (; german: Beis; frp, Bés) is a municipality in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, located in the district of Aigle. It is a few kilometers south of its sister town municipality of Aigle. History Bex is first mentioned in 574 as ''in Bacci ...

in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, he moved to Winterthur in 1782, where he lived the most time until his death in 1830. De Clairville wrote ''Helvetische Entomologie'' published in Zürich in 1798, wrote ''Manuel d'herborisation en Suisse et en Valais'' published in 1811, and translated ''Naturgeschichte der Hof- und Stubenvögel'' by

Johann Matthäus Bechstein Johann Matthäus Bechstein (11 July 1757 – 23 February 1822) was a German naturalist, forester, ornithologist, entomologist, and herpetologist. In Great Britain, he was known for his treatise on singing birds (''Naturgeschichte der Stubenvög ...

into French under the titles ''Manuel de l'amateur des oiseaux de volière'' (1825).

Sources

*Duméril, C. A. M. C. 1823: iographien- Paris; Strasbourg, F. G. Levrault 262 *Evenhuis, N. L. 1997: ''Litteratura taxonomica dipterorum (1758-1930).'' Volume 1 (A-K); Volume 2 (L-Z). - Leiden, Backhuys Publishers 1; 2 VII+1-426; 427-871 *Geilinger 1935: lairville, J. P. de- ''Mitt. naturw. Ges. Winterthur'' 19 *Kiauta, B. 1978: lairville, J. P. de- ''Odonatologica'' 7(3) *''Mitlheilungen der Nanturwissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft Winterthur'', 19, 1932, p. 255-291. {{DEFAULTSORT:Clairville, Joseph Philippe De 19th-century Swiss botanists Swiss entomologists Coleopterists 1742 births 1830 deaths 20th-century Swiss botanists